Pasta Fagioli

Fall is already on my mind and summer is not yet over, not even close. We just got back from a week long vacation in beautiful Colorado. The change of scenery and weather was just what I needed. Can you tell work has been busy? I haven’t been blogging and I haven’t left comments on many blogs in ages. I’m working on it though.

Anyway, being in cooler weather for a week and coming home to stores that have out the fall and Halloween stuff gave me a craving for fall. Fall = soup! I think they’re trying to torture us in Texas. Yes Halloween and fall are wonderful, but don’t taunt us. We’re no where close to cooler weather! Anyway – just for fun, here’s a photo from our vacation and thus the reason for my craving for soup:

Despite the 100+ degree weather, I couldn’t resist making some soup. Corn chowder seemed like an obvious summer choice but I wanted to make something new and decided on Pasta Fagioli, something I tried for the first time at a restaurant about a month ago. I’ve actually seen quite a few recipes for this on the blogosphere lately which is probably why it was on my mind.

Pasta Fagioli, meaning “pasta and beans” originated as a peasant dish. The base is generally made of olive oil, garlic, minced onion, and spices, along with stewed tomatoes or tomato paste. Or traditionally in home recipes, leftover marinara sauce. And actually, some variations don’t contain tomato at all. With all that in mind, I figure there is no “right” way to make pasta fagioli; it is a peasant dish after all which means you use what you have on hand. Want to add more veggies? Throw in some carrots and zucchini. Don’t have ground beef? Try Italian sausage like Chelle did, or use pancetta and/or proscuitto as seen in this Giada recipe. The possibilities are endless!

Pasta Fagioli

1 pound ground beef
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 medium onion, finely chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
4 large stalks celery, thinly sliced
28 oz can diced tomatoes
1/2 – 1 tsp crushed red pepper
1 can red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 can cannelini beans, drained and rinsed
64 oz low-sodium beef broth
16 oz tomato sauce
2 Tbsp dried parsley
1/2 tsp dried basil
1/4 tsp dried oregano
kosher salt & pepper, to taste
6 oz small dry pasta of choice

In a large stockpot over medium high heat, brown the ground beef, crumbling it as it cooks. Once brown, remove beef from pot with a slotted spoon and discard any grease that remains in the pot.

Add 2 tablespoons of olive oil to the same pot and add the onion, garlic, and celery, and saute over medium heat until vegetables are soft.. Add ground beef back to the pot, add undrained can of diced tomatoes, and crushed red pepper. Simmer for 10-15 minutes.

Add the beans, beef broth, tomato sauce and all of the remaining seasonings. Stir well. Turn the heat to high and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer for 30 minutes. Add pasta and continue to simmer on low for another 30 minutes. Serve hot.

Tagged as: Skinny, Soup