Pasta and beans

Pasta and beans

Presentation

Pasta and beans is one of the most classic Italian dishes, however in Italy there are many variations. Here I offer you one of the most typical recipes to make you understand the philosophy behind it, then you can indulge yourself according to your tastes.

Ingredients:

  • 240 grams of beans boiled in salted water
  • 70 grams of pasta
  • 1 shallot or half an onion
  • half a stalk of celery
  • half a carrot
  • a clove of garlic
  • 1 sprig of sage
  • 1 sprig of rosemary
  • half a liter of broth (vegetable or meat as you prefer)
  • 1 teaspoon tomato concentrate
  • olive oil as required
  • black pepper as required
  • chilli pepper as required
  • salt if necessary

Preparation:

Preparation of ingredients

1 Finely chop the shallot, celery and carrot, then 2 remove the core from the garlic clove and, 3 with a kitchen string, tie the rosemary and sage sprigs together.

Sauteed

4 Finally blend 70% of the beans with half of the broth. 5 At this point, pour about three tablespoons of olive oil together with the previously prepared mince into a small saucepan and fry over medium-high heat. 6 Immediately add the garlic and the bunch of sage and rosemary, and saute for about 7-8 minutes.

Cooking pasta and beans

7 When the sauté is ready, add the bean purée, the rest of the broth and the 8 tomato paste. Stir well to combine the ingredients and bring to a boil. 9 When it boils, add the pasta and cook for a couple of minutes longer than the cooking time for the pasta. Correct with salt if necessary.

Finishing pasta and beans

10 When the pasta is cooked add the remaining whole beans 11 and a sprinkling of chilli pepper to taste. 12 Serve, add a drizzle of raw olive oil, a sprinkling of black pepper and a few sage leaves for decoration.

Advise

  • Use a small pasta shape, suitable for eating with a spoon, I used ditaloni.
  • You can use fresh, dried or even canned beans for added convenience.

Author:

Luigi Silvestri Corradin

Video