September 20, 2011

Pasta e Fagioli

Nothing makes you feel better than a warm bowl of savory soup on a ~~rainy~~ snowy day…

INGREDIENTS

3 cloves of fresh garlic
1 vidalia onion
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp sugar
1 – 28 oz. can of Pastene ‘Kitchen Ready’ tomatoes
2 cups water (you could also use 1 cup water, 1 cup chicken broth if you have it on hand)
1 – 6 oz. can of Hunt’s tomato paste
3 cans of white cannellini beans (with the starch)
2 links of sausage (I use one hot and one mild)
1/4 lb. – 1 lb. ditallini pasta
- The amount of pasta you use totally depends on how “soupy” you want this dish to be — if you use the full lb. it’s more like a meal than a soup
Salt to taste
Pepper to taste
1 tsp dried parsley
3 bay leaves
Parmesan cheese (Optional: mix in 3/4 cup grated parmesan into the soup at the end)
Optional: mix in a hefty splash of cream to add some richness to the soup

Remove the sausage from its casing and brown it in the bottom of a large soup pot
Chop up the fresh garlic and onion and saute it with the sausage in the pot with 1 tbsp olive oil and 1 tsp sugar – add the onions first, then the garlic to avoid burning the garlic
Add in the Pastene ‘Kitchen Ready’ tomatoes, Hunt’s tomato paste and 2 cups of water
Season with salt, pepper and parsley
- Simmer the contents of the pot for 30-40 mins (bring it to a boil and then reduce to medium-high heat)
While the soup is simmering, cook the dittalini in a separate pot
Once the soup has simmered for 30-40 minutes, add in the 3 cans of cannellini beans with the starch and the pasta
Reduce heat to low and let the soup cook for another 10 minutes – at this point if you want to add cheese and cream to the soup, do so now; otherwise, serve up a bowl and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese!
- Note: if the soup becomes too thick you can thin it out by simmering water mixed with tomato paste (approximately 2 cups of water to every 6 oz. of tomato paste), garlic, salt, pepper, and parsley – once this mixture has simmered for at least 10 minutes, you can add it back into your soup