When we’re not eating pizza, a warm bowl of soup is a nice treat, especially during the harsh Boston winters. Every now and then we serve a delicious Pasta e Fagioli. It’s hearty, filling, and quite tasty. Today we’re sharing a recipe from one of our favorite chefs, J. Kenji Lopez-Alt. It’ll only take you about 30 minutes to make, so consider this one of your go-to weeknight recipes.
INGREDIENTS:
- One 28-ounce can whole tomatoes
- 2 tbsp. Extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 tbsp. unsalted butter
- 3 oz. pancetta, finely chopped
- 1 medium onion, finely diced (about 1 cup)
- 6 medium cloves garlic, minced
- ½ tsp. Dried oregano
- ½ tsp. Red pepper flakes
- 4 cups homemade or low-sodium canned chicken stock
- Two 15-ounce cans red kidney beans, with their liquid
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 cup small pasta, such as shells, ditali, or elbows
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 2 tbsp. Chopped fresh parsley
METHOD:
- Pour the tomatoes into a medium bowl and squeeze each one through your fingers to break it up into small pieces (be careful–they can squirt). Set aside.
- Heat the olive oil and butter in a large saucepan over medium-high heat until the butter is melted. If using pancetta, add it to the pan and cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium, add the onion, garlic, oregano, and red pepper flakes, and cook, stirring, until the onion is fragrant and softened but not browned, about 3 minutes. Add the tomatoes, with their juice, the chicken stock, kidney beans, and bay leaves, bring to a boil over high heat, and then reduce to a bare simmer. Cook for 20 minutes, adding the pasta to the soup for the last 5 to 10 minutes (depending on the package instructions).
- Season the soup to taste with salt and pepper. Discard the bay leaves, stir in the parsley, and serve, drizzling each serving with olive oil.
