I saw this dish on MasterChef, liked the sound of it, so looked up a recipe, tweaked it a tad, cooked it, loved it and here it is!
It is a simple, quick, inexpensive and tasty pasta stew which makes such a lovely dinner or lunch during the winter months. If you like the sound of it, follow the recipe and you will have 6-8 meals. If you want to include some meat in addition to the vegetables, beans and pasta, fry off some pancetta or bacon when cooking the onions, celery and carrots - here’s the recipe
Please don’t be put off by the long list of ingredients!
Ingredients
4 tablespoons olive oil
2 medium onions, finely chopped
2 carrots, chopped
2-3 ribs celery, chopped
¾ teaspoon sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
2-3 cloves garlic, pressed or minced
1 can crushed tomatoes
4 cups/1 litre vegetable stock – you can use any form you like
3 cups water
2 bay leaves
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon chilli flakes – optional, I did use
2 cans (400 gms each) cannellini beans, butter beans, or chickpeas, rinsed and drained – I used cannellini
1 cup elbow or small shell pasta of choice – I used seashell pasta which you can buy at your supermarket
2 cups chopped kale (tough ribs removed first), or spinach
1/2 cup finely chopped Italian parsley
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice (about 1/2 medium lemon)
Grated parmesan cheese – how much you like! I used about half a cup
Optional – 80-100 gms pancetta or bacon
Cooking instructions
Leftovers taste even better the next day. Allow leftover soup to cool to room temperature, then cover and refrigerate for up to 5 days. Or, freeze leftover soup in individual portions and defrost as necessary.
You may need to add some stock or water on the second (and third) day as the pasta and beans may have absorbed some of the liquid
Buon Appetito!
Serves 6-8