Pasta e fagioli

[shain]

There are two ways in which I make this dish, in first one, listed here, I use one pot to cook the vegetables and beans together. In the other I dice the vegetables and lightly saute them separately in butter. In both the vegetables are blended. The first version has a cleaner flavor, the second a slightly browned, heartier one. I'm not sure which I like better. 

 

Ingredients:

 

• 450 g dried brown Borlotti beans, soaked overnight 
• 2 onions cut into quarters (250-300 g)
• 1 large carrot or two small, peeled and halved (150-200 g)
• 3 medium-sized celery branches, with leaves, halved
• 2 rosemary branches + a few leaves to serve
• A small sage branch
• 1 teaspoon fennel seeds or anise seeds
• 2.5 teaspoons of salt
• 6 garlic cloves
• 2-3 teaspoons "nutritional yeast" (if not using stock) 
• Black pepper,  generously
• One or two tablespoons of lemon juice
• About 400 g small hollow pasta, such as: Ditalini (rings) or Gnocchini (small shells)
• 1 teaspoon salt

To serve:

• Olive oil, use an aromatic one
• Plenty of black pepper
• Grated parmesan/pecorino  cheese (optional, prefer a nutty cheese over a sharp one)
• A few rosemary leaves

 

preparation

• In pressure cooker, place the beans, onions, carrots, celery, rosemary, sage, fennel seeds, garlic yeast and salt.
• Cover with stock or water.
• Cook until the beans are tender (about 25 minutes under high pressure). 
• Remove the rosemary and sage branches and discard them.
• Remove a third of the beans, along with any vegetable, and blend smooth.
• Mix back with the whole beans. 
• Add a little water if the dish is too thick.
• Add black pepper generously and a spoon or two of lemon juice.  Add more salt if needed.

To serve:

• Heat well. 
• Add pasta to each dish. 
• Drizzle with aromatic olive oil, sprinkle with some ground black pepper, a few rosemary leaves, and parmesan cheese.

Edited February 4, 2018 by shain (log)

[HungryChris]

31 minutes ago, shain said:

• 

 

Boy, that looks really great!

HC

[weinoo]

It looks okay, but the recipe is wanting.

 

How is the pasta cooked?  It certainly doesn't go in the pressure cooker with the beans.

 

I'm not a fan of whole rosemary leaves as garnish; is anyone?

[heidih]

3 hours ago, weinoo said:

I'm not a fan of whole rosemary leaves as garnish; is anyone?

 

I'm not - pretty but quite dominating. I treat it more like bay and use whole sprigs removed after they have served a purpose. I'm fortunate to have bushes of different varieties with varying intensities. I do like the itty bitty blue/lavender flowers as a tasty garnish

Edited February 4, 2018 by heidih (log)

[shain]

4 hours ago, weinoo said:

It looks okay, but the recipe is wanting.

 

How is the pasta cooked?  It certainly doesn't go in the pressure cooker with the beans.

 

I'm not a fan of whole rosemary leaves as garnish; is anyone?

 

I've tried to keep the recipe brief. The pasta is cooked separately, in salted water, until done to your liking. I go as al dente as I like for any other pasta dish. 

 

I'll admit of having very little aversion to rosemary at all, and I find the flavor of the leaves from my plant quite delicate in winter. 

So yeah, feel free to skip them, that's a recipe, not a legal contract 

[shain]

41 minutes ago, heidih said:

I do like the itty bitty blue/lavender flowers as a tasty garnish

That's a great idea. It will take a month or two before my plant flowers, but I'll try and remember using it.