kent escalate: Meatless and Hearty: Pasta e Fagioli (Pasta and Bean Soup)

Saturday, March 9, 2013

Meatless and Hearty: Pasta e Fagioli (Pasta and Bean Soup)

Pasta e Fagioli is a quick and hearty meatless soup to prepare.

My family enjoys a good, meatless meal several times a week. ?I?m picky about the meatless meals I serve. ?They need to be delicious and filling. With two teenagers and a hungry husband, they want ?a meal that doesn?t leave them hungry. And, at the same time, I want a recipe that?s healthy and not too expensive to prepare. ?This Pasta e Fagioli (or Pasta and Bean Soup) recipe is all of these things. ?Pasta e Fagioli (pronounced ?Pasta Fazool?) is an Italian soup that is often served during Lent in our home. ?It is quick to prepare and can easily be stretched to feed a few more mouths.

Ingredients

1 small fennel bulb with the fronds
1 teaspoon of extra virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon minced garlic
2 cups vegetable broth
1/2 cup medium pasta (I used multi-grain penne rigata.)
1 1/2 cups V8 Juice (Hot & Spicy)
1 14.5 ounce can of diced tomatoes
1 15 ounce can of black beans
1/2 cup frozen petite peas
shredded cheese to top

Directions

Remove the fronds from the fennel bulb and set aside. ?Slice the fennel bulb into thin slices. You will need about one cup.
Sautee the sliced fennel and the minced garlic in the olive oil over medium heat for about 5 minutes.
Add the broth and the pasta and cook for 5 minutes uncovered.
Stir in the V8, diced tomatoes, beans, and frozen peas. Cook for about 10 minutes or until the fennel is tender.
Top with shredded cheese. ?Sprinkle chopped fennel fronds over the top of the cheese and serve.

Pasta e Fagioli is a very frugal dish to prepare. ?You can change the type of beans you use based on what you have on hand. ?You can add a bit more vegetable broth to the soup if you need to stretch it for a few extra guests. ?Although I like to keep the pasta down to watch my carbs, you can also add in more pasta to bulk up the soup. ?While I enjoy Vermont cheddar cheese shredded over the top of my Pasta e Fagioli, you can easily use Gouda, crumbled feta or even goat cheese depending on your preferences. ?Pasta e Fagioli is just as good (if not better) reheated the next day for lunch. ?Try it today!