There is one dish I remember
always eating for dinner with my family as a kid. It would typically be on a weeknight in the cold-weather months. It was good piping hot, but even better sitting on the stove top for an hour or two and coming to room temperature
(not ServSafe, I know). I remember seeing it on a menu in a restaurant as a teenager, excitedly ordering it out for the first time... but what was served to me was insultingly NOT what my mom made. It is a true family recipe, which my mom made exactly the way her grandmother made it. And here I sit, in Keene, enjoying that same flavor I've experienced with my great Grandma Cicconi, my grammy, and my mother!
Pasta e Fagioli
 |
| This photo of my family was taken on Christmas day in 1982. The beautiful woman in the top left is my great Grandma Cicconi. My mom is in the bottom left corner, with my oldest brother. |
This recipe comes from my great Grandma Cicconi. She cooked delicious Italian food for her family on a tight budget. I think
Pasta e Fagioli (
let Giorgio pronounce it for you here) sums up her cooking style so well because it is
very simple, low in cost, with perfect flavor. The translation from Italian literally means "pasta and beans." Each cook makes it their own, which is why I can't enjoy just any soup by the same name! It's ready in 20 minutes. We eat it with a little sprinkle of Parmesan cheese. Here's how to make it...
Recipe: Pasta e Fagioli
In a saucepan, saute
1/2 an onion in a bit of
olive oil, until soft. Add
1 can tomato sauce,
1 can pinto beans (rinsed and drained), and
1 can water.
Salt and
pepper to taste. Bring to a boil. Add
1 cup elbow macaroni, and cook a minute or two less than box directions suggest (about 5-6 minutes), stirring occasionally. Remove from heat, and let sit 5-10 minutes. Soup will seem thin at first, but the pasta absorbs the extra liquid and it thickens significantly! Top with
cracked black pepper and a bit of
Parmesan.
 |
| Pasta e Fagioli a la Grandma Cicconi |
It's simple and healthful, an easy vegetarian meal! Now, for the first time, I used
whole wheat pasta in the soup.
Don't tell my people, but I actually like it a tiny bit better with white pasta... however, I would still make the whole wheat transition in this recipe for the improved nutrition. The texture is a bit different, which I'm not used to in such a classic Italian dish. I bet seasoned Italian cooks like my great grandma would cringe at the thought of whole wheat pasta...
or corn and rice pasta, which my mom now uses!
I do love this soup, and I have to make it at least once a year. It reminds me of a simpler time for my family... before we spread out to Germany, Texas, and New Hampshire. I love how food can do that!
Buon appetito!
