When beans meet pasta, something magical happens. Chef Ryan Pollnow from Flour + Water Foods shared his take on the classic Italian dish, pasta e fagioli.
Photo credit: Flour + Water Foods
- 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus 2 tablespoons to garnish
- ½ yellow onion, diced
- 2 celery stalks, diced
- 6 garlic cloves, chopped
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano leaves
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 32 oz vegetable broth
- 12 oz crushed canned tomatoes
- 1 bunch Tuscan kale, chopped (stems and all)
- 1 Parmigiano Reggiano rind (optional)
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- Freshly cracked pepper
- Pinch of red pepper flakes
- 8 oz Flour + Water Foods Elbow Macaroni (½ box)
- 2 tablespoons kosher salt (for cooking the pasta)
- 2 cups cooked Rancho Gordo Cranberry beans (see below)
- 2 oz Parmigiano Reggiano, freshly grated
Serves 4
- Add olive oil to a large enamelware or cast-iron pot and heat over medium-high. Add onions and celery and saute, stirring often, for 2 minutes. Add a large pinch of salt and continue cooking for another 5 to 6 minutes, or until the onions and celery are soft and slightly caramelized, but not overly browned. Add garlic, dried oregano leaves, and tomato paste, and saute for an additional minute. Deglaze the pan with the vegetable broth. Add crushed tomatoes, kale, Parmigiano Reggiano rind (if using), and salt and pepper. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce to a bare simmer and cover. Continue cooking for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- To cook the pasta, bring 2 quarts of water to a boil in a 4-quart stock pot. Add 2 tablespoons of kosher salt to the water and make sure it remains at a constant boil over high heat. Drop the pasta into the salted water and stir to prevent the pasta from sticking to the bottom. Stir the pot often to ensure the individual noodles are constantly moving and cook evenly. When the pasta is just slightly undercooked (about 9 minutes), transfer directly to the stew base in the pot.
- Add the cranberry beans (along with approximately 1 to 1 ½ cups of their cooking liquid, depending on how thick you like your stew) to the pot and simmer for an additional minute to heat through. Season with salt to taste.
- To serve, divide between 4 serving bowls and garnish with a healthy drizzle of extra virgin olive oil, freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano, and more freshly cracked pepper.
To cook the beans:
- 2 cups uncooked Rancho Gordo Cranberry beans
- 2 celery stalks
- 1 carrot
- 1/2 of a yellow onion
- 4 garlic cloves
- 4 bay leaves
- 1 tablespoon kosher salt
- Soak the beans in 4 quarts of cold water overnight in the fridge.
- To cook the beans: Drain the soaked beans into a colander and give them a quick rinse. In a blender, combine the celery, carrot, onion, garlic, and 4 cups of water. Blend into the grossest smoothie ever. (The objective here is to create a super flavorful broth for your beans without requiring you to fish out all the onion and vegetable bits when you drain your cooked beans.) Pour the vegetable puree into an 8-quart Dutch oven or a heavy-bottomed stockpot. Add the beans, 4 more cups of water, and the bay leaves. You want to have plenty of liquid so that there’s room for the beans to be in constant motion. Bring to a boil, and then reduce to a gentle boil. Cook, covered, until tender. The length of time will vary based on the freshness of your beans, but expect anywhere from 1 to 3 hours, testing along the way.
- Uncover the pot and season the broth with salt. Remove the pot from the heat, and let the beans continue to cool in the broth, so the salt gradually seasons them. Once cool, drain the beans in a colander, set over a bowl to capture all that flavorful bean broth. Reserve the broth for use in your soup.
- Once all the liquid has drained through, give your beans (in the colander) a good rinse to remove any of your vegetable smoothie residue. Discard the bay leaves.
This recipe will yield more than you need for the stew, but you can store the rest in an airtight container for 3 to 4 days.