I have just returned home from hosting our beautiful Relish Mama tour in Sicily and, goodness me, what a special time it was.
Sicily is a place that quietly captures your heart and never really lets go. I fell in love with Sicily many, many years ago and it is always such a great honour to share this beautiful part of Italy with our guests. I love it for many reasons…. The passionate Sicilians, the incredible light and weather, the wonderful markets, the coastline, the street food, the olive groves and the most beautiful olive oil. I especially love the way even the simplest food is treated with such genuine love and respect. We cooked, and we ate, and we wandered, we bonded, we laughed (a lot), and yes, like true Italians, we ate pasta pretty much every single day. I don’t regret a single mouthful, although the extra notches on my belt would say otherwise.
Now that I arrived back home to Melbourne, winter is well and truly here. The weather has shifted from warm Sicilian days to cold mornings, early evenings and a chill that makes you want to put a pot on the stove and let something nourishing bubble away.
This Italian pasta e fagioli felt like exactly the right thing to cook.
Pasta e fagioli is one of those humble Italian dishes that makes so much sense once the weather cools. It is generous, economical, nourishing and made with everyday ingredients. In Sicily, fresh borlotti beans are often used when they are in season, and the dish is simple, generous and all about good ingredients.
My version here is inspired by that beautiful simplicity. It is made with borlotti beans, an aromatic base of onion, celery, carrot and fennel, a little garlic, rosemary, bay, vegetable stock and small pasta. There is nothing fancy here, but that is exactly the beauty of it.
The olive oil really matters. I have used Ravida extra virgin olive oil.
We visited Ravida Estate on our very recent trip to Sicily, and it was magnificent. This is a simple dish, so the final drizzle of beautiful extra-virgin olive oil brings everything together and makes it sing.
This is also a fabulous way to bring more vegetables, beans and nourishment into your daily menu, in the most comforting and delicious way. After a few weeks of travelling, eating out, celebrating, tasting and indulging just a little too much each day in Italy, this was the sort of food my body was asking for when I came home. Still Italian. Still comforting. Still loaded with flavour. But also grounding, nourishing and a little less waist-expanding.
Pasta e fagioli simply means pasta and beans. It is a traditional Italian pasta-and-bean soup found in many regions, each with its own variations. Some versions include tomato, others are kept white. Some include pancetta or pork, while others are vegetarian. Some are served quite brothy, while others are thick and creamy.
This version sits somewhere between a soup and a stew, which is just how I like it.
Why you’ll love this pasta e fagioli recipe
This pasta e fagioli is hearty, nourishing and full of flavour, but still simple enough for everyday cooking. It is the sort of recipe that asks very little of you but gives so much back.
It is also wonderfully practical. I have made this version with tinned borlotti beans so you can cook it without needing to soak beans overnight. Of course, if you have dried borlotti beans and a little more time, they will also be beautiful here.
This is a gorgeous winter soup recipe. It is warming, filling and satisfying, but it does not feel heavy. The vegetables soften slowly into the base, the beans make it creamy and comforting, and the pasta turns it into a complete meal.
It is also the kind of dish that tastes even better after a little rest, which makes leftovers a very good thing indeed.
Borlotti beans are creamy, earthy and perfect for this style of Italian bean soup. They hold their shape nicely, but they also soften enough to help thicken the soup.
The vegetables matter too. Onion, celery and carrot form the classic base, and I love adding fennel for a little sweetness and freshness. The fennel fronds are lovely scattered over the top at the end, so don’t throw them away if you have them.
And then there is the olive oil.
As I have already mentioned, the olive oil really matters here. This is a simple dish, so the final drizzle of good extra virgin olive oil brings everything together and makes it sing.
Yes, absolutely. This recipe is written using tinned borlotti beans because it makes it very achievable for everyday cooking.
I like to drain and rinse one tin of beans, then use the second tin with its liquid. The starchy bean liquid helps give the soup a lovely texture. If you prefer to drain and rinse both tins, that is fine too. Just add a little extra stock or water if needed.
If using dried borlotti beans, soak them overnight in plenty of cold water. The next day, drain and rinse them, then cook gently until tender before adding the pasta. The dried bean version takes longer, but it is also beautiful.
Cook the vegetables slowly and gently. This is where the flavour begins, so don’t rush it. You want the onion, celery, carrot and fennel to soften and become aromatic, but not brown.
Once the beans are tender, blend or crush some of them before adding the pasta. You don’t need to blend the whole pot. Just a few ladlefuls is enough. Stir this creamy mixture back through the soup and it gives pasta e fagioli that gorgeous rustic thickness without adding cream.
Use small pasta such as ditalini, small macaroni or another small soup pasta. The pasta cooks directly in the soup, so stir often once it has been added to ensure it does not stick to the bottom.
If the soup thickens too much, simply loosen it with extra stock or water. Pasta e fagioli should be hearty and spoonable, not dry.
Ladle the pasta e fagioli into warm bowls and finish with freshly cracked black pepper, fennel fronds if you have them, grated parmigiano if you like, and a generous drizzle of your best extra virgin olive oil.
Serve it as a main meal with crusty bread, or enjoy it as part of a relaxed Italian-style lunch or dinner.
Pasta e fagioli is even better after sitting for a little while, so don’t worry if it thickens. Just loosen it with a splash of water or stock when reheating.
If you are making it ahead and want the pasta to stay firmer, you can cook the pasta separately and add it to each bowl when serving. Otherwise, cook it directly in the soup as written and enjoy the beautiful, thick, comforting texture the next day.
Cooking this pasta e fagioli after returning from Sicily felt like the loveliest bridge between travel and home. It still gave me all the comfort and flavour I adore about Italian food, but in a way that felt grounding, nourishing and just right for a Melbourne winter.
I hope you love this recipe as much as I do. Make it your own, use the best olive oil you have, and don’t worry too much if it thickens as it sits. That is part of its charm.
If you make this pasta e fagioli, I’d love to hear how you go. And if you are dreaming of travelling, cooking and eating your way through beautiful places like Sicily, make sure you are on our Relish Mama mailing list. Our small-group food tours are truly special, and I always share upcoming tour news there first.
With so much love,
Nellie
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Since 2009, I’ve been bringing people together around real food, recipes made to cook, share, and enjoy.
borlotti beans
2 x 400 g tins of borlotti beans (or or 250 g dried borlotti beans soaked overnight)If you whipped up this recipe and thought “yum!”, the Relish Mama Cooking Club is for you.
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