Recipe courtesy of Michael J Begley
Pasta e Fagioli al Tenore: Tenor's Pasta and Beans
- Level: Intermediate
- Yield: 8 servings
-
- Nutritional Analysis
- Per Serving
- Serving Size
- 1 of 8 servings
- Calories
- 770
- Total Fat
- 25
- Saturated Fat
- 9
- Carbohydrates
- 90
- Dietary Fiber
- 14
- Sugar
- 10
- Protein
- 46
- Cholesterol
- 70
- Sodium
- 965
- Total: 1 hr 50 min
- Prep: 30 min
- Cook: 1 hr 20 min
Ingredients
1 pound sweet Italian sausage
1/4 pound bacon or pancetta, chopped
1 pound ground beef
2 onions, chopped fine
2 stalks celery, diced
2 cloves garlic, chopped very fine
4 cups chicken or turkey stock, homemade if available
One 8-ounce can tomato sauce
Two 19-ounce cans cannellini beans, well drained, divided
One 15-ounce can red kidney beans, well drained
One 14-ounce can tomatoes, seeded and chopped, liquid drained
1/2 teaspoon white pepper
1 teaspoon dried ground thyme
1 teaspoon dried rosemary
2 teaspoons dried basil
1 1/2 cups (12 ounces) ditalini or other tubular pasta
1 cup cooked orzo
1 carrot, shredded
Parmigiano, as a garnish
Chopped basil, as a garnish
Directions
- Place a large, heavy soup pot, over medium heat. Cook the sausage links with a small amount of water, covered, until the sausage has browned, about 10 minutes.
- Remove sausages to a plate and let cool. Once cooled chop into pieces and then use a food processor to finely ground the sausage pieces. Brown the bacon/pancetta in the same pot as used for the sausage links, using a little olive oil if necessary. When the bacon/pancetta is browned, not crisped, add back to the pot the chopped sausage and ground beef, and cook until both have browned, about 15 minutes.
- Next add the onions, celery, and garlic; cook 5 minutes, stirring constantly. Add the stock and skim (recommend use of a gravy separator) to remove excess fat. Continue to cook at a simmer for about 10 to 15 minutes.
- In a food processor, blend tomato sauce with 1 cup cannellini beans until smooth. Pour the mixture into the pot then add the remaining cannellini beans, kidney beans, tomatoes and herbs. After 5 minutes, add the pasta and simmer for 20 minutes.
- Add the orzo and carrots and simmer for an additional 10 minutes. Add more water or stock if necessary to produce a thick stew like consistency. Serve with grated Parmigiano and chopped basil.