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Pasta Bean Soup Recipe: Pasta Fagioli Soup
Hearty Italian pasta and bean soup recipe, easy and crockpot friendly
Pasta Fagioli, Easy Italian Pasta Recipe: Hearty vegetarian pasta and bean soup recipe, ready to eat in half an hour. Or make it a slow cooker or crockpot soup recipe, and eat it later, with generous slices of crusty artisan bread.
Use fresh picked green beans for pasta fagioli, if you can get them - they're plentiful at farmers markets in summer and fall. In a pinch, use frozen beans, but add them to the soup 20 minutes before serving.
4 Servings Pasta Fagioli: This is a thick pasta bean soup, almost a stew. Make it more soupy by adding more stock or liquid - just be sure to increase the seasonings too, especially salt.
Ingredients:
- 1 cup diced celery or fennel bulb
- 1 cup fresh or frozen green beans, 1 - 1 1/2 inch pieces
- 2 small carrots, sliced thin
- 1 cup fresh or frozen peas
- 2 ripe plum tomatoes peeled & chopped, or 1 sm. can tomatoes
- 2 Tbsp tomato paste, or 1/2 cup tomato sauce
- 1 cup cooked kidney beans (to cook your own, see basic bean recipe
- 8 oz cooked pasta - elbows or small shells are nice
- 2 - 3 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 clove garlic, peeled & minced
- 1/2 tsp ground fennel seed
- 1/2 tsp ground coriander seed
- 1 tsp dried basil OR 1 Tbsp fresh minced
- 1 tsp dried marjoram OR 1 Tbsp fresh minced
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 2 Tbsp minced fresh basil or Italian parsley for garnish
- 4 cups soup stock and-or bean cooking liquid. Make instant soup stock with a vegan bouillon cube or veggie flavoring such as Mrs. Dash
Directions:
- Put 4 qts salted water on to boil for the pasta
- Heat the oil on low in a 6 - 8 quart pan
- Prep the veggies
- Add the minced garlic to the oil and heat on medium low until lightly browned
- Add the carrots, celery or fennel, green beans, & chopped fresh tomatoes if using, and sauté 5 minutes on med/high heat
- Add the herbs and spices, sauté briefly
- Add the soup stock and-or bean cooking water, or water & veggie cubes
- Drain and rinse the kidney beans, then add to pot
- Add tomato paste or tomato sauce, cover and simmer until veggies are tender
- Meanwhile, cook the pasta in the boiling water for 7 minutes, rinse with cold water & set aside
- Add the pasta, frozen peas and-or beans to the soup, salt and pepper to taste
- Cook for 20 more minutes, adding more water or stock as desired
- Serve garnished with fresh basil or Italian parsley
- Optional: Add grated Parmesan or soy parmesan cheese
Slow Cooker or Crockpot Directions:
After sautéing the veggies (or not), combine everything except the cooked pasta and frozen veg to the slow cooker or crockpot. Cook covered on low for six - eight hours. Turn the crockpot to high, and add the frozen veg and cooked pasta in the last 20 minutes of cooking