Don’t you hate when you have almost all of the ingredients for something you want to make but are missing like 2 or 3 of the most important ones? I had this happen recently when I wanted to make Pasta e Fagioli (Pasta Bean Soup) but I was missing the Pancetta and the Cannellini beans. I was in a bit of a pickle until I realized I had regular bacon and pinto beans. Then I had the idea–why not make a Southwest version of the classic Italian Pasta e Fagioli (that’s Fajh-oh-lee) soup? Well, this is not exactly your grandmother’s pasta bean soup but it has a lot of the same elements of the traditional recipe. It’s made with almost exactly the same format as my recipe found here. There are a few choice differences though as the flavor of the bacon provides a smokier flavor than the pancetta. Instead of rosemary I used fresh sage and dried basil for the herbs. Instead of Ditalini pasta I opted for Gemelli since I had some of that laying around. It worked out nicely!
It’s funny how just a few ingredient changes transformed the recipe into something totally different. I still went with parmesan cheese as the garnish but you could probably use a white cheddar instead. I added about the same amount of red pepper to the recipe but adding another 1/2 teaspoon would really give this an extra oomph of heat. I loved the way these small changes did so much to change the recipe and it’s become one of my regular favorites!
Southwest Pasta Bean Soup
Ingredients
- 8 slices bacon diced
- 1 large yellow onion chopped
- 1 large green bell pepper diced
- 4 celery diced
- 1 tbsp olive oil optional
- 6 cloves garlic minced
- 6 oz. tomato paste
- 15 oz. tomato sauce
- 4 (15 oz. cans) pinto beans washed and drained
- 1 (15 oz. can) pinto beans drained and pureed/mashed
- 2 tbsp fresh sage minced
- 1 tbsp dried basil
- 11 or 12 cups Chicken Stock depending on desired consistency
- 1 tsp lemon zest
- 1 tsp red pepper flakes
- 8 servings Gemelli or Ditalini pasta
- Grated Parmesan for garnish
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
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In a large stock pot, cook the chopped bacon on medium high heat until the fat has rendered and the bacon is brown and crispy, about 7 minutes. Remove the grease at this point and add a tablespoon of olive oil if desired. You can leave the fat in the pot and use it to cook the vegetables (recommended!).
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Add the onion, celery and bell pepper. Cook covered until soft, about 5 minutes.
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Stir in the garlic, red pepper flakes, sage, basil, and tomato paste. Cook 1 minute until fragrant.
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Mash one can of the pinto beans to make a puree either by hand or in a food processor (I tend to just mash by hand to save on clean up). Stir into the vegetable bacon mixture.
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Add the tomato sauce, pinto beans, lemon zest and chicken stock.
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Bring to a low simmer and cook over the stove with the cover cracked about 3-4 hours. If you have a big enough slow cooker (at least 6 qt.) you can transfer it now and cook for 8 hours on low, or 4-5 on high.
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During the last 10 minutes of cooking, cook the pasta on the stove as directed on the package. Transfer a serving of cooked pasta into each bowl and ladle the soup over the noodles. Stir together and garnish with grated parmesan and enjoy!
