Pasta Fagioli

Yields: 6-8 servings

Prep Time: 20 minutes 

Total Time: 45 minutes 

Ingredients:

¼ cup of olive oil

1 yellow onion, chopped

2 carrots, chopped

3 celery stalks, thinly sliced

½ tsp. salt, plus additional to taste

½ tsp. dried oregano

½ tsp. ground black pepper

¼ tsp. red pepper flakes (optional)

6 garlic cloves, finely chopped

6 cups of reduced-sodium chicken broth

1 15-oz. can diced fire roasted tomatoes 

2 15-0z. cans white beans (cannellini or great Northern), drained and rinsed

1 ½ cups of ditalini pasta

3 cups of chopped fresh kale

1 lemon

Parmesan cheese, for topping

Directions:

1. Before you begin: Wash your hands.

2. Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onion, carrot, celery, 1/2 teaspoon salt, oregano, black pepper, and red pepper flakes. Cook, stirring occasionally until the vegetables have just softened, about 7 minutes. Add the garlic; cook, stirring often, about 2 minutes more.

3. Add the broth and undrained tomatoes; stir to release any browned bits from the bottom of the pot. Increase the heat to medium-high and bring to a boil. Add half of the beans to a bowl; mash with a fork and stir into the soup. Add the remaining beans and the pasta to the pot; reduce heat to medium. Simmer, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking, for 10 minutes. Stir in the kale and cook until the pasta is tender, about 5 minutes more. Remove from the heat.

4. Zest the lemon, then cut it in half. Squeeze one lemon half into the soup. Add 1 teaspoon of the ;zest and ;stir to combine. Taste and add more lemon juice or salt as desired. Top servings with Parmesan cheese.

Source: https://www.thepioneerwoman.com/food-cooking/recipes/a38642844/pasta-fagioli-recipe/