Pasta Fagioli

Today I had all these great plans to make a recipe that I was super excited about, until I noticed it requires an overnight step.  Damn.  Don't worry - you will see this recipe soon.  So for today, I had to change courses.  Kenzie helped me come up with a new idea: a soup called pasta fagioli.  Literally it means pasta and beans in Italian, so what is not to love there?!

Dad used to make this soup when we were kids, and it's amazing.  But beware: it is one of those recipes that is very different based on whose recipe you use; I often order it when I am at an Italian restaurant, and I get mad when it has weird things like sausage or ground beef in it (okay those things make me mad no matter what).  The pasta fagioli Dad used to make had ditalini pasta, cannellini beans, and onions in a delicious garlicky tomato broth, and that was it.  I wanted to be picky with my recipe, and when I found one from Skinny Taste, it passed my close inspection.  It did add chopped carrot and celery, which as far as I can remember Dad did not, but I think that they would be a welcome addition.  What really made me decide to try out this recipe in particular was all the spices: whole tablespoons of parsley and basil flakes, plus a teaspoon of oregano.  I knew it was going to be good.

This is a pretty fast soup to make.  You just saute the onions and garlic, and basically then add everything else and simmer.  The recipe says you can puree the beans to hide them from picky eaters, but I wanted my beans to stay whole.  It simmers for 20 minutes once you bring it to a boil, so I even had time to start my favorite cheddar cheese bread while it was cooking.  I like dinners that have a little down time built in. 

I doubled the recipe and ended up using little elbows instead of ditalini, which I was sad about but it was all my grocery store had.  And I ended up using a whole pound of the pasta, rather than the 12 ounces that doubling it would require.  Other than that, I stuck to the recipe, and it was a good plan.  The soup is very hearty, healthy (less than 260 calories for 2 cups!!), and very delicious.  A sprinkling of parmesan on the top just brings out the wonderfulness of the soup.  It was very popular with everyone here, and we had quite a housefull tonight.  I will be happy to have it for lunch this week.

I spent this whole football-y day in the kitchen making this soup, the aforementioned cheese bread, and two other recipes as well.  You will have to wait for those though; I am trying to be like a true food blogger and only post one recipe at a time.  Trust me: they're worth waiting for.

Recipe:

pasta fagioli
from Skinny Taste

Servings: 5 • Serving Size: about 2 cups • Old Points: 5 pts • Points+: 6 pts
Calories: 254.5 • Fat: 3.4 g • Protein: 10.3 g • Carb: 47.5 g • Fiber: 6.8 g

Ingredients:
1 tbsp olive oil
1/2 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 celery stalk, chopped
1 carrot, finely chopped
1 15 oz. can cannellini beans
1 15 oz. can tomato sauce or crushed tomatoes
1 large bay leaf
1 tbsp basil
1 tbsp parsley
1 tsp oregano
2 (14 oz. each) cans fat free chicken broth (or vegetable broth)
2 cups water
salt and pepper to taste
6 oz dry ditalini pasta or other small pasta
grated parmesan cheese for topping (optional)

Directions:

1) In a deep pot, saute onion and garlic in olive oil over medium heat.
2)  The can of beans with one can water in electric blender until almost smooth.

3) Add blended beans to pan then add the can of tomato sauce, celery, carrots, chicken broth, basil, bay leaf, parsley, oregano, salt and pepper. Add1 cup water and bring to slow boil. Let simmer for 20 minutes stirring occasionally. Add pasta and cook uncovered until pasta is al dente, according to pasta directions.

4) Ladle soup into bowls and top with grated cheese (extra).

Cheese Bread

I love bread, and I love cheese.  So if you put both together, it is absolutely incredible, in my eyes at least.  I've picked up a few loaves of cheddar bread baked at our local grocery store, and I have been on the lookout for a good recipe but hadn't seen anything.  And then came yesterday!  I had some surgery, which frankly had me far more afraid than normal people, but I am not that normal.  Anyway, my wonderfully attentive boyfriend pampered me all day once I got home; this included getting me Tylenol, tea, dinner, and - get ready for it  - my very own giant Cuisinart Premier Series 11-Cup Food Processor!  What better medicine for a girl than to hand her a brand spanking new food processor when she has been complaining about her 40-year-old one!  It was very sweet.  Of course, he then begged me to use it all day, but I was too sore.  Today I was feeling a lot better, and ready to bake some cheese bread!  The recipe book that came with the food processor had a recipe for cheese bread, and I was pretty excited to give it a shot with my new fancy schmancy machine!

What is cool about my processor is that it has a "dough" setting and a dough blade, so it can be used to make breads and do your kneading for you.  First I had to shred my own cheese; now you know I love shredding my own anyway for quality reasons, but it does take a long time.  Or, should I say, it did!  With the shredding attachment, I shredded half a block of cheddar in seconds.  It was pretty cool.  Then the dough got mixed right in the processor.  It rose beautifully, and it gets a nice airy texture because you roll the dough into a jelly roll shape before you put it in a loaf pan. 

I am quite happy with the final results.  There may be nothing better than warm cheese bread with sharp cheddar mixed inside!  I loved it.  I know that Nick will love it too because we share an affinity for cheese breads.  Probably Mom will hate it because it "has flavor" but that's okay because Nick and I will take care of it!

I'll post the recipe, even though it calls for the food processor to be used.  I am very sure you could make the bread without it and juse use a mixer, if you're not as lucky as I am with my new processor:) Love you, Marky!

Recipe:

cheese bread

from the Cuisinart Premier Series 11-Cup Food Processor Recipe Book

Ingredients:
1  1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast
1 teaspoon sugar
1/2 cup warm water (105 - 115 degrees)
4 ounces extra sharp cheddar cheese
4  1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut in 1-inch pieces
1  1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup fat free milk (I used 1%)
cooking spray

Directions:

1)  In a 2-cup measuring cup, dissolve yeast and sugar in warm water.  Let stand until foamy, about 5 minutes.

2) Insert medium shredding disc and shred cheese.  Leave work in bowl.  Remove shredding disc and insert dough blade.  Add flour, butter and salt; process to combine, about 20 seconds.

3)  Add milk to yeast mixture.  With machine running on dough speed, pour milk mixture through small feed tube as fast as the flour will absorb itand process until dough cleans the side of the work bowl.  Then process for 45 seconds to knead dough.  Place dough in a lightly floured plastic food storage bag and seal top.  Let rise in a warm place until doubled in size, about 1 - 1 1/2 hours.

4) Spray one 9 x 5-inch loaf with cooking spray. Place dough on a lightly floured surface aand punch down.  Roll dough in a 9 x 5-inch rectangle  Beginning with the short end, roll up the dough jelly roll-fashion.  Pinch the seam and ends tightly to seal.  Place in greased loaf pan and cover with plastic wrap coated with vegetable cooking spray.  Let rise for 45 minutes.  Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

5) Bake until top is well browned and loaf sounds hollow when tapped, about 35-40 minutes.  Remove from pan and cool on wire rack.