Pasta e Ceci

by BudgetBites
Prep: 10m
Cook: 30m
vegetarian
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Ingredients
Servings:4
3tbspolive oil
1onion
3garlic cloves
3tbsptomato paste
1tbspfresh rosemary
1tspsalt
1/2tspblack pepper
1/4tspcrushed red pepper flakes
4cupvegetable broth
15ozcanned chickpeas
1 1/2cupditalini pasta
3cupkale
1/4cupRomano cheese
Nutrition Facts

Per serving

Calculating nutrition...

Instructions
  1. 1

    Saute the aromatics

    Heat the olive oil in a Dutch oven or large pot over medium heat. Add the finely chopped onion and cook until it's golden and tender, about 3 to 5 minutes. Stir in the thinly sliced garlic and cook another 30 seconds to a minute, just until fragrant.

  1. 2

    Toast the tomato paste

    Stir the tomato paste into the onions and cook it until it darkens to a deep brick red, about 4 to 5 minutes. This is where most of the flavor comes from — don't skip it. Add the minced rosemary, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes and stir to combine.

  2. 3

    Add the broth

    Pour in the vegetable broth, scraping up anything stuck to the bottom of the pot, and bring it to a boil over medium-high heat.

  3. 4

    Cook the chickpeas and pasta

    Stir in the drained chickpeas and the ditalini pasta. Cook at a steady simmer until the pasta is al dente, about 9 to 10 minutes. If you're adding kale, stir in the chopped kale during the last 2 minutes so it wilts but stays bright.

  4. 5

    Finish with cheese

    Off the heat, stir in the grated Romano. Taste and adjust with more salt and pepper if it needs it. The pasta will keep drinking up broth as it sits — thin with a splash more broth or water if it gets too thick.

  5. 6

    Serve

    Ladle into bowls and finish each one with another shower of grated Romano. Best eaten the same day, while it's still loose and brothy.

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Pasta e Ceci

Created by: BudgetBites

Prep Time: 10m
Cook Time: 30m
Servings: 4

Ingredients

  • 3 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 onion
  • 3 garlic cloves
  • 3 tbsp tomato paste
  • 1 tbsp fresh rosemary
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp black pepper
  • 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
  • 4 cup vegetable broth
  • 15 oz canned chickpeas
  • 1 1/2 cup ditalini pasta
  • 3 cup kale
  • 1/4 cup Romano cheese

Instructions

  1. Saute the aromaticsHeat the olive oil in a Dutch oven or large pot over medium heat. Add the finely chopped onion and cook until it's golden and tender, about 3 to 5 minutes. Stir in the thinly sliced garlic and cook another 30 seconds to a minute, just until fragrant.
  2. Toast the tomato pasteStir the tomato paste into the onions and cook it until it darkens to a deep brick red, about 4 to 5 minutes. This is where most of the flavor comes from — don't skip it. Add the minced rosemary, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes and stir to combine.
  3. Add the brothPour in the vegetable broth, scraping up anything stuck to the bottom of the pot, and bring it to a boil over medium-high heat.
  4. Cook the chickpeas and pastaStir in the drained chickpeas and the ditalini pasta. Cook at a steady simmer until the pasta is al dente, about 9 to 10 minutes. If you're adding kale, stir in the chopped kale during the last 2 minutes so it wilts but stays bright.
  5. Finish with cheeseOff the heat, stir in the grated Romano. Taste and adjust with more salt and pepper if it needs it. The pasta will keep drinking up broth as it sits — thin with a splash more broth or water if it gets too thick.
  6. ServeLadle into bowls and finish each one with another shower of grated Romano. Best eaten the same day, while it's still loose and brothy.

Notes & Tips

This is the kind of dinner that costs under $2 a serving and tastes like it came out of a tiny Roman trattoria. The whole thing is built on pantry stuff — canned chickpeas, dried pasta, tomato paste, broth — and the technique that pulls it together is toasting the tomato paste until it's almost burnt-looking. That's the trick. Skip it and you get watery soup; do it and you get a deep, savory broth that clings to every piece of pasta. The kale is optional but it's how I sneak greens into a one-pot meal and not feel like I owe my body anything else. Romano is cheaper than Parm at most stores and hits harder, so I use it here, but Parmesan works fine too. Leftovers thicken into something closer to a stew overnight — just add a glug of water when you reheat.