Pasta e Ceci (Pasta with Chick Peas) GUEST BLOG

Kevin is back at it !! He did a great job at making everything until what he describes is a rookie mistake. He mistakenly added the entire 16 oz box of pasta instead of the 8 oz in recipe --added an extra 2 c of water but we still had STOUP ( this is a combination of soup and stew which is whatI usually end up with !! )  This is from Cooks Illustrated.

2ounces pancetta, cut into ½-inch pieces

1small carrot, peeled and cut into ½-inch pieces

1small celery rib, cut into ½-inch pieces

4garlic cloves, peeled

1onion, halved and cut into 1-inch pieces

1(14-ounce) can whole peeled tomatoes, drained

¼cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus extra for serving

1anchovy fillet, rinsed, patted dry, and minced

¼teaspoon red pepper flakes

2teaspoons minced fresh rosemary

2(15-ounce) cans chickpeas (do not drain)

2cups water

Salt and pepper

8ounces (1 ½ cups) ditalini

1tablespoon lemon juice

1tablespoon minced fresh parsley

1ounce Parmesan cheese, grated (½ cup)

1. Process pancetta in food processor until ground to paste, about 30 seconds, scraping down sides of bowl as needed. Add carrot, celery, and garlic and pulse until finely chopped, 8 to 10 pulses. Add onion and pulse until onion is cut into 1/8- to 1/4-inch pieces, 8 to 10 pulses. Transfer pancetta mixture to large Dutch oven. Pulse tomatoes in now-empty food processor until coarsely chopped, 8 to 10 pulses. Set aside.

2. Add oil to pancetta mixture in Dutch oven and cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, until fond begins to form on bottom of pot, about 5 minutes. Add anchovy, pepper flakes, and rosemary and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Stir in tomatoes, chickpeas and their liquid, water, and 1 teaspoon salt and bring to boil, scraping up any browned bits. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for 10 minutes. Add pasta and cook, stirring frequently, until tender, 10 to 12 minutes. Stir in lemon juice and parsley and season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve, passing Parmesan and extra oil separately.

Cook Those Chickpeas

We simmer our chickpeas for 10 extra minutes to give them a creamy texture. Unlike most canned beans, chickpeas are not processed with skin-strengthening calcium chloride, which means they are capable of softening with further cooking.