Pasta e Fagioli Vicentina Style, or Pasta e Fasui a la Visentina: Unlike most of the pasta e fagioli eaten in the Veneto, and, for that matter, in the rest of Italy, pasta e fagioli alla Vicentina is made with fresh egg noodles, which confer a particular texture to the soup. The beans are also important; Vicentini use borlotti from Lamon. In their absence, use cranberry beans. To serve 6:
Prep Time: 25 minutes
Cook Time: 90 minutes
Ingredients:
- 1 pound (450 g) potatoes
- 2/3 pound (300 g) shelled fresh cranberry beans (figure a little more than a quarter pound, dried)
- 1/2 pound (225 g) onion
- 1/4 pound (100 g) cured lard (use fatty pancetta if need be)
- 4 plum tomatoes
- 2 ribs green celery
- Garlic
- Sage
- Parsley
- Olive oil
- Freshly grated Parmigiano
- Powdered cinnamon
- Salt and pepper to taste
- For the tagliatelle: (you could also buy a half pound (220 g) fresh tagliatelle)
- 2 cups (200 g) four
- 2 large fresh eggs
- A pinch of salt
Preparation:
Peel the potatoes, and put them in a pot with the beans; blend the tomatoes and add them to the pot, together with two and a half quarts (2.5 liters) of water. Put the lard, celery, onion, two large cloves garlic, 6-8 fresh sage leaves, and a few sprigs of parsley through a meat grinder three times, and add the mixture to the pot. Season everything with half a teaspoon of cinnamon, put the pot on the fire, and cook the soup partially covered over a very gentle flame for two hours, stirring it occasionally. Make certain the flame remains low, because otherwise the soup would boil down too much.
In the meantime, prepare the pasta from the eggs, flour, and salt. Knead the dough well (see instructions if need be), and roll it out into a thin sheet. Lay the sheet out to dry on a clean kitchen towel for a short while, and then cut it into half-inch (1 cm) wide strips.
When the two hours are up, put the potatoes and a third of the beans though a potato ricer, dropping the mixture directly into the soup. Salt the soup to taste, and as soon as it resumes boiling add the pasta; stir gently until it reaches the al dente stage, because if you don't the strips will settle to the bottom of the pot and stick. Divvy the soup into soup bowls, and flavor it with a little grated Parmigiano, a dusting of freshly ground pepper, and a drizzle of olive oil. Let it sit for a few minutes before serving it.
A wine? White, Durello Bianco dei Berici or Sauvignon dei Berici.
In the meantime, prepare the pasta from the eggs, flour, and salt. Knead the dough well (see instructions if need be), and roll it out into a thin sheet. Lay the sheet out to dry on a clean kitchen towel for a short while, and then cut it into half-inch (1 cm) wide strips.
When the two hours are up, put the potatoes and a third of the beans though a potato ricer, dropping the mixture directly into the soup. Salt the soup to taste, and as soon as it resumes boiling add the pasta; stir gently until it reaches the al dente stage, because if you don't the strips will settle to the bottom of the pot and stick. Divvy the soup into soup bowls, and flavor it with a little grated Parmigiano, a dusting of freshly ground pepper, and a drizzle of olive oil. Let it sit for a few minutes before serving it.
A wine? White, Durello Bianco dei Berici or Sauvignon dei Berici.
