I had been craving pasta with beans for a week straight, right before meeting my good friend Evija for an overdue lunch, and we decided to try out another pizza place. When almost there, she spills that she is on the keto diet. I stare at her in blatant envy and ask what brought that on. Simple, it works she says. “Hmm, perhaps I should give it a try?” But to be honest, at the back of my head I kept thinking “How, when I can’t get the thought of pasta with beans out of my head!”. It is one of my favorite pasta recipes for many reasons.
It scratches my itch for pasta without packing on the carb guilt. why? Because it’s made with a simple bean sauce that is puréed to oblivion, then loved up with Parmigiano. It is a simple recipe to make that takes less than 30 minutes and kids love it too. This saves me making separate meals which to be blatantly honest, sometimes is a pain! So how did it go with the keto diet?
Well, the thought didn’t last very long because carbs are my happy place. I can sort of go without chocolates for a day or two but ditching bread or pasta is a tough ask! So I opted for intermittent fasting which somewhat gave me the freedom to enjoy my bean pasta. And on “I don’t care days” or just times that call for pasta recipes that pack a punch I will unflinchingly go for one with pancetta and peas, Spaghetti all arrabbiata, or fusilli with a creamy mushroom sauce. But today is “I’m bad with a limit day” so pasta with beans it is.
I think it’s also a perfect recipe for when the chill hits. Hearty, warm, and filling not to forget healthy- if you’re not in the ‘make a fuss about carbs’ phase in your lifestyle.
Creamy Pasta With Beans Ingredients
Liquid: Some like it watery but others prefer it creamy, I’m the latter. So I puree half of the portion and dunk in a Parmigiano rind for that extra cheesy lift. Eh ehm, it can be quite creamy (no complaints here) so spare some good ciabatta to wipe off that sauce!
Pasta: If you don’t have pasta mista you can use other small shaped types for soup. I do not recommend using long pasta because the sauce is a little on the heavy side and just doesn’t suit it.
Beans beans beans: This recipe uses home-cooked beans and not store-bought canned beans which can be softer. If you choose to use canned beans then less cooking time would be required. What to do? Heat them up in the microwave, then mix with the carrot and celery to cook for 1 minute (instead of the 5 as instructed below) before you puree half the portion.
Texture: In my opinion, there is nothing nice about little bits of bean skin. This is why I recommend that you absolutely make sure when you puree, you do so until it is velvety smooth.
If you get bored of beans then another option is this easy kid-friendly lentil pasta.
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Other Hearty Pasta Recipe That’s Definitely Worth Your Time
Pasta alla Siciliana (Pasta with Eggplants)
The eggplants liven up your basil tomato sauce, the buffalo mozzarella and parmesan are just a little something to ensure it passes the comfort food test.
Pasta e fagioli (pasta with beans)
(+10 rating, 2 votes)
Loading...Creamy pasta with beans sauce, parmesan, and black pepper. Warm, filling, and healthy. Perfect for when the chill hits or not- who cares, dig in any way!
Ingredients
- 280g pasta mista
- 250 pre cooked Cannellini beans
- 50g Finely diced carrots
- 35g Finely diced celery
- 2 tbsp finely diced brown onion
- 350ml water
- 4 tbsp Olive oil
- 50 g grated Parmigiano reggiano
- Parmigiano/Parmesan rind (optional)
- 1 Vegetable stock pot
- Black pepper
Instructions
Heat the olive oil in a large pot and saute onions on high heat for about 2 min until shrunken and soft but not brown
Toss in the carrots and celery to cook for 3 min then pour in 350ml water, the parmesan rind and vegetable stock pot. Leave to boil covered on high heat for 5 minutes before adding in the beans to cook for a further 5 minutes. If you are using canned beans heat them up in the microwave and add to the water to cook for 1 minute
While the beans cook, bring water (for the pasta) to a boil and add 1/2 tsp salt to it
Take the beans off the fire and puree half of the portion until completely smooth (make sure there aren't any bean skin pieces), then pour it back into the pot (with the leftover beans) and leave to stay hot under very low heat. Taste for salt and add more if needed
Cook the pasta until it's al dente and drain. Remove the parmigiano rind from the beans then toss in the cooked pasta and stir as you sprinkle in the parmigiano.
Serve with an extra sprinkle of cheese and freshly ground black pepper.
Storage:
Not recommended
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