Pasta e fagioli (recipe in the comments)
Zucchini, carrots, onions, cauliflower, and baby lima beans
Hot tea
I CANNOT believe that I haven't posted this recipe before! This feels like such an M and J standard and yet, apparently we didn't make it any time between October 2007 and June 2008. Hmmmm. At any rate, this is our version of pasta e fagiole (or pasta fazoole in some American dialects). My mom made this version when I was growing up and we have made VERY few changes. Ours is simply a little brothier than hers. It's a very basic version that I think really captures Italian peasant food in a way few other dishes do. It's very easy to prepare and works well with many sides - salads, simple vegetables, etc. We always serve this with bread, which is unusual for us, but this dish cries out to have its yummy juices mopped up. We've switched from buying a loaf for this meal to individual rolls, to limit the "serving size" we think is reasonable. Otherwise, this is a very naturally healthy meal that happens to also be excellent!
Prep notes
Difficulty: Easy
Chopping: Onions, garlic
Time: 40 minutes
Make ahead: This saves beautifully!
Reaction
J: "Two meals inspired by mom this week. What an influence!"
M: "Comfort food, Italian-style"
