Pasta e fagioli (or pasta fazool, as we called it) was a regular meal in my house growing up, which was nice, because my mom’s version was vegetarian. I didn’t learn until I was older and worked in restaurants that most pasta fagioli isn’t vegetarian. It usually has panchetta in it! So I thought it would be a good idea to share a recipe for vegan pasta e fagioli here. This is based of of mom’s old recipe, with a few of my own touches.
What You’ll Need
Olive oil. Technically the recipe will work with any high-heat oil, but olive oil will give it the best flavor.Onion.Celery.Carrots.Garlic.Tomato paste.Vegetable broth. I used Better Than Bouillon in Roasted Vegetable flavor.Herbs. We’re using rosemary and thyme. I prefer fresh herbs for this dish, but I’ve included instructions for substituting dried within the recipe.Diced tomatoes. Use the canned variety that are packed in juice.Beans. You’ve got options here! You’ll need 2 cans, and you can mix and match your favorites — just about anything will work, but chickpeas, cannellini beans, butter beans, and great northern beans are my favorites for this soup.Small pasta shells. Or substitute your favorite small pasta shape. Elbows and ditalini both work well.Salt and pepper.
How to Make Vegan Pasta e Fagioli
The following is a detailed photo tutorial on how to make this dish. Scroll down if you’d like to skip right to the recipe!
Heat up some olive oil in a pot, then add diced onion, carrots, and celery. Sweat the veggies until they begin to soften up. Now add the garlic and cook it for about a minute with the veggies.Push the veggies to the side and add the tomato paste to the pot. Sauté the tomato paste for about a minute, stirring it frequently.Now stir in your broth, herbs, tomatoes and beans.Bring the liquid up to a boil, lower the heat, and let the soup simmer on low for about 20 minutes, until the veggies are soft.
While the soup simmers, cook the pasta according to the package instructions.When the soup has finished cooking, take the pot off of heat and stir in the pasta. Season the soup with some salt and pepper, then ladle it into bowls and dig in!
Can this recipe be made gluten-free? Yup! Just use your favorite gluten-free pasta.Shelf-life & storage: If you think you’ll have leftovers, I recommend keeping the soup and pasta separate and then combining them as you dish out each individual serving. Store the pasta and soup each in their own sealed container in the fridge for up to 4 days, or in the freezer for about 3 months. You can store the pasta and soup together, but the pasta will suck up lots of broth, so only do it if you like soggy pasta!Topping ideas! I always serve my vegan pasta e fagioli with a sprinkle of vegan Parmesan cheese. Coconut bacon also makes a great substitute for the pancetta you’d find in traditional pasta e fagioli.
More Vegan Italian Soups
Vegan Italian Wedding SoupPasta e CeciVegan Minestrone SoupRibollita Escarole Soup
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