Pasta With White Beans And Fresh Herbs Recipes

PASTA WITH CREAMY WHITE BEANS

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Season well with salt. Add the pasta and cook for 3 minutes less than indicated in the package directions, about 7 minutes. Drain well reserving 1/2 cup pasta water.
• Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat until hot. Add the oil, carrot and onion to the skillet. Season with 1 teaspoon salt and cook, stirring often, until fragrant and beginning to soften, about 3 minutes. Add the pepper flakes and thyme and cook another minute. Stir in the drained beans and chicken broth. Reduce the heat to medium to maintain a simmer and cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Use the back of a spoon to gently mash some of the beans. Set aside.
• Add the cooked pasta to the sauce. Sprinkle the grated cheese over the pasta and toss to coat well. Stir in the remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt and add the 1/2 cup pasta water as needed to maintain a creamy, broth-like sauce. Sprinkle in the spinach and cook until wilted.

GREEK PASTA WITH TOMATOES AND WHITE BEANS

Steps:

• Cook the pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water until al dente.
• Meanwhile, combine tomatoes and beans in a large non-stick skillet. Bring to a boil over medium high heat. Reduce heat, and simmer 10 minutes.
• Add spinach to the sauce; cook for 2 minutes or until spinach wilts, stirring constantly.
• Serve sauce over pasta, and sprinkle with feta.

COOL AND LIGHT PASTA AND HERBS

Steps:

• Fill a large pot with lightly salted water and bring to a rolling boil. Stir in the fettuccine, bring back to a boil, and cook pasta over medium heat until cooked through but still firm to the bite, about 8 minutes.
• While fettuccini is boiling, place asparagus and peas into a steamer insert and place insert over the pot of fettuccine. Steam vegetables until tender, 6 to 8 minutes. Remove steamer insert and drain fettuccine.
• Combine fettuccine, asparagus, peas, basil, mint, parsley, feta cheese, scallions, and olive oil together in a large bowl. Season with salt and pepper.

PASTA WITH FRESH HERBS, LEMON AND PEAS

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Meanwhile, in a large bowl or pasta bowl, combine the herbs, lemon zest, garlic, lemon juice and olive oil.
• When the water comes to a boil, salt generously and add the pasta. A few minutes before the pasta is done, add the peas to the water. When the pasta is just about al dente, remove a half cup of the cooking water and add to the bowl with the herbs. Drain the pasta and peas, toss with the herb mixture and the cheese, and serve.

ONE-POT WHITE BEAN PASTA

Steps:

• Warm the olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the minced garlic and cook until fragrant and smells good, about 45 seconds.
• Add paprika, chili flakes, beans, black pepper, and give a good stir.
• Add hot water or low sodium vegetable broth, salt, turn to high heat and bring to the boil.
• Stir in pasta, reduce the heat to medium-low, cover with a lid and cook stirring frequently. The amount of liquid is enough to partially cover the pasta (but keep an eye on it to make sure the pasta doesn't stick to the bottom of the pot, and add a touch of water if needed).
• In the last 2 minutes of the pasta's cooking time, add fresh spinach, a handful at a time, and cherry tomatoes. Stir until the spinach is wilted, it takes a couple of minutes.
• Turn off the heat, finish the dish with freshly grated parmesan, and give a good stir until the cheese melts and the pasta looks well combined (taste and adjust the season according to your taste if needed).
• Serve immediately with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil, more freshly ground black pepper and parmesan cheese if you like. Enjoy!

CREAMY PASTA WITH RICOTTA AND HERBS

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of well-salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook until al dente, according to package instructions. Reserve 2 cups pasta cooking water, then drain the pasta.
• In the same pot, make the sauce: Add ricotta, Parmesan, olive oil, pepper and a large pinch or two of salt, and stir until well combined.
• Add 1 cup pasta water to the sauce and stir until smooth. Add the pasta and herbs, and continue to stir vigorously until the noodles are well coated. Add more pasta water as needed for a smooth, soupy sauce. Taste and add more salt if needed.
• To serve, spoon the pasta into bowls and finish with more Parmesan, olive oil and pepper.

PASTA WITH WHITE BEANS AND FRESH HERBS

Steps:

• Drain tomatoes, reserving 1/4 cup liquid.
• Saute onion and next 5 ingredients in hot oil in a large skillet until onion is tender.
• Add tomatoes, reserved liquid, salt, pepper, and sugar.
• Cover, reduce heat and simmer for 10 min.
• Stir in beans; recover and simmer another 10 min.
• Toss cooked macaroni with butter:; top with bean mixture and sprinkle with parmesan cheese.
• Serve immediately with crusty French bread. Garnish as desired, I use fresh herbs.

SIZZLING HERB PASTA WITH WHITE BEANS AND CRISP SMOKED BACON

Steps:

• In a small bowl, whisk together the lemon zest, garlic, lemon juice and olive oil; stir in the beans and set aside.
• In a medium-sized heavy skillet, cook the bacon pieces over low to medium-low heat, turning as needed to achieve uniform crispness. Using a slotted spoon, transfer to a paper towel to drain. Pour off the bacon drippings, reserving 1/4 cup in the skillet.
• Meanwhile, prepare the pasta according to package directions. (Serving hint: As the pasta water heats, place your serving bowl or platter over the pot to heat it.) Drain well, reserving 1/2 cup cooking water.
• Transfer the pasta to the warmed serving bowl, add the beans with their marinade and the bacon pieces and toss lightly.
• In the skillet used to the cook the bacon, heat the reserved bacon drippings over medium-high heat until hot. (To test, add an herb leaf to the hot drippings. When it sizzles, the temperature is right) Add the parsley, sage and rosemary to the hot drippings and saute quickly, 10 to 15 seconds. Drizzle and scrape the bacon drippings and herbs onto the pasta mixture and toss to blend. For a moister coating, add a little of the reserved cooking water. Serve immediately with the salt, pepper and grated romano.

MEDITERRANEAN WHITE BEAN SPREAD WITH FRESH HERBS

Steps:

• Place beans, garlic, lime juice, and olive oil in food processor or mini-chopper; process until smooth.
• Add the rest of the ingredients and pulse until well mixed and the herbs are chopped as coarsely or finely as you like (I like them almost liquified).
• Refrigerate for at least a few hours so the flavors blend (overnight is even better).