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You are here: Home / Food Network / My Version of Food Network Magazine’s Cranberry Bean Pasta Fagioli

My Version of Food Network Magazine’s Cranberry Bean Pasta Fagioli

November 9, 2010 by Suzie the Foodie 6 Comments

My Version of Food Network Magazine's Pasta Fagioli

The second I saw this recipe for Cranberry Bean Pasta Fagioli in the October issue of Food Network Magazine, I knew I had to make it. It looked so good! The only problem? Where on earth do you find cranberry beans?

Not in my neck of the suburban woods so I switched up the recipe a little and made it a tad more accessible to those without specialty food shops. I am so glad I did! This is a real winner of a recipe.

My Version of Food Network Magazine's Pasta Fagioli

I also did not have a piece of pancetta so I sauteed three slices of bacon cut into lardons in a large Dutch oven. If you want to keep this soup vegetarian, no worries. Omit the bacon but you may want to consider adding just a tiny bit of liquid smoke at the end to give it that rich smoky flavour.

My Version of Food Network Magazine's Pasta Fagioli

While the bacon was cooking I chopped up 1 small onion, minced 5 cloves of garlic, added 1/4 tsp of red pepper flakes and finely chopped 1 tsp of fresh rosemary.

My Version of Food Network Magazine's Pasta Fagioli

Once the bacon started to get crispy, I removed it and put the pieces on a paper towel.

My Version of Food Network Magazine's Pasta Fagioli

I cooked the onion, garlic… for a couple of minutes in the bacon fat but I also added a little olive oil to coat the bottom of the pan.

My Version of Food Network Magazine's Pasta Fagioli

I added 5 San Marzano tomatoes, crushed by hand. I removed the rest of the tomatoes and put them in a bag to freeze for another recipe but I saved the liquid to use with the broth later on in the recipe. I cooked the tomatoes for two minutes and then seasoned with some salt and pepper.

My Version of Food Network Magazine's Pasta Fagioli

Instead of cranberry beans I used one can of red kidney beans. They are robust and could handle the lengthy cooking process. The trick to using canned beans is really, REALLY clean them. Some people use that starchy liquid in their cooking but please, this is one of the reasons we get upset tummies when we have beans. I clean the heck out of them as I do the kale. Clean the kale in lots of fresh cold water, swish it through it and rinse and repeat several times. You do not want a sandy soup!

My Version of Food Network Magazine's Pasta Fagioli

Add the beans and, because we are not using dried beans, only half the liquid called for in the recipe. If I did the conversion and math right you want to add six cups of water. I included some of the tomato sauce into the six cups of liquid which gave the soup a great colour and flavour. I had a rind of Parmesan cheese in my freezer, waiting to be used exactly for this reason. I added the rind along with two bay leaves. I covered the pot and brought to a boil, reduced the heat to low and simmered for an hour.

My Version of Food Network Magazine's Pasta Fagioli

Once again, bring the soup to a boil and add the pasta. I used canneroni pasta and boiled it a few minutes shy of being cooked right through. Make sure to stir and scrape the bottom of the pot often so nothing sticks and burns.

My Version of Food Network Magazine's Pasta Fagioli

I added the chopped kale, stirred it in and cooked for another five minutes or so. You want the soup to be thick and creamy at this point. I removed the bay leaves and the rind, then added the bacon back to the soup. I seasoned to taste. I ladled the soup into a bowl and sprinkled with some Parmesan and chopped parsley.

My Version of Food Network Magazine's Pasta Fagioli

Absolutely perfect for the dark, stormy and rainy weather we have been getting. This recipe makes a ton of soup too! I put half of it in my deep freezer to be saved for another dark down the road when I do not feel like spending the afternoon cooking.

Please note that if you do not eat this entire pot of soup right away, the pasta will steal the broth when left to sit in the fridge. I just heated it up and added some chicken broth and extra cheese and the flavours were still fantastic.

I knew that if there was one recipe out there that would make me eat my red kidney beans (which I loathe) it was this recipe and I was right. All that cooking helps them get tender and, at least for me, edible. Such a healthy, hearty and healthy soup, I give this recipe five out of five wooden spoons (made my way).

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Filed Under: Food Network, pasta, recipe, soup Tagged With: bean, cranberry, Fagioli, Food Network Magazine, pasta, soup, Suzie the Foodie

Comments

  1. Debra She Who Seeks says

    November 9, 2010 at 2:26 pm

    I’ve never even heard of cranberry beans — what the hell are they? And YES, definitely rinse all canned beans well before using in a recipe — I agree!

    Reply
  2. Kitchen Roadie says

    November 9, 2010 at 4:51 pm

    This soup looks amazing!!! I rarely purchase kale yet I really like the looks of it in this recipe! I’ve also never heard of cranberry beans and I’m not a big fan of red kidney beans so I think I’ll try black beans instead. Thanks!

    Reply
  3. Suzie Ridler says

    November 9, 2010 at 6:29 pm

    Me either Debra, not until I saw this recipe and article. Apparently they taste like chestnuts which sounds yummy! KR, you could always substitute the kale with spinach if you want but I actually enjoyed it in the soup. I was very tempted to go with black beans myself, so go for it!

    Reply
  4. Linda says

    November 9, 2010 at 9:37 pm

    I wish I was your neighbour, I would so volunteer to be your taste tester!

    Reply
  5. Tammy says

    November 10, 2010 at 11:19 pm

    I saw this recipe and saved it out to try! It looks so yummy! I love all your substitutions – sounds great! I’ve never eaten cranberry beans, but have heard of them (probably in my reading of recipes somewhere!) 🙂 I think this one is one my husband will enjoy too!

    Reply
  6. Tournesol says

    November 11, 2010 at 3:01 am

    Wow, this looks really good! Definitely be bookmarking this and trying it.

    Reply

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