Gluten Free Pasta Fagioli

"Pasta  Fagioli" - Pasta and Beans. Growing up in an Italian family, this was a favorite. Elbows, shells, fusilli, broken spaghetti with kidney, cannellini, chick peas, even green peas,  whatever my mother had on hand.  It was an easy, economical meal. My mom's recipe was simple- add the beans to her "gravy", a little water, heat and combine with cooked pasta.

I learned to love food and to cook from my mom, but I have changed a lot of her recipes, mostly to make them healthier and with less fat. For example, my mom cooked everything in lard. Yes, lard. She chopped up a piece of fat back with garlic and fresh parsley and kept this in the frig to cook with. I have to admit it was very tasty, but not too healthy.  And of course, now I've had to make them gluten free.

When I had to eliminate gluten from my diet,  I tried all the different kinds of gluten free pastas-rice, corn, quinoa. For me, it's all about the texture. The pasta has to be firm, not mushy, be able to cook it "al dente", not stick together and be able to heat up the next day and still be edible. I find the brown rice or corn pastas have the best texture. Tinkyada has a great texture and makes a lot of different shapes. I also use Trader Joe's brown rice pasta and their corn pastas. Again, great texture and a great price! But the shapes are limited -penne, spaghetti and spirals.

Here is my version of "Pasta Fagiloi", a quick and easy weeknight meal.

Pasta Fagioli

1 lb elbow or shell shaped gluten free pasta, cooked al dente                  Printable Recipe
2 tbsp olive oil
1 small onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 -14.5 oz can diced tomatoes (I use the fennel and red pepper flavored, but plain is fine)
1 - 15 oz can red kidney beans, drained
1 - 15 oz can cannellini beans, drained
4 cups gluten free chicken broth
1 tsp Italian seasoning
4 cups baby spinach
salt and pepper to taste

Sauté the onion and garlic in olive oil. Add the diced tomatoes, chicken broth, beans and Italian seasoning. Bring to a boil, add the spinach and simmer until the spinach is wilted. Salt and pepper to taste. Add the cooked pasta. Serve with grated Romano cheese.