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FOOD & DRINK · March 10, 2012

Recipe for Pasta e Ceci (Pasta with Chickpeas)

Italian Recipe for Pasta e Ceci

What’s your favorite Italian dish? That’s one of the questions I’m asked most often when visiting family and friends back in America. When I say pasta with chickpeas, the response is usually one of surprise or interest. I’ve always loved chickpeas, but I had never enjoyed them cooked in such a simple and lovely way until I had pasta with chickpeas for the first time in Italy. This is true cucina povera, recipes made traditional by poor peasants in Italy. Many of these recipes, like pasta e ceci, are home recipes, and you’ll not likely find them on the tables of fancy restaurants. All of this makes pasta with chickpeas a perfect dish to make at home – it’s simple and the ingredients are extremely inexpensive. And it’s healthy, too!

The recipe below is from my husband’s sister in Ravello. She’s been my inspiration and shared countless recipes and cooking tips over the past years, helping to make my dive into southern Italian cooking fun … and very tasty. She’s also been my teacher lately in learning to use a pentola a pressione, or pressure cooker, which dramatically reduces the cooking time in this recipe with chickpeas. If you don’t have a pressure cooker, check out Eleonora’s recipe for Mamma’s Pasta e Ceci on Aglio, Olio e Peperoncino or Cherrye’s quick recipe for Lagane e Ceci on My Bella Vita. Happy cooking!

~ Pasta e Ceci ~

For 2 (if you’re really hungry) or 3 (if you feel like sharing)

Ingredients

150 grams dried chickpeas

5 cups water

1/8 teaspoon baking soda (optional)

1-2 cloves garlic

2 tablespoons oil

3/4 teaspoon salt

Italian flat leaf parsley

150 grams of pasta (short pasta like fusilli, penne or a mix works great)

1. Soak the chickpeas overnight in a large bowl or pot. They’ll get much bigger, so make sure there is plenty of water.

2. Drain chickpeas before beginning. Combine the chickpeas, 5 cups water and a small amount (1/8 teaspoon or less) in your pressure cooker.

Soak chickpeas overnight before cooking

3. Close pressure cooker and place over high heat. From first whistle, lower heat to minimum and cook for about an hour.

4. Open pressure cooker carefully according to its instructions. Add garlic, olive oil, salt and parsley and bring to a boil. Cook about 5 minutes, or longer if the chickpeas need to cook a little more.

Olive oil garlic parsley salt for pasta e ceci recipe

Tip: Some cooks prefer to cook the pasta in a separate pot and then join with the chickpeas, while others cook the pasta directly in the chickpeas to pull as much flavor into the pasta as possible. The amount of water used in this recipe is enough to cook the pasta directly in the chickpeas, which is my favorite way.

5. Add the pasta directly to the chickpeas and monitor the heat level to keep the mixture bubbling gently. Follow the pasta cooking time suggested on the package to cook al dente. Stir frequently, especially toward the end of the cooking time to keep the pasta from sticking to the bottom. I like to use a wooden spoon to squish some of the chickpeas while stirring to create a nice creamy texture.

Tip: My favorite pasta for this recipe is called Pantacce Toscane, a flat pasta with wavy edges around the small pieces. They make me think of miniature magic flying carpets, and are truly magical in this recipe!

Pasta with Chickpeas Italian recipe

6. When pasta is cooked and the consistency has thickened, turn off heat and let stand for 5 minutes. Serve with extra virgin olive oil to drizzle over the top and additional parsley if desired.

_____________

I hope you’ll enjoy this traditional, simple and healthy Italian classic in your home.

Buon appetito!

Posted In: FOOD & DRINK · Tagged: Cooking, Food & Drink, Italian Recipes, Pasta, Recipes

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Comments

  1. LindyLouMac in Italy says

    March 11, 2012 at 12:01

    Simple but delicious as is the case with so much of the fabulous Italian cuisine.

    Reply
    • Laura says

      March 12, 2012 at 09:02

      Ciao Linda! That’s the thing I enjoy the most – simply, healthy and fabulous Italian dishes. It’s been fun learning how to use the pressure cooker to cut down the cooking time of dried legumes. They cost so much less and don’t have all the sodium as the canned ones. And they taste so much better! I used to make pasta e ceci with canned, but this tastes so much better I won’t be going back! 🙂

      Reply
  2. Elisa says

    March 13, 2012 at 00:56

    I also make pasta e ceci embellished with arugula.
    http://casa-giardino.blogspot.com/2012/01/fresh-pasta-with-chickpeas-and-arugula.html

    Reply
    • Laura says

      March 13, 2012 at 09:05

      Ciao Elisa! Thanks so much for stopping by and for sharing the link to your pasta e ceci recipe. Love the idea of garnishing with arugula! That would be a fresh touch, especially nice in the summer months. I look forward to following your blog and learning a bit about recipes from Abruzzo where I’ve heard the food is so delicious!

      Reply
  3. Welshcakes Limoncello says

    March 15, 2012 at 13:11

    I could have done with some of that during the Sicilian hurricane last weekend!

    Reply
    • Laura says

      March 16, 2012 at 17:28

      Ciao Pat! Whoa … we had crazy winds here, too! I hardly left the house for a few days, and that’s when it’s especially handy to have recipes like this to use with dried legumes. Glad you and Simi didn’t blow away! 🙂

      Reply
  4. Michelle Bottalico says

    April 6, 2012 at 12:18

    Hi Laura,
    Thanks for posting this recipe! It looks really good and I can’t wait to try it. I remember this dish from that funny old movie ‘I Soliti Ignoti.’ I like what you wrote about ‘la cucina povera’- in fact my sister has a cookbook about it and many of the recipes are vegan, simple to prepare, and very tasty. Thanks for the reminder, I’m going to start making these things.
    Michelle

    Reply
  5. zaida says

    June 1, 2015 at 19:06

    Thanks for sharing this recipe, is really exquisite.

    Reply
  6. avachef says

    August 27, 2015 at 03:29

    thanks dear lauraوbut why there are no “stocks” in italian cuisine???

    Reply

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My name is Laura and the Amalfi Coast is my passion and my home. I’m a writer and photographer who is endlessly inspired by the incredible beauty of the Amalfi Coast. Welcome to Ciao Amalfi!

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