E - Embogone

This week's recipe was adapted from Marcella Hazan's Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking. According to her, Embogone is a hearty bean stew, rather similar to the popular pasta fagiole, but made with red cranberry beans instead of white cannellini beans. The name is a reference to the Italian word for snails, so I chose to use curly snail-looking "cellantani" pasta for my stew - ha, doesn't take much to amuse me :)

Embogone

2 tablespoons olive oil
1/4 cup pancetta, chopped
1 small onion, diced
1 clove garlic, peeled and minced
2 (14.5-ounce) cans red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 teaspoon fresh sage, chopped
1 teaspoon fresh rosemary, chopped
1/2 lb. dry pasta
salt and pepper
Parmesan cheese if desired

Fill a large kettle with water and bring to a boil in preparation for cooking dry pasta.
Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a heavy sauté pan over medium heat.
Add pancetta and onion to oil and cook, stirring, until softened, about 6 minutes.
Add garlic and herbs and stir in.
After garlic has begun to release its fragrance, add 1 can of beans and about 1/2 cup of water.
Mash beans with other ingredients in pan to combine.
Add additional water if necessary to create a sauce consistency.
Simmer on low heat for 10 minutes or so, while pasta is cooking.
Meanwhile, dump dry pasta into already-boiling water in large kettle.
Add second can of beans, which remain whole, to simmering sauce mixture.
Season sauce to taste with salt and pepper.
When pasta is done, drain and toss with sauce.
Sprinkle with cheese to serve if desired, and enjoy.
3-4 servings

Tasty and hearty, fragrant with sage and rosemary, the Embogone was indeed a nice winter supper!

Examine more E entries HERE

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