Listen, I wanted to talk to you about the weather. How frustrating it is that the temperature yo-yos between needing a heavy down jacket only Antarctic scientists should wear and a light rain coat that gets used *maybe* three times each spring. How every other restaurant has stacked its patio furniture outside like one big tease. How the wind keeps howling through me on my walk to and from work. How it feels like we’re going to be in this forever state of “sprinter” – an awful meteorological limbo.
But then I remembered a LOT of people make fun of food bloggers for droning on about the change in season, their kid’s preschool science fair, how a weekend spent with their great-great aunt Maribelle inspired them to make muffins, or WHATEVER. So, ya jerks, I’m not going to talk about the weather.
Buuuuut this recipe is really, really perfect for this godawful in-between season we’re dealing with. At least if you live anywhere that experiences all four seasons. (See, I’m doing it again. Blogger trope #57: “Where I live, it’s X and we do Y!”)
Whatever. It’s pasta. It’s chickpeas. It’s tomato-y. It’s parm-y. IT’S PASTA SOUP.
Just go make it and hunker down until summer is here. Or enjoy your 70 degrees and sunny life if you’re smart enough to live where the air doesn’t hurt your face.
Brothy Pasta with Chickpeas
Ingredients
3 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
Kosher salt
3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1 sprig rosemary
¼ tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
1 15-oz. can chickpeas, drained, rinsed
1 15-oz can stewed tomatoes, drained and crushed by hand
6 oz. orecchiette or other short pasta
2 Tbsp. finely chopped parsley
3 Tbsp. finely grated Parmesan, plus more for serving
Freshly ground black pepper
Directions
Heat 3 Tbsp. oil in a large saucepan over medium. Add onion and season with salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, for about 5 minutes, until onion begins to soften
Add garlic and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until onion and garlic are both very soft and just beginning to brown around the edges, 5–6 minutes longer.
Add rosemary and red pepper flakes and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
Add chickpeas and tomatoes and cook, stirring occasionally, until tomatoes are slightly thickened, 6–8 minutes.
Add pasta and 4 cups water. Increase heat to medium-high, bring to a simmer, and cook, stirring occasionally, until pasta is al dente, 13–16 minutes. Stir in parsley and 3 Tbsp. Parmesan.
Season with salt and pepper. Serve and add more Parmesan as desired.
Test Kitchen Notes
There are so many good flavors going on in this recipe. I went with dried rosemary because that’s what I had, but the flavor was still bomb. Same thing for the canned tomatoes and parsley (yipe – this was a quiet week for fresh produce in my house). I’d guess the real deal for each ingredient would be even better.
Don’t hold back on the parm. I love the nutty flavor of this cheese, and went with a block to grate instead of the pre-packaged stuff. (It checks out that the *one* thing I splurged on was the cheese.) You’d better believe I was dangling the shavings into my mouth like I was a kid outside catching snowflakes for the first time.
BA calls this grown-up Spaghetti-O’s and they’re spot on. Please trust me when I say you need to make this pasta soup situation asap.