Colu Henry’s Pasta e Ceci Recipe

You cold sum up my personality as “easy but fancy.” I *may* need to reword that slightly before my Real Housewives debut, but needless to say, Colu Henry’s cookbook, Colu Cooks: Easy Fancy Food, is right up my alley.

One of my favorite recipes from this cookbook is a riff on her viral recipe from The New York Times: Pasta e Ceci (pasta and chickpeas, in Italian). This dish is the quintessential one-pot meal. It oozes comfort and makes everyone in my family happy, and it requires only one pot for me to wash. It’s a 10/10 in my book. 

The beauty of this recipe is that the pasta cooks right in the stew, which thickens things up nicely and eliminates the need to cook the pasta separately. The dish is beautifully balanced, with plant-based protein from chickpeas and a healthy dose of nutrients from canned tomatoes and greens. As a mom who sometimes considers frozen waffles for dinner a win, I consider this a Pinterest-level mom success.

Ultimately, what I love most about this recipe is its adaptability.

The recipe calls for pancetta, which adds a lovely smokiness, but I’ve swapped it for bacon in a pinch and have gone without it with equal success. If I have kale that’s seen better days in the crisper, into the pot, it goes. If escarole happens to be on sale, that bitter gem is coming home with me for this recipe. And If I’m lucky enough to have a rind of Parmesan in the fridge, I toss it in with the broth to add deep savoriness.

This recipe is the modern-day Stone Soup; a handful of modest ingredients transforms into a nostalgic, nutritious, and crowd-pleasing dinner that only takes 30 minutes to make.

How To Make Colu Henry’s Pasta e Ceci 

For four servings, you’ll need: 

• 2 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for drizzling (optional)
• 4 ounces (115g) pancetta, finely diced
• 1 medium yellow onion, finely chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 2 teaspoons chopped fresh rosemary
• 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 cup (165g) diced canned tomatoes with their juices
• 1 (15-ounce) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• 3 to 4 cups chicken stock
• 1 cup (120g) ditalini
• 5 cups (210g) roughly chopped escarole, dandelion greens, or something else green and wiltable
• Freshly grated pecorino cheese, for serving

Heat the oil in a large stockpot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the pancetta and cook until crispy and golden. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside on a paper towel-lined plate. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened but not taking on any color, 4 to 5 minutes. Add the garlic, rosemary, and red pepper flakes and cook 1 minute more. Season well with salt and pepper.

Add the tomatoes and the chickpeas and stir to combine. With a spatula or the back of a spoon, crush about 1/2 cup of the chickpeas so they release some of their creamy texture into the sauce.

Pour in 3 cups of the stock and turn the heat to medium-high; when it comes to a boil, add the ditalini. Cook, stirring frequently to make sure the pasta is not sticking to the bottom of the pan, until the pasta is just short of al dente, about 8 minutes. Turn down the heat to medium. Add the escarole and the reserved pancetta to the pot and cook until the greens are wilted, 1 to 2 minutes more. The pasta will absorb most of the stock, so feel free to add in ½ to 1 cup (60 to 120 ml) of the remaining chicken stock if you prefer a brothier stew—it’s up to you. Ladle into bowls and top with grated cheese and a drizzle of more olive oil if you please.

Reprinted with permission from Colu Cooks: Easy Fancy Food by Colu Henry (Harry N. Abrams, 2022)