Sick Hubby!

Husband has a man-cold. So not fun for anyone. When hubby is sick he reverts back to a five year old. It's funny how a big tough guy can be reduced to a whimpering pile of goo by a common illness. Needless to say when I asked him if he would like me to make him some soup he was more than agreeable. However, I wa thinking chicken and he came out with Pasta Fagioli. Hmmmm. Not only have I never made this before, I didn't have all the ingredients in the house. That meant a quick stop at our local market on my way home from work. While our market has a GREAT meat department, the deli is somewhat limited and they did not have the pancetta that the recipe called for. Not to be discouraged I substituted with proscuitto and the result was a delicious batch of soup. I think part of its great flavor could be attributed to the home canned tomatoes I used for the broth. That stuff is like liquid gold! Husband gobbled it down and complimented me up and down, which says a lot since he is feeling so lousy. Unfortunately I did not get a picture of the finished product before we polished it all off.

Erika's Pasta Fagioli

Ingredients
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
3 slices proscuitto
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 small carrot, finely chopped
1 rib celery, finely chopped
4 large cloves garlic, chopped
1/2 tsp rosemary
1/2 tsp thyme
2 dried bay leaves Coarse salt and pepper
1 can cannellini beans
2 cans tomato sauce (1 large mason jar home canned tomato)
1 box chicken stock
1/2 lb small pasta

Grated Romano, for the table
Crusty bread, for mopping

Place proscuitto, celery, onion, carrot and garlic in a food processer and chop very fine. Saute mixture in large stock pot with olive oil until vegetables have softened. Add herbs, beans, tomato sauce and stock and bring to a boil. Add pasta. reduce heat and simmer until pasta is al dente. Add water or additional stock if necessary. Serve with Romano cheese and crusty bread.