Cavatappi with Sun-Dried Tomatoes and Cannellini Beans
This is one of my all-time favorite recipes, one that I learned by watching Lidia Bastianich’s flawless PBS show. Though sun-dried tomatoes are a somewhat dated ingredient (like Phil Collins, they were big in the 80s), they prove their relevance here by providing an intense pop of sweetness and complexity. When paired with the cannellini beans, this dish somehow takes on a meaty heft while remaining entirely vegetarian. It’s the dish my husband Craig asks for the most.
INGREDIENTS:
Kosher salt
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 6.7 jar of oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes (I use DeLallo, but any brand will do and the jar size is just a suggestion)
6 cloves of garlic, thinly sliced
A small pinch of red chili flakes (or more if you like it spicy)
1 pound bag dried cavatappi (corkscrew shaped) pasta
1 15-ounce can cannellini beans, rinsed
Freshly grated Parmesan cheese (at least 1/2 a cup, but probably more)
Chopped Italian flat-leaf parsley
Bring a large pot of water to a boil and season with enough kosher salt to make it taste like a flavorful broth, but not so salty that it tastes like the ocean.
In a large skillet or Dutch oven, pour in the olive oil and another 2 tablespoons of oil from the jar of sun-dried tomatoes (a clever repurposing!). Slice the sun-dried tomatoes into strips and add to one part of the cold skillet and add the garlic to another area. Turn up the heat and start toasting the garlic and sun-dried tomatoes, just as they turn fragrant, drop the pasta into the boiling water. Add the chili flakes to the oil then when everything is toasty but not at all burnt, add a ladleful of pasta water to start making the sauce.
When the liquid in the sun-dried tomato pan reduces, add the cannellini beans and another ladleful of pasta water. Cook on medium heat and just when the pasta is al dente (about a minute less than package instructions), lift with a spider into the pan with the sun-dried tomatoes and beans. Add a little more pasta water and cook until all of the liquid is absorbed, stirring all the while.
Off the heat, add a handful of grated Parmesan cheese plus a splash of cold olive oil and stir all around and taste to adjust for heat (more chili flakes) and cheese (always add more cheese). Stir in the parsley, then spoon into warm bowls and top with another drizzle of olive oil, more Parmesan, and any remaining chopped parsley.