Easy Pasta e Ceci (Italian Pasta and Chickpea Soup)

Here is the classic Italian Pasta and Chickpeas Soup.
The perfect wholesome and filling, last-minute dinner that’s ready in less than 30 minutes

Here is one of my favorite, easy, and quick dinner recipes, that’s perfect for these chilly autumn nights. 

It's scrumptious and wholesome. It's creamy and full of flavor. It's sure to fill your stomach and warm your soul. 

This recipe has short pasta mingled in a dense and creamy chickpea soup, exploding with bits of sautéed onion, celery, carrots, and garlic. It also has a touch of rosemary and oregano and a sprinkle of freshly grated Parmesan cheese. 

What more could you ask for?!? 

Oh yes! It's a one-pot and a one-dish dinner, ready in less than 30 minutes. Ha! I know this pasta e ceci recipe will become one of your favorites now, too.

Pasta e ceci is a classic Italian recipe, but like many Italian dishes, there isn't just one way to make it. There are so many variations that can be made to a chickpea pasta soup that it's impossible to say which is the traditional recipe. 

All of them (or so I think) start with an onion/celery/carrot soffritto (chopped and sautéed in a little extra virgin olive oil), plus crushed garlic and a few herbs. 

In my recipe, I have fresh rosemary and dried oregano. Both are so flavorful and aromatic. 

To make things faster in today's recipe, I'm using canned chickpeas (which don't require overnight soaking and a long time on the stove). You could also use dried chickpeas, but you'd need to soak them before using them. 

And,  here is my secret to the recipe: purée half of the chickpeas (which gives a denser soup) and leave the rest of the chickpeas whole. Add the broth, and then cook the ditalini pasta with the rest (make sure to check the recipe for the amount of pasta; it's not too much).

Some pasta e ceci are very dense (more like pasta with some chickpeas) and some are very brothy (more like a soup with a little pasta). 

What I like is something right in between... creamy and dense, but not too brothy, and not just pasta. 

Ready to try this recipe too?!? 

INGREDIENTS:

YIELD: 4 servings

1. • 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
   • 1/2 medium onion, chopped
   • 1 carrot, chopped
   • 1 garlic clove, crushed
   • 1 rosemary sprig
   • 1/4 teaspoon oregano
   • 4 cups chicken broth (or low-sodium vegetable broth)
   •  31 oz (880 gr, 2 cans) canned chickpeas, drained and rinsed
   • 4 oz (115 gr) pasta (ditalini pasta or linguine cut in pieces)
   • salt and pepper to taste if needed
   • grated Parmesan cheese for serving

PREPARATION:

Chop the celery, onion, and carrot.

In a large pan or Dutch oven, sauté the onion, carrot, celery, rosemary sprig, and garlic clove with a tablespoon of extra-virgin olive oil over medium heat. Cook until tender, for about 5 minutes.

Drain and rinse the chickpeas and purée half of them (one can) with a half cup of chicken broth with an immersion blender or food processor. 

Add the puréed chickpeas to the pan with the remaining whole chickpeas and 1.5 cups of chicken stock. 

Stir and cook over medium heat for 10 minutes, until the soup becomes a little denser.

Add the pasta and cook until al dente, stirring occasionally. It should take about 9 minutes, but it depends on the pasta you are using (check the box).

Serve with grated parmesan cheese and a drizzle of olive oil if you like.

Other Italian Recipe you might like:

Creamy Risotto with Asparagus

Pasta with Creamy Roasted Butternut Squash Sauce

Italian Bruschetta with Burrata Cheese

Spaghetti all'Amatriciana

Traditional Risotto with Calamari (Squid) 

Spaghetti all Puttanesca

Step-by-step Authentic Seafood Risotto

Authentic Italian Pasta with Calamari (Squid) Sauce

Risotto with Shrimp and Asparagus 

Traditional Frittata di Spaghetti

Easy-to-make Seafood Paella

Risotto with Smoked Salmon and Zucchini

Pollo alla Pizzaiola

PRINTABLE RECIPE CARD: Pasta e Ceci Soup