Pasta Fazool

The wonder child of Lorraine, Elizabeth and Karen!

I am happy to be participating in the First (Weekly?) D-Feast Friday!!  It's a day for us to come together and share a recipe, diabetes-friendly or not, and walk away with a slew of new recipes to try!  So, without further adieu...

Pasta Fazool

Now, this is a staple meal in our home and has been, long before diabetes entered the picture.  But what's so great about it is that it really works great with C's blood sugars.  And, as anyone who deals with a faulty pancreas can tell you, usually pasta is one of those foods that misbehaves.  Because this recipe is balanced with beans, the fiber can actually be subtracted out of the total carb count.  Hence, making it a more manageable meal, bloodsugar-wise.

Some of you might be more familiar with it's other name:  Pasta Fagioli.  It's kind of like a pasta/bean soup.  My dear mother-in-law taught me how to make it.  In fact, when each of the grandkids were old enough (11-12), she taught each of them how to make it too.  Unfortunately, she is no longer with us to teach our kids.  I have already taught my oldest and now middle C is next in line.

When I was still a newlywed, she brought a bag full of groceries to our little apartment and showed me exactly what to do.  It's a challenge for me to write it down because it really does help to see it done.  But, I'll try!

Ingredients:

2 (15 oz.) cans of Great Northern or white beans
+ 2 cans of water
1/2 can (4 oz.) of tomato sauce
+ 1 can of water
3 T. olive oil
2-3 cloves garlic, crushed
1 heaping T. oregano, crushed between palms
1 t. salt
1/8 t. pepper
1 c. ditalini pasta
1/2 c. spaghetti, broken into 1 " pieces
chopped onion for garnish (optional)

*Keep a couple cans of water near stove in case you need to add to pot when pasta is boiling.

Heat all ingredients (except pastas) in large pot to a gentle boil.  Turn down to low and simmer for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Turn heat up to boiling again and add pastas...stirring every few minutes so that the pasta does not stick.  Gently boil for 10-12 minutes.  At 10 minutes, check the ditalini for done-ness.  If, during boiling, mixture becomes too thick, add water.  It should stay at a thick, soupy, consistency.  (I like it thinner and usually add water when it's done.  This cools it down a bit too.)

That's it!  My kids love it and ask for it regularly.  I wish I had a picture of it to share.  But it's been so hot that I haven't made it recently.

It serves 6-8.

After much trial and error, I have finally found that counting a 1/2 cup serving as 10 grams of carbohydrates works well for C.  But, please do your own calculations from the bean label and pasta packages.  The great thing is...you can subtract out the 7 grams of fiber per serving from the carbs!

Enjoy!  And, Happy D-Feast Friday!!