Spaghetti with White Bean Sauce

[Guest guest]

Spaghetti with White Bean Sauce

 

This recipe takes only a few minutes to make, especially if

you use a food processor for chopping the vegetables,  serve with garlic bread

and a green salad.

 

Sauce

 

1 tablespoon olive oil

1/4 teaspoon hot pepper flakes (or to taste)

3 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1/2 medium red onion, finely chopped

1/4 red bell pepper, finely chopped

1 stalk celery, finely chopped

1 plum tomato, finely chopped, with juices

1/2 cup canned white beans (such as navy or great

northern)

Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

1/2 cup vegetable stock or bean liquid (reserve it

when you open the can)

2 tablespoons finely chopped flat-leaf parsley

sliced olives

Salt

3 ounces dry spaghetti

2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

 

Prepare the sauce. Heat the olive oil in a nonstick frying

pan.

 

Add the pepper flakes, garlic, onion, bell pepper, and

celery and

cook over medium heat until lightly browned.

 

Increase the heat to high. Stir in the tomato, beans, and

black

pepper and cook for 1 minute. Add the stock or bean liquid

and half

the parsley. Mash some of the beans with the back of a fork

to help thicken the sauce.

 

Boil the sauce until thick and richly flavored, about 2

minutes.

 

Season to taste with salt and additional freshly ground

black pepper.

 

While the sauce is cooking, bring 3 quarts of water to a

boil in a large pot. Add the spaghetti and a pinch of salt,

and cook for about 8 minutes. Drain.

 

Transfer spaghetti to a shallow bowl and spoon the sauce on

top. Sprinkle with the Parmesan cheese and remaining

parsley and olives, and serve at once.

 

Note: For a quick bean salad the following day, double the

amount of pepper flakes, chopped garlic, red onion, bell

pepper, celery, beans, and parsley, but do not cook.

 

Stir the extra raw vegetables into the extra beans. Flavor

with olive oil, vinegar, salt, and pepper.