Tradtional Tuscan chickpea and pasta soup.

Traditional Tuscan chickpea and pasta soup.

5 from 29 votes

Tradtional Tuscan chickpea and pasta soup.

This classic chickpea and pasta soup from Tuscany is very nutritious and healthy. The ingredients are few and simple. All you need are dried chickpeas, garlic, rosemary, tomatoes, olive oil and pasta. Great Italian comfort food in a bowl!

Prep Time10

Cook Time2

Total Time2 10

Course: Main Course, Soup

Cuisine: Central Italy, Italian, Tuscany

Keyword: authentic Italian pasta recipe, chickpeas, pasta soup, pasta with chickpeas, Tuscan cuisine

Servings:

Calories: 539kcal

Author: Jacqui

Equipment

1 large pot to soak and then cook chickpeas. I used my Dutch oven.
1 sharp knife
1 chopping board
1 skillet

Ingredients

10.5 ounces dried chickpeas
7 ounces tagliolini or tagliatelle pasta fresh or dried
10.5 ounces cherry tomatoes cut in half or canned peeled tomatoes
2-3 garlic cloves peeled and halved
1-2 sprig rosemary washed and leaves chopped
2-3 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
salt to taste
black pepper to taste
Parmigiano or grana grated for serving (if required)

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Start preparing the day before by soaking the chickpeas in a large bowl or pot with plenty of warm water. Let them soak for a whole night. Drain them, put them in a deep pot or Dutch oven with about two liters (4 pints) of lightly salted water, bring to a boil and cook covered, on a low heat for about 1-3 hours, until they are tender.
About ⅔ of the way through cooking, remove three ladles of chickpeas (about 25%) with a little water, blend them until you have a rough puree and then put the pureed chickpeas back into the pot.
Next, heat the olive oil in a pan with the garlic cloves and rosemary, then add the chopped tomatoes once the gralic softens. Cook for about ten minutes, remove the garlic and pour this sauce into the pot with the chickpeas. Add salt, if necessary, and let the cooking continue until the chickpeas are ready.
Add the pasta to the chickpea soup and cook for the amount of time stated on the packet. Fresh tagliolini or tagliatelle only takes 1-2 minutes! Some people break the pasta into smaller pieces. I didn’t.
Serve immediately with a sprinkling of extra virgin olive oil, grated cheese (if required) and ground black pepper.

Notes

This pasta with chickpea soup can be made with tagliolini or tagliatelle or even small pasta tubes like ditalini. For a vegan version use dried eggless pasta and no cheese.

Non vegetarians can add some crispy fried guanciale or pancetta before serving!

This Tuscan chickpea and pasta soup can be made with canned chickpeas and vegetable stock instead of the chickpea cooking water. However, the flavors will differ. Canned chickpeas are higher in sodium and fat and lower in protein, minerals and vitamins per serving compared to dried chickpeas.

When you boil dried chickpeas some of the nutrients get transferred into the water. This water (aquafaba) is rich in vitamin B, folate, iron, phosphorus, and healthy fats like linoleic and oleic acids giving the soup even more nutritional value. However, if you use canned chickpea liquid, it often contains high levels of added salt, so look for no salt added or low-sodium cans if you plan to use a large amount of the liquid.

Nutrition