Lemony White Bean Pasta
This white bean pasta is made with a silky sauce of shallots, garlic, cannellini beans and lemon—finished with arugula, herbs, and pine nuts for brightness and crunch.
Ingredients
- ½ cupextra-virgin olive oil
- 2shallots, minced
- 3garlic cloves, minced
- 2anchovies, chopped
- 3 cupscooked cannellini beans (or 2 15.5-ounce cans), rinsed
- kosher salt
- freshly ground black pepper
- ¼ tspcrushed red pepper, plus more to taste
- 8 ozshort pasta, such as shells or orecchiette
- 1lemon, zested and halved
- 2 tbspunsalted butter
- ¼ cuppine nuts
- ½ cupgrated parmesan, plus more as needed
- 4 ozbaby arugula (about 2 cups), roughly chopped
- 1 cupparsley, roughly chopped
Directions
- 1
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.
- 2
Heat olive oil in a large, deep skillet over medium heat. Add the shallots and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5 minutes.
- 3
Stir in the garlic and anchovies, and cook until the anchovies melt into the oil, 3- 4 minutes. Add the beans, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon black pepper and crushed red pepper. Cook over low heat to let the flavors meld, about 10 minutes.
- 4
Meanwhile, cook the pasta in the boiling water until al dente, according to package instructions.
- 5
Using a spider or slotted spoon, transfer the pasta directly to the skillet along with 1/2 cup pasta cooking water, lemon zest, juice of half a lemon, butter, pine nuts, and parmesan. Cook, tossing and stirring, until the sauce loosely clings to the pasta, about 2 minutes. Add arugula and parsley and cook another minute, until the greens are wilted.
- 6
Season with more salt or pepper, if needed. Divide among bowls and serve, passing extra parmesan at the table.