This is a modern take or a liberal take on the soup minestrone. The idea came from these great fresh cannellini beans I found at the farmers market. No need to soak these beans because they cook up in about 15 minutes. There is one farmer here in L.A. who specializes in legumes. Each week they have different fresh legumes. If they don't sell them all fresh then they simply sell them dried the next week.
Summertime is a bounty of different ingredients, baby summer squash, many varieties of tomatoes, peas, onions, radishes, carrots, and the list goes on and on and on. The santa monica farmers market can be very overwhelming if you have never been. It is 4-5 blocks of probably a hundred or so farmers. They all have something different which is fantastic for a chef. A basic recipe for minestrone usually has, carrots, tomatoes, beans, some sort of pasta, celery, in a tomato broth. I took the basic principal and just put some twists on a few things. The result was guests asking for seconds, so you know you were on the right path when that happens. Here is the recipe I hope you enjoy it
1 lb of fresh cannellini beans shelled
1 charred onion
1 carrot
2 garlic cloves
1 small sprig of rosemary
2 tsp of salt
1 cup of fresh green peas blanched
1 cup orange carrots cut into small pieces blanched
1 cup of baby summer squash and zucchini blanched
1 leek sliced 1/4 inch thick and blanched
1/4 cup of chinese celery chopped small
2 large white carrots sliced 1/4 inch and melted (recipe 1tbsp oil & butter, 1/4 tsp of salt and cover until tender)
2 red radish sliced
8 oz of cherry tomatoes roasted with olive oil, salt, and rosemary
Caramelle Pasta
Basic Pasta (recipe)
2 cups of corn juice
1 tbsp of truffle oil
Salt
Yellow tomato butter
3 large yellow heirloom tomatoes
1 garlic clove and 1 shallot sliced
1/3 cup of cream
6 tbsp of butter
salt to taste and handful of fresh basil to steep
Borage flowers, basil leaves, and basil oil to garnish
For the pasta,
Follow the recipe to make basic egg pasta. Meanwhile take corn juice and place in a pot with a pinch of salt. Turn on medium heat and with a whisk cook stirring periodically until the corn juice thickens up like pudding (5-8 minutes). Take off the heat add truffle oil and adjust seasoning if need be. Then pour into bowl and refrigerate until completely cold. The transfer to a pastry bag. Meanwhile roll out the pasta dough and cut the pasta into 1 1/2 inch by 1 inch rectangles shapes. Pipe a little corn truffle filling in the middle. Then roll over and twist the sides like a caramel candy in its wrapper. Continue until all are done. Place on a sheet pan lined with parchment and dusted with flour. You should have about 40-50 pieces roughly.
For the tomato butter,
Simply add tomatoes, shallot, and garlic into a small pot. Add a pinch of salt and cook for 5-10 minutes until the tomatoes start to break down without them browning. Then add cream and reduce by half. Then pour everything into a vita mix and puree until smooth for 1 minute. Then add the butter 1 tbsp at a time. Continue until all the butter is added. Then turn off and pour into a container to keep warm. Add a few basil leaves and salt if need be. Set aside and keep warm.
For the fresh cannellini beans,
Place all the ingredients in a pot and cover with 6 cups of water. Bring to a boil and turn down to a simmer. Cook for 20-25 minutes until tender and cooked through. Set aside to cool at room temperature.
To Finish,
Have a salted pot of water boiling for the pasta. Add the pasta to the water. Meanwhile in a large saute pan add 1 tbsp of olive oil, carrots, leeks, squash, and celery. Cook for 2 minutes and then add beans to the pot with a 4 tbsp of the bean water. Cook until everything is hot. Season with salt and pepper. Add the peas and roasted tomatoes. Strain the pasta and add to the vegetables. Then ladle one to two ladles of tomato butter in the bottom of a bowl. Then spoon in vegetables and pasta. Add herbs, radishes, and flowers. Drizzle with basil oil, Serve and enjoy!
