Pasta e fagioli

Feed a crowd with this delicious slow-cooker recipe!

Serves: 8

Time to make: 7 hrs 20 mins

Hands-on time: 15 mins

Ingredients

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
1 cup celery, sliced
2 cloves garlic, crushed
½ teaspoon dried Italian herbs (basil, oregano and parsley)
½ teaspoon paprika
½ teaspoon ground coriandercilantroX
2 teaspoons fresh thyme
1 bay leaf
½ teaspoon chilli flakes (optional)
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
zest of ½ lemon
2 cups carrots, peeled and roughly chopped
2 cups button mushrooms, sliced
2 cups silverbeet, sliced
400g sweet potato/ kumarasweet-potatoX or pumpkin, peeled and cut into 3cm chunks
2 x 400g cans red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
400g can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
3 cups no-added-salt vegetable stock
400g can crushed tomatoes
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
20g parmesan rind (optional)
2 cups orzo
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 cup parmesan, finely grated
¼ cup fresh parsley, chopped

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Instructions

Stay Awake

1 In a medium pan, place oil and set over medium heat. Add onions, celery and garlic, and cook for 2–3 minutes. Add herbs and spices and cook for a further 2 minutes.

2 Transfer onion mixture to slow cooker. Add the remaining ingredients except the orzo pasta, balsamic vinegar and parsley.

3 Cover and cook on low for 7 hours.

4 Half an hour before serving, stir in orzo pasta and continue cooking.

5 Before serving, remove parmesan rind (if using) and stir in balsamic vinegar.

6 Serve hot, topped with grated parmesan and chopped parsley.

Variations

Make it gluten free: Use gluten-free pasta and check ground spices, stock and mustard are gluten free.

HFG tip

Freeze your leftover parmesan rinds and add them to slow-cooker dishes like this to help develop robust flavours.

Nutrition Info (per serve)

Calories 398 cal

Kilojoules 1665 kJ

Protein 18 g

Total fat 10.9 g

Saturated fat 4.1 g

Carbohydrates 50 g

Sugar 10.5 g

Dietary fibre 11 g

Sodium 553 mg

Calcium 268 mg

Iron 4.8 mg

Note: This nutrition analysis is a guide only. Nutrition composition will vary depending on the exact ingredients used. See our guides on your optimal daily nutrition intake, and supermarket shopping.