Ditalini With Tender Herbs, Chickpeas & Yogurt
★★★★★
PREP TIME
25 minutes
COOK TIME
30 minutes
SERVES
4
Ingredients
5 ounces
(1 1/2 cups) ditalini (or another short dry pasta, such as macaroni or penne)
3 cups
chicken or vegetable stock or water, divided
3 tablespoons
butter, divided
3
anchovy fillets
3
garlic cloves, smashed, peeled, and chopped
6 cups
roughly chopped tender herbs and/or greens (such as dill, parsley, basil, arugula, radish tops, beet tops, etc), plus a handful to serve
1
(15.5-oz.) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1/3 cup
whole-milk Greek yogurt, plus more to serve
Instructions
- Put the pasta in a small bowl and cover with 1 1/2 cups of chicken stock or water. Stir occasionally to make sure the pasta isn’t clumping together.
- Add 2 tablespoons of butter to a medium Dutch oven over medium heat and melt until foamy, about 2 minutes. Add the anchovies and garlic and cook, stirring often, until the anchovies melt into the fat and the garlic just begins to brown, 3 to 5 minutes.
- Add the herbs and/or greens, the remaining 1 1/2 cups of chicken stock or water, and a big pinch each of salt and pepper. Increase the heat to high and bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a maintain an active simmer. Add the beans and cook, partially covered, until the liquid has reduced to about 1 cup and the greens are tender and silky, 10 to 15 minutes. Taste the greens and add more salt and pepper if needed. (You want it to be very well seasoned at this point, so the liquid and greens can season the pasta.)
- Add the pasta along with the soaking liquid and simmer, stirring constantly, until the pasta is al dente, 3 to 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the yogurt, remaining 1 tablespoon of butter, and season with lemon zest and juice to taste. Taste and add more salt and pepper if needed.
- Divide the pasta between 4 bowls and garnish with more yogurt.
