Sunday I made the Farfalle with Arugula and White Beans recipe from Everyday Food: Fresh Flavors Fast. I was very pleased with the outcome of this recipe. It was fresh. It was fast. It was mighty tasty. Not eating meat never tasted so good! We even had a major carnivore over for dinner that night and he loved it as well. I will definitely be adding this recipe to our regular rotation!
Here’s the recipe, with my various notes. Enjoy!
Pasta with Arugula and White Beans
Author: Jane Maynard
Recipe type: Main Dish, Pasta
Ingredients
- Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
- 12 ounces farfalle (Jane note: I used Campanelle pasta from Barilla and REALLY liked the shape of this pasta”¦this is going to replace farfalle for me from here on out)
- 4 tablespoons butter, cut into pieces
- 4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced (or mashed through the garlic press Jane-style)
- 1 pound baby arugula (I had more like half a pound; I also think spinach would be nice in this recipe; and maybe even a mix of the two!)
- 1 can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
- ¼ cup walnut pieces, toasted, for garnish (BLECH. I left these out.)
- Jane addition – freshly grated parmesan cheese to sprinkle on top!
Instructions
- Bring a pot of water to a boil; add a generous amount of salt. Cook pasta until al dente according to package instructions. Reserve 1 cup pasta water; drain pasta.
- Add 1 Tbsp. butter and the garlic to the pot; cook over medium heat, stirring, until garlic is fragrant, about 2 minutes. Stir in arugula; toss just until wilted.
- Add beans, pasta and remaining 3 Tbsp butter; season to taste with salt and pepper (make sure you taste – I almost oversalted). Heat, tossing, until butter is melted and beans and pasta are warmed through, about 1 minute. Add enough reserved pasta water to create a thin sauce to coat pasta (I think I added about ½ of the cup I had reserved). Mangia!
Hi! My name is Jane Maynard and you've landed yourself on my blog, This Week for Dinner™. Every Sunday I share a weekly menu...and count on you to share yours! You'll also find other deliciousness that I hope you'll enjoy!
This looks so fresh and delicious, I may have this for dinner tonight!
Looks like a winner! I will be trying this one soon!
Looks great. I think I’ll try this out and see if I can get the two picky eaters at my table to try it.
Oh how I love arugula and anything it resides in. Especially pasta 🙂 It looks beautiful and simple!
If you don’t care for the walnuts, I make a similar recipe and use toasted pine nuts…yum!
This looks delish! I love the idea of adding pine nuts . . . and maybe a squeeze of fresh lemon juice! I love the combo of lemon & white beans!
I made a very similar dish to this that I got off Giada de Laurentiis’ show. Hers uses crumbled goat cheese (I use one that has been rolled in Herbes de Provence), and I add browned ground turkey seasoned with salt and pepper to mine, since my husband can’t imagine a meal that doesn’t include meat. It’s one of our summer favorites!
that is my “go to ” cook book for all things seasonal, fast and delicious. this is a great one – and lovely photo!
Yum, it looks so good. I would like to try it with garlic.
I love all thing arugula. Jotting this one down for when I need (another) no-brainer dinner that’s healthy, quick and tasty!
I have been using Barilla’s campanelle pasta for almost everything because they are so fun to look at and eat! Though I wouldn’t recommend putting a heavy (meaty) spaghetti sauce on them, they aren’t structured enough for that.
thanks, magdalena! glad to have a campanelle expert offer tips – I’m really excited about this past! 🙂
That looks so delicious! I’m totally going to try it. And I’m happy to hear that the “major carnivore” even loved it. 😉
This was delicious! Though I made a few modifications:
I wanted some more bite, so I added cremini mushroom as well, sauteing them before the garlic. I tried it with and without the walnuts and decided that they added a good contrast in texture and satisfying crunch. I imagine a good alternative would be pine nuts, if you’re walnut-averse.
Thank you!
this looks great! i’m a fan of anything w/cannellini beans. i’ve been meaning to buy that cookbook!
I just made this for dinner. It was yummy, fresh, and very easy. I used olive oil instead of butter, since I’m trying out new vegan recipes for when my vegan friends join me for dinner. (Since olive oil contains no salt, you have to increase the salt if doing it this way.) I also added diced fresh tomato, and a can of sliced black olives. The 4 cloves of garlic was not enough for me; I will double it the next time that I make this. (There will definitely be a next time.) I also found that it really needed a generous sprinkling of parmesan to finish it off. (I am not vegan.) When trying to keep it vegan in the future, a good squeeze of fresh lemon juice and some extra salt will probably do the trick.
yay! so glad you had a good experience with the recipe – and thanks for all the thoughts and tips, love getting that kind of info!
Jane, what a great recipe! And super simple–perfect for the kind of day I had. I had fresh fettuccine from Sigona’s in the fridge and substituted with baby spinach, which worked well. Thank you!
yay! so glad that you liked it and it was nice and simple for you…you need that right now! 🙂
Yum yum. Why are you trying to make me hungry. Nice, light, and nutritious.
Thank you for this recipe. I finished it off with some lemon zest and a little lemon juice. It was delicious.
you’re welcome, and I love how you finished it off with the lemon, great idea!