Pasta e ceci is a one pot Italian chickpea soup with pasta that originated in Rome. It’s a perfect meal where the flavors combine beautifully to make a perfect hearty soup to eat on a cold winter night.
Pasta e ceci is undeniably my mom’s most famous dish. If people are going to her house for dinner, they request she make it. Even my cousin Danny likes it, who is one of the pickier eaters in our family. Aldo, a family friend and handyman that comes by to do odd jobs around her house requests that he gets paid in dishes of pasta e ceci. It’s THAT GOOD.
The best part of pasta e ceci is that it can be made in one pot. So it’s perfect for a weeknight dinner when the last thing you want to do is wash a million pots after dinner.
What is Pasta e Ceci?
Pasta a Ceci is an Italian chickpea soup with pasta that is also flavored with tomatoes, onions, celery and carrots.
Is it pasta or is it soup? Well the answer is that it’s a bit of both. Some people prefer it more soup-y with more liquid in it, and others (myself included) prefer it more hearty with more pasta in it than broth (as pictured). That’s one of the beauties of this dish- you can customize it to your liking.
Some recipes omit the canned tomatoes, or cook the pasta on the side, and then add it to the soup – there are so many variations of this recipe out there! But this is the version that I grew up with.
What Pasta to Use?
Small shell pasta as pictured works well. But any small cut of pasta would work, like ditaliani, or anellini.
Why Canned Chickpeas?
A few reasons. First reason is that this is my mom’s recipe, and she uses canned chickpeas, so I didn’t want to deviate too far from the original recipe.
Second reason is that to me, this dish is convenient and easy, and the canned chickpeas add to that convenience. I suppose you could use dry chickpeas in this dish, but the procedure and steps might be different. This recipe is designed to use canned chickpeas.
How to Make Pasta e Ceci – Step by Step
On medium heat, heat olive oil in a large pot. Add onion, celery and carrot. Add garlic when vegetables are about halfway cooked. Let cook until all vegetables are tender (photo 1)
Add crushed strained tomatoes, chick peas, bay leaf, and salt and pepper to the pot (note – when adding the chick peas, add the liquid from the can too. This will add extra flavor). Let the tomato sauce reduce until thick – about 30 minutes (photos 2 & 3)
Add chicken or vegetable broth to the pot (photo 4) Let it come to a boil. Add more salt and pepper if needed.
Add pasta to pot once the soup is boiling (photo 5) Let pasta cook until it’s soft. Since this is a soup, you want the consistency of the pasta to be cooked a bit more than al dente (photo 6)
Plate, and top with olive oil, parmesan and chili flakes
Top Tips:
Add the liquid from the canned chickpeas (aquafaba) too – this will give the dish more flavor. Concerned that there’s too much sodium in the liquid? Don’t be! This just means that you will have to add less salt to the dish during the cooking process. Not only will the canned chickpea liquid add more flavor, it’s also full of starch, which makes for a great binder and adds beautiful texture to the soup.
As the soup sits, it will thicken up as it absorbs more broth. Add more broth if you prefer the soup more liquid.
This soup calls for small shell pasta, but you can use any cut of small pasta. Ditalini or anellini would work well too.
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Pasta e ceci is a one pot Italian chickpea soup with pasta that originated in Rome. It's warm and comforting on a cold night, and the flavours of the celery, carrots, onions, tomatoes and chickpeas come together beautifully.
On medium heat, heat olive oil in a large pot. Add onion, celery and carrot. Add garlic when vegetables are about halfway cooked. Let cook until all vegetables are tender.
Add crushed strained tomatoes, chick peas, bay leaf, and salt and pepper to the pot (note – when adding the chick peas, add the liquid from the can too. This will add extra flavor). Let the tomato sauce reduce until thick – about 30 minutes.
Add chicken or vegetable broth to the pot. Let it come to a boil. Add more salt and pepper if needed.
Add pasta to pot once the soup is boiling. Let pasta cook until it’s soft. Since this is a soup, you want the consistency of the pasta to be cooked a bit more than al dente.
Plate, and top with olive oil, parmesan and chili flakes.
Recipe Video
Recipe Notes
Add the liquid from the canned chickpeas (aquafaba) too – this will give the dish more flavor. Concerned that there’s too much sodium in the liquid? Don’t be! This just means that you will have to add less salt to the dish during the cooking process. Not only will the canned chickpea liquid add more flavor, it’s also full of starch, which makes for a great binder and adds beautiful texture to the soup.
As the soup sits, it will thicken up as it absorbs more broth. Add more broth if you prefer the soup more liquid.
This soup calls for small shell pasta, but you can use any cut of small pasta. Ditalini would work well too.
Nutrition Facts
Pasta e Ceci (Italian Chickpea Soup)
Amount Per Serving
Calories 226Calories from Fat 72
% Daily Value*
Fat 8g12%
Saturated Fat 1g6%
Sodium 1396mg61%
Potassium 752mg21%
Carbohydrates 31g10%
Fiber 3g13%
Sugar 7g8%
Protein 7g14%
Vitamin A 2080IU42%
Vitamin C 36.6mg44%
Calcium 78mg8%
Iron 2.6mg14%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
