Easy Pasta with White Beans

Pasta with white beans is a deceptively easy and flavorful meal. It combines the rich flavor of a red sauce with the delicate flavor of white wine for a hearty but light tasting meal.

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Who doesn’t love reading a food blog about someone’s grandma’s recipe and the truly inspired story that inevitably goes along with it?

Yes, this pasta with white beans recipe comes straight from my grandmother’s cookbook.

But that’s all you are going to hear about that.

You wouldn’t think it, but white beans get super creamy when they cook.

It makes the sauce feel like it might have some extra cream or tons of cheese, when it doesn’t.

It’s like a magic trick, and I am all about it.

I’m also all about the fact that this pasta with white beans comes together in about 20 to 25 minutes.

It’s the perfect filling, somewhat healthy meal for any day of the week.

Ingredients and Kitchen Supplies

Pasta with white beans is a pretty simple dish. You will only need a few ingredients:

• Spaghetti – You could use any type of pasta you like, but my family always used spaghetti for this.
• Garlic – Add as much or little as you like. There is almost never a hard rule when it comes to adding garlic.
• Olive oil – You will need this to saute the garlic and beans. It also adds a bit of richness to the sauce.
• White wine – Reduced white wine helps to add some nice flavor to the white beans sauce.
• White beans – We use canned white beans. Sure, you could use dried beans, but you will need to prepare them first, which adds a lot of time to the cooking process.
• Tomato puree – You could also use a can of crushed tomatoes. For a thicker sauce, you could use roma or plum tomatoes that you cut into cubes and cook down. Doing so will add to the cooking time.
• Parmesan cheese – Very few Italian-American dishes don’t use Parmesan cheese, and pasta with white beans is no exception here.
• Seasonings – To finish it off, you’ll want salt, pepper, and red pepper to taste.
• Fresh basil – You can add this to the top as a garnish or mix in at the very end to add a bit more flavor.

You don’t need any fancy equipment for this, though I highly recommend getting a garlic press if you don’t already have one.

This simple tool saves a lot of time and effort when adding in garlic.

How to make pasta with white beans

Follow these easy steps to make pasta with white beans:

1. Saute the white beans

Heat a tablespoon of olive oil in a large skillet over medium to medium high heat.

Add the white beans and season with salt and pepper and crushed garlic.

Saute for about 1 to 2 minutes or until the garlic starts to become fragrant.

2. Simmer the beans and white wine

Add the white wine and bring to a simmer.

Simmer until the wine reduces down by about half or about 6 minutes.

As the white wine reduces, prepare the pasta according to the package instructions.

3. Finish the sauce

Once the white wine has reduced, add the tomato puree.

Cook until slowly bubbling and then add salt and pepper as needed.

Finish with crushed red pepper flakes, Parmesan cheese, and fresh basil.

Serve the sauce over the pasta with a side salad, Italian bread, or other sides.

Storing pasta with white beans

Pasta with white beans is best when served freshly made over newly prepared pasta.

If you want to store it, I recommend placing the sauce in an air tight container and storing in the fridge for about 2 to 3 days.

You could also freeze the sauce for up to 6 months. Before reheating, allow it to thaw overnight in the fridge.

To reheat, you can place a serving in the microwave and heat for a few seconds until warmed through.

You could also place the sauce in sauce pan and reheat over low to medium heat, stirring occassionally, until warmed through.

Serve with freshly maded pasta, Parmesan cheese, and fresh basil.

Tips and Tricks

• Make sure the white wine reduces about in half. Too little and it will still have a lot of alcohol in it. Too much and the sauce will be a lot thicker with less liquid.
• Add as much garlic as you like to the white bean sauce. About 3 to 4 cloves is a good starting point. Adding less will slightly reduce the garlic flavor while adding more will increase it.
• Use any kind of pasta you like for white bean sauce. We tend to use spaghetti, linguine, or other longer noodles, but just about any pasta type will work just fine.
• If possible, store leftover white bean sauce and pasta seperately. This will help prevent the pasta from absorbing too much of the liquid as it sits.

Other Italian inspired recipes to try

Looking for other Italian-American recipes?

Try these:

• Authentic Tomato Sauce
• Pesto Sauce
• Beef Ragu
• Gluten Free Lasagna
• Pumpkin Penne with Peas, Parmesan, and Sage
• Brown Butter Lobster Pasta
• Cheesy Chicken Ziti Skillet
• Quick and Easy Bruschetta Pasta

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