PASTINA
Pastina, tiny pasta, enormous comfort. These miniature stars, orzo shaped bits and other teeny pasta forms have fed generations with their warm, soothing simplicity. Originating in Italy, pastina (literally “little pasta”) became popular because it’s cheap, quick to cook and easy to digest. It was a staple in peasant kitchens, carried on ships and in soldiers’ rations, and later welcomed into household pantries everywhere. For many years pastina was the go to for babies, convalescents and anyone wanting plain, gentle food: boiled in broth, swaddled in butter, or brightened with a dusting of cheese.
My Pastina with blended vegetables, uses very simple ingredients and then instead of tossing them after flavouring the broth, gets blitzed through to create this almost neon yellow colour. I use carrots, celery, onion and garlic, that all gets blitzed through, giving the soup more texture and making it a punch of health for those crashing through a flu in winter.
PASTINA
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PASTINA 〰️
Time: 60 minutes
Serves: 4-6
1 ltr salt reduced chicken stock
1 brown onion (peeled, top and tailed)
2 carrots (peeled)
2 celery stalks (washed)
4 garlic cloves (skin removed)
1 tbl sp turmeric (optional)
500gm pastina (any small pasta will work, smaller the better)
Salt
Pepper
Garnish: finely chopped parsley leaves, finely grated parmesan reggiano and EVOO
Start by chopping the brown onion, carrot and celery into medium size pieces. Add them to pot on chicken stock with one litre of water as well. Bring everything to a high simmer and allow it simmer with lid on for 15 minutes, lid off for 15 minutes.
Once aromats are cooked through, remove all the aromats from the pot and place into blender and blitz with some salt and cracked black pepper until entirely smooth. Pour back into pot of chicken stock with optional turmeric if you like, to get that golden colour.
Place pot back on heat and bring to a boil. Once boil is reached cook pasta to packet instructions or until al dente, mixing through at the start to make sure nothing sticks to the bottom.
Once al dente, season with salt to taste and garnish fresh parsley leaves, finely grated parmesan reggiano and a drizzle of EVOO.