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Pasta Fazool is Italian slang for pasta cooked with fagioli (beans)- something we think Louis Prima would love to eat!

1/4 pound diced Apple Smoked Bacon (optional) (we like Hobbs)
1/2 cup finely diced sweet onion
1/4 cup finely diced celery
1/4 cup finely diced carrot
2 garlic cloves finely chopped

1 tablespoon good quality olive oil, (3-4 tablespoons if not using bacon)
3/4 cup diced Roma tomatoes or canned crushed tomatoes with juice
1/2 pound Rancho Gordo Cannelini beans, soaked 6-8 hours
4 cups homemade chicken stock or your favorite canned chicken stock
6-8 cups water if necessary
1/2 teaspoon Rancho Gordo dried Mexican oregano or 1 tablespoon fresh oregano chopped
1 cup pasta (your choice shape such as little tubes or broken papardelli noodles
1 tablespoon fresh Italian parsley chopped
salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
Da Vero Lemon Olive Oil to drizzle
Vella Dry Jack to grate to taste over the "fazool"

In a large heavy bottom soup pot, sauté bacon until browned. Remove bacon from pot with a slotted spoon and set aside. Discard all but about 1 -2 tablespoons bacon fat and add 1 tablespoon olive oil (or start with 3-4 tablespoons of olive oil if you are not using bacon). Over medium heat, sauté onions, celery, carrots, and garlic until soft and onions are translucent, about 10 minutes. Add tomatoes, beans, stock, oregano, and return bacon in the pot. Simmer over medium heat until beans are tender, 35 -45 minutes (cooking time may vary depending on freshness of beans). You may add water if necessary. Add pasta and continue cooking until al dente. Remove from heat, stir in the parsley and allow the "fazool" to stand for 10 minutes before serving, to concentrate the flavors. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

To serve: Drizzle individual bowls with Da Vero lemon olive oil, and sprinkle grated cheese on top.

Yield: 6-8 servings