Pasta e Ceci is a classic Italian dish also called pasta with chickpeas or Italian chickpea and pasta stew. Made in about 30 minutes with a handful of pantry ingredients, it’s an affordable and comforting weeknight dinner that’s full of flavor.
I love this recipe because it’s a one pot meal that’s savory, convenient and perfect for weeknights thanks to its short ingredient list of simple pantry staples.
I first had pasta e ceci in a café in Rome and fell in love. I knew I had to come back and create my own version at home. The result is a recipe that uses just one pot, requires only 30 minutes of your time and features tomato broth, fresh herbs, chickpeas, ditalini pasta, and my own addition, a bit of Tuscan kale to bulk it up.
If you love a great stew recipe, be sure to try out other favorite recipes like Chicken and Rice Soup, Italian Tomato Soup, and Ground Chicken Noodle Soup.
Ingredient Notes
- Anchovy filets: You can also use anchovy paste, this adds saltiness and a burst of umami to the soup. The anchovies dissolve when cooked, so anyone who doesn’t like them will never know they were used.
- Tomato paste: Brings a concentrated tomato flavor to each bite of the stew.
- Fresh oregano and rosemary: If you want to use dried, halve the amount called for.
- Chickpeas: my recipe uses canned to save time.
- Diced tomatoes and their juices: Makes the foundation of the broth and sauce of the pasta e ceci.
- Low-sodium vegetable or chicken broth: Use whichever fits your fancy.
- Dry ditalini pasta: Classic to a pasta e ceci recipe, but you can also use other small pasta shape like orzo.
- Tuscan kale: I added this to our version for texture and a fresh boost of flavor. Spinach also works well too.
- Grated Pecorino cheese or Parmesan cheese: You can’t forget the cheese! Adds a hint of saltiness in every bite.
How to Make Pasta e Ceci
- Heat oil in a Dutch oven or large pot over medium. Add onion, anchovy fillets (if using), and ½ teaspoon salt; cook, stirring occasionally, until softened and starting to brown, about 5 minutes.
- Stir in garlic, tomato paste, oregano rosemary, and red-pepper flakes; cook until mixture starts to caramelize, 2–3 minutes.
- Mash ½ cup chickpeas then add to soup with remaining chickpeas, tomatoes and their juices, and broth; bring to a boil over high heat.
- Reduce heat to medium-high, add pasta and simmer, stirring frequently to avoid scorching, until pasta is al dente, about 10 minutes. (If desired, add 1 cup water for a brothier soup.)
- Stir in kale and cook until wilted, about 4 minutes.
- Season to taste with salt (at least 1 teaspoon) and black pepper.
- Top each serving with grated Pecorino and a drizzle of olive oil. I love serving this with my fennel salad.
Test Kitchen Tips
- Buy anchovies sold in a glass jar with a lid as opposed to tins. This way you can use what you need and refrigerate the leftovers.
- Add a Parmesan rind if you have one on hand. Simmer it in the soup, then remove before serving. This adds extra savoriness. In the test kitchen we store all our leftover Parmesan rinds in a zipper-lock bag in the freezer.
Storage and Freezing
Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. The pasta will continue to soak up the broth, so you will likely need to add some additional broth or water to loosen it when reheating on the stove top.
You can freeze this stew but we do caution against it because the noodles can often change texture. When reheating the stew, be sure to have extra broth on hand in case it’s too thick.
Pasta e Ceci (Pasta and Chickpea Stew)
Description
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil + more for drizzling
- 1 yellow onion, diced
- 2 anchovy filets, or 1 teaspoon anchovy paste, optional*
- Kosher salt and black pepper
- 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 1 tablespoons chopped fresh oregano, or 1 ½ teaspoons dried
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary, or 1 ½ teaspoons dried
- ¾ teaspoon red-pepper flakes
- 1 (15-ounce) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- 1 (28-ounce) can diced tomatoes and their juices
- 4 cups low-sodium vegetable or chicken broth*
- ⅔ cup (3 ounces) dry ditalini pasta, or other small pasta shape such as orzo or rings
- 1 bunch Tuscan kale, stems removed, greens roughly chopped (4 cups)
- Grated Pecorino cheese or Parmesan cheese, for serving
Instructions
- Heat oil in a Dutch oven or large pot over medium. Add onion, anchovy fillets (if using), and ½ teaspoon salt; cook, stirring occasionally, until softened and starting to brown, about 5 minutes.
- Stir in garlic, tomato paste, oregano rosemary, and red-pepper flakes; cook until mixture starts to caramelize, 2–3 minutes.
- Mash ½ cup chickpeas then add to soup with remaining chickpeas, tomatoes and their juices, and broth; bring to a boil over high heat.
- Reduce heat to medium-high, add pasta and simmer, stirring frequently to avoid scorching, until pasta is al dente, about 10 minutes. (If desired, add 1 cup water for a brothier soup).
- Stir in kale and cook until wilted.
- Season to taste with salt (at least 1 teaspoon) and black pepper.
- Top each serving with grated Pecorino and a drizzle of olive oil.
Save This Recipe!
We’ll email this post to you, so you can come back to it later.
Notes
Nutrition
This post was most recently updated on January 10, 2025 for clarity.
One of my all-time favorite soups!
I thought soup season was over…snowing in Iowa…this soup is so delicious! Just right for a cold spring day. Full of flavor but not heavy. Used homemade chix broth and frozen chopped kale. So yummy!!