Serves 2-3 

Ingredients: 

1 – 3/4 cups of either Ditalini Rigati or Cavatappi pasta 
2 cans chickpeas (15 oz. each) 
1 carrot, finely chopped 
¼ onion, finely chopped 
garlic clove, crushed 
1 can whole peeled San Marzano tomatoes (14.5 oz.) 
1 sprig fresh rosemary 
3-4 bay leaves 
4 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil, plus a little more 
Vegan Parmesan cheese 
Salt and pepper 
20 oz. of water 

Preparation: 

Drain and rinse chickpeas, keeping each portion in a separate bowl. 

Chop carrot and onion for the soffritto and set aside. Be sure to chop it finely, making it smaller than the pasta. 

Crush garlic and set aside. 

Add at least 2-3 Tbsp of olive oil to one of the bowls of chickpeas.  Mash it very well with a potato masher until it’s a creamy consistency.  Add a few splashes of water, if you’re unhappy with the consistency. 

Use an immersion blender to gently crush tomatoes. 

Heat a large pot on low heat and add 4-5 Tbsp. of olive oil. Once the oil is sufficiently heated, add the soffritto.  

Stir and allow to simmer. Then add bay leaves and fresh rosemary.  Continue stirring to coat it all in the oil and cover the pot so flavors infuse. 

After approximately 5 minutes, remove the lid and add crushed garlic.  Stir ingredients again, and add 2 Tbsp. of water to prevent garlic from burning. Cover for another 5 minutes to combine flavors. 

Next, remove the lid and some of the rosemary leaves from the stem.  Then, remove the stem from the pot. 

Add crushed tomato sauce to the pot and quickly stir.  Add the second can of whole chickpeas plus salt and pepper to taste.   

Stir again and remove the bay leaves and add pasta.  Once pasta is added, stir vigorously to combine the sauce and soak in the flavor. 

Once everything is well mixed, add 8 oz. of water and stir continuously as the pasta cooks. 

After about 5 minutes, add another 8 oz. of water and keep stirring for 5 – 8 minutes.  

Now add chickpea cream, scraping the sides of the bowl to remove it all. 

Stir the chickpea cream into the pot to mix with the sauce and pasta. 

Continue to stir and as you mix in the chickpea cream add up to another 4 oz. of water.  Don’t worry if it looks a little runny at this point.  Both the pasta and chickpea cream will continue to absorb the water and thicken up nicely. 

Keep stirring for another 2 minutes for the pasta to cook al dente.  Taste as you go to make sure it’s perfect. 

Once the pasta is al dente, remove the pot from the heat and move it around.  Then quickly stir to release heat. 

Add some vegan Parmesan cheese (as much as you like) and stir once more.  

Now your pasta with chickpeas is ready to serve. Scoop into a shallow pasta bowl and top with more vegan Parmesan, if desired.