Pearl Pasta e Fagioli Soup
with Toasted Panko & Parmesan
- Wheat
- Milk
This soul-warming vegetarian soup is the culinary equivalent of a cozy blanket. It’s chock full of goodness, with earthy cannellini beans (aka fagioli), springy couscous (aka pearl pasta), and tender carrot, celery, and scallions, in a savory tomato broth with a pinch of chili flakes. Top with a sprinkle of nutty Parmesan and crisp toasted breadcrumbs, and you’ve got an ideal dinner or lunch! Get ready to wrap yourself in this meal that’s as satisfying and comforting as it is delicious.
Ingredients
3 clove
Garlic
2 unit
Scallions
6 ounce
Carrots
2.5 ounce
Celery
1 unit
Tomato Paste
13.76 ounce
Crushed Tomatoes
1 unit
Cannellini Beans
2 unit
Veggie Stock Concentrate
1 teaspoon
Chili Flakes
2.5 ounce
Israeli Couscous
(Contains: Wheat)
¼ cup
Panko Breadcrumbs
(Contains: Wheat)
3 tablespoon
Parmesan Cheese
(Contains: Milk)
Not included in your delivery
Salt
Pepper
1 teaspoon
Olive Oil
1 teaspoon
Cooking Oil
Nutrition Values
Utensils
Cooking Steps
• Wash and dry produce. • Peel and mince garlic. Thinly slice scallions, separating whites from greens. Peel and dice carrots into ¼-inch pieces. Dice celery into ¼-inch pieces.
• In a large pot, heat a drizzle of oil over medium-high heat. Add garlic and scallion whites; cook, stirring, until fragrant, 1-2 minutes. Add carrots and celery; season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring, until softened, 2-3 minutes. • Stir in tomato paste, crushed tomatoes, beans and their liquid, stock concentrates, 2 cups water (4 cups for 4 servings), a pinch of chili flakes, salt, and pepper. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium. Cook, scraping any browned bits from bottom of pot, until flavors meld, 6-8 minutes.
• Add couscous to soup; season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until couscous is tender and soup has thickened slightly, 6-8 minutes. • Meanwhile, in a medium pan, heat a drizzle of olive oil over medium heat. Add panko and a pinch of salt and pepper; cook, stirring, until lightly browned, 3-5 minutes. TIP: Watch carefully to avoid burning.
• Divide soup between bowls. Top with Parmesan, toasted panko, scallion greens, and a pinch of pepper to taste. Serve.
Customer reviews
Review summary
Updated on Dec 2025- Flavor: Many enjoyed the hearty, tomato-based taste; some found it bland and added Italian seasoning for depth 🍲.
- Ease of prep: Simple to make, though some noted vegetables needed longer cooking time than suggested.
- Suggestions: Consider adding Italian sausage, extra herbs, or vegetables like zucchini for more flavor and substance.
- Leftovers: Soup thickens overnight; add broth when reheating for desired consistency.
- Texture: Some preferred traditional pasta over couscous; others loved the pearl pasta's unique texture.
- Spice: Use chili flakes sparingly; many found even a small amount too spicy.
Reviews from our home cooks
Very tasty! I will make it again. We added all the bean juice, and did not drain it off. Let it be known that the couscous, aka Pearl pasta, continues to absorb any liquid if left to stand a bit to serve! I added our own chicken sausage coins, for protein, and it was great. However, any leftovers need vegetable or chicken broth added, as the pearls become beads, and the soup is now a stew!
I really liked this soup! I added some zucchini, chickpeas, spinach, and Italian seasoning (since I had extra of all 4 ingredients). I think the Italian seasoning was a nice touch and the soup would have been too bland without it. I liked the panko topping along with the parmesan more than I thought too. The only thing I would change, is there is no need to add chili flakes to this, or many of your other recipes! I'd much rather sweeten them with maple syrup than make everything so spicy that you can't taste anything else!
This was the best Pasta Fagioli I ever ate. I am Italian and make this soup quite often but it has never been as good as yours. Please keep this recipe in your rotation.
HF has the best soups and stews, because I get the 2 serving plan, but I can easily split them into 4 or sometimes 5 servings! I made 2 minor changes- I skipped the toasted panko because I don't need the extra carbs, and I added a couple of shakes of my favorite Parisian herb blend for flavor.
I did not get a protein with the soup and it definitely needed a spicy sausage of some sort. The taste was pretty blah and I hardly noticed the pearl pasta. Also, the toasted crumbs were a waste of time. Crushed up crackers would have added the same elements.
I don't normally like this soup but I'm Italian, so I thought I should try. It was delicious. It was really good. The couscous really made it. I added extra couscous I had myself just to give it some more bulk. I don't like it as watery of a soup.
Please keep these new recipes coming. Especially hearty vegetarian options like this. A lot of the vegetarian options are spicy. I really appreciate when more non spicy options are available. The soup was great. Great flavor.
The carrots took much longer to cook to get them tender than indicated. Maybe I didn't chop it finely enough. I was confused by step 2 where it said to "stock concentrate". I wasn't sure if that was the little packets named "veggie". Seemed a bit unclear. Overall the recipe took quite a bit longer to simmer to get the carrots tender. But I really enjoyed the soup. Might be extra good with the addition of some stewed tomatoes.
This soup turned out to be a big hit. We added more of our own sweet sausage and a couple other items, and had enough for two dinners. Very good!
I let the soup cook longer than the recipe called for before adding the cous cous (30-40 minutes). It was very satisfying and delicious.
