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creamy bean soup with al dente pasta is irresistible. The flavor is so haunting and the texture so voluptuous that you’ll wonder how such modest ingredients could conspire to create something so indulgent. And what makes it successful as a make-ahead main dish is that the pasta is cooked separately. I make vats of the bean soup ahead, then each time I reheat a portion, I boil up a fresh batch of dried pasta so the al dente texture balances the creaminess of the soup. If you are in the habit of buying blocks of Parmesan cheese, save the rind for this soup.

Ingredients
1 pound dried cranberry or pinto beans (about 3 cups), picked over and rinsed
10 cups water
1 ⁄ 2 cup plus 2 tablespoons olive oil, plus additional for drizzling
2 medium onions, chopped
1 3 ⁄ 4 teaspoons salt
2 medium carrots, chopped
2 celery stalks, chopped
5 large garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 ⁄ 4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1 teaspoon dried rosemary, crumbled
1 ⁄ 4 teaspoon black pepper
1 piece Parmigiano-Reggiano rind, roughly 2 by 3 inches (optional)
3 ⁄ 4 pound dried small pasta
Instructions
1. Bring the beans and water to a boil in a large heavy soup pot and boil for 2 minutes. Remove the pot from the heat, cover, and let stand for 1 hour. Do not drain the beans or discard the soaking liquid.
2. Heat 1 ⁄ 4 cup of the olive oil in a wide, heavy pot over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking, and then add the onions and 1 ⁄ 2 teaspoon of the salt and sauté, stirring occasionally, until they begin to brown, 7 to 8 minutes. Add the carrots, celery, garlic, parsley, rosemary, and pepper, and sauté, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes.
3. Add the beans with their soaking liquid and the cheese rind (if you have one on hand) and simmer, covered, stirring occasionally, until the beans are very tender. This could take 1 1 ⁄ 2 to 2 1 ⁄ 2 hours, depending on the age of your beans. Add more water if necessary to keep the beans covered, and stir more frequently toward the end of cooking. Remove from the heat and stir in 1 ⁄ 4 cup of the oil and the remaining 1 1 ⁄ 4 teaspoons salt. Cool, uncovered, for 20 minutes.
4. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil for the pasta.
5. Remove and discard the cheese rind. Transfer the soup to a blender (careful, it’s hot) and coarsely purée until smooth, then return it to the pot. Or use an immersion blender and purée the soup right in the pot. Reheat over moderately low heat, stirring frequently. Add water to thin if needed. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
6. While the soup is reheating, cook the pasta until al dente, and then drain in a colander and transfer to a large bowl. Toss with the remaining 2 tablespoons oil and pepper to taste.
7. Ladle the hot soup into bowls and top with spoonfuls of pasta, and then drizzle with additional olive oil.
    Make ahead? One of the glories of this recipe is that you cook the soup and the pasta separately; not only does that keep the pasta from getting mushy, it makes it very easy to make the entire dish ahead of time. Just refrigerate the pasta and the soup separately. Or freeze the soup for another day, and cook up a fresh batch of pasta when serving. The soup gets quite a bit thicker as it stands, so you may want to add water when reheating.
    For large crowds: This recipe lends itself well to multiplying.

Red Pozole
    Recipe from Ann Bates, Civano Soup Supper , Tucson, Arizona
    Serves 6–8
    Ann says: I developed this recipe over many years and from several sources, including a Mexican friend in Sunnyside, Washington. It was one of the first things I ever made for a Civano Soup Supper. As we were all eating and talking, a young man came to ask if I was the one who had made the red pozole soup. When I responded that I had, he said, “I haven’t tasted a pozole as real as this one since I used to eat my grandma’s.” It made my day!
Ingredients
3 tablespoons canola oil
8 boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into bite-size