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The Rat Pack may have exuded an air of cool sophistication, but they were no “Strangers in the Night” to basic comfort foods. Frank Sinatra loved veal Milanese, Sammy Davis Jr. liked spaghetti and meatballs, and Dean Martin couldn’t get enough of his mother’s pasta fagioli (“pasta and beans”) soup. In a 2016 episode of “Home & Family” (via the Hallmark Channel), the star’s daughter, Deana Martin, shared memories about her father’s affection for the dish and even revealed its secret ingredient. To her, the classic Italian soup is Grandma Angela’s Pasta Fagioli and her opinions on it are strong. If you want to impress “The Queen of Cool,” don’t include red beans, garlic, or tomatoes like Sophia Loren. In Ms. Martin’s words, “She was wrong.”
After confirming her father (“The King of Cool”) loved his mother’s soup, Deana shared the recipe. At its most basic, pasta fagioli consists of pasta, beans, and broth. It’s simple, traditional, and a perfect warm-you-up on a cold winter night. Grandma Angela Crocetti’s recipe, according to her granddaughter, begins by sauteing onions in olive oil in a large pot. Cannellini beans are most commonly used and Crocetti’s version is no different. After adding the beans, plenty of water for the broth and seasoning with salt and pepper, comes the secret twist — a touch of ground cinnamon. The pasta (tubetini) comes in after the broth has simmered. Grated cheese tops it off.
A soup that gives you something to croon about
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Dean Martin didn’t just eat the soup — he crooned about it. In one of his most iconic songs, 1953’s “That’s Amore” (composed by Harry Warren with lyrics by Jack Brooks), Martin sang, “When the stars make you drool just like pasta fazool that’s amore.” In Hallmark’s video, Deana Martin reminisced about the time she first made it for her father, after her grandmother passed away, “… in a beautiful jar with a red ribbon … the look in his eye was unbelievable. He said, ‘Is this what I think it is?’ I said, ‘Yes,’ and he said, ‘And it’s warm.'”
It’s clear Dean Martin loved his mama’s pasta fagioli, but you can find the version that makes your heart croon for a-more. Start with his mother’s signature recipe and experiment from there. Bump up the flavor, like in this classic pasta e fagioli recipe, by adding pancetta, a rind of pecorino, some rosemary, and sage. Other modifications include a traditional mirepoix (carrots, onions, and celery) for increased depth of flavor, (Grandma Angela’s uses onions alone). Garlic, tomatoes, (fresh, canned, or paste) and basil are often welcome additions (though blasphemous to Ms. Martin). “That sounded too much like minestrone soup, to me,” she said, referring to Loren’s recipe in the Hallmark video. Once you’ve settled on your favorite version of this classic comfort dish, you might want to get your hands on Dean Martin’s old fashioned which swaps bourbon for scotch.
Dining and Cooking