Pasta with figs, radicchio and chick peas – Fresh Foodie

We’re right in the midst of the CSA Farm season, and I love it for oh-so-many reasons. Yes, the fresh food is great. Sure, I love showing my kid where vegetables come from and I delight in him picking the veggies and eating them right from the plant, as if it’s the most amazing forbidden treasure (it is!).  But I mostly love having to think outside the box to create meals. In the wintertime (most of the time), I plan a menu based on recipes and shop for the ingredients. When I’ve got a fridge full of the freshest veggies around and I get to create meals using my creativity, it’s an exciting challenge. I know they’re going to be healthy so all I have to think about is what tastes good.

Radicchio and figs taste fabulous together. I know I’ve created a leeky, Greek-y pasta with figs and radicchio before, but this one is really completely different. I don’t often do this, but technique plays a big part in the taste of this dish, so be sure to read and follow the directions carefully.

Pasta with Figs, Radicchio and Chick Peas

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups mission figs, reconstituted and halved
• 1 can chick peas
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 cups green or yellow beans, cut in 2-inch pieces
• 3 cloves garlic
• 1/2 cup raw slivered almonds
• balsamic vinegar
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 2 cups radicchio, chopped
• 1 cup packed fresh basil, chopped
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary
• goat cheese
• 1/2 pound pasta, cooked (I used brown rice rotini)

Heat some olive oil over medium heat in a saute pan. Add the onion and green beans and saute for a minute or two, then add the garlic and almonds and cook until everything is tender, about 10 minutes.

Sprinkle just a little balsamic vinegar to de-glaze the pan and get everything all rich and brown and syrupy. Add the chick peas, figs and radicchio and cook through, then de-glaze the pan again with another sprinkle of balsamic vinegar, this time to wilt the radicchio.

Remove from heat and stir in the basil and rosemary and season with sea salt and freshly ground pepper. Whisk together the lemon juice and olive oil, stir the pasta into the pan with the chick pea mixture, toss all with the olive oil/lemon juice, spoon onto plates and top with some goat cheese.

We served this with grilled chicken thighs blackened with salt, pepper, garlic powder, oregano and basil. You can keep it a vegetarian dish if you like — there’s plenty of protein with the chick peas.

I like it tart, with the lemon juice and the goat cheese, but if you want to mix in some of the water that the figs soaked in, it would definitely add an extra dose of sweetness.

Clacked by Debbie McDuffee
on Aug 06, 2010 @ 10:00 EST5EDT