Flour from dried ceci—the Italian name for garbanzo beans or chickpeas—is one of a number of bean flours with which one can make pasta. Like the others, this yields a good pasta with a different nuance of flavor—complex, buttery, with a tinge of sweetness from the bean. It’s a great carrier for vegetable, game, or nut sauces.

　　

Ingredients

for 1 pound of pasta

　　

Dry

1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour

　　2/3 cup garbanzo-bean flour

　　

Wet

2 large whole eggs

　　1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

　　3 tablespoons water

　　

Step 1

Food-processor mixing recommended, following the directions on page 160.

　　

Suggested Shapes and Sauces

Step 2

Cut the dough into garganelli, tagliatelle, maltagliati, or boccoli.

　　

Step 3

Dress with Sauce of Broccoli di Rape with Ceci and Bacon (page 114).

　　

Ceci Pasta with Hazelnuts

Step 4

Another good pairing of pasta and nuts. Incorporate 1/3 cup of finely chopped hazelnuts into the ceci dough (see box on page 172 for details on incorporating nuts into dough).

　　

Suggested Shapes and Sauces

Step 5

Cut by hand into lacce, and dress with Butter and Fresh Basil Sauce (page 118).

　　From Lidia's Family table by Lidia Matticchio Bastianich Copyright (c) 2004 by Lidia Matticchio Bastianich Published by Knopf.Lidia Bastianich hosts the hugely popular PBS show, "Lidia's Italian-American kitchen" and owns restaurants in New York City, Kansas City, and Pittsburgh. Also the author of Lidia's Italian Table and Lidia's Italian-American Kitchen, she lives in Douglaston, New York. Jay Jacob's journalism has appeared in many national magazines.From the Trade Paperback edition.