Pisarei e faso’ Basotti (bread dumplings and beans) with crispy pancetta
Antica Osteria della Pesa

Type of recipe: First courses

Preparation method:

For the pisarei: Scald the breadcrumbs in the boiling stock and add to the flour on a pastry board. Knead together to obtain a fairly firm and uniform mixture (add some water if necessary). Divide the mixture thus obtained into lots of pieces and use each one to form some fairly thin “snake-like” shapes measuring about 30 cm each. Rip off small pieces with a diameter of about 2 cm each, then squash each one to give them their traditional “pisarei” shape (a kind of small shell). 

For the sauce: Chop the celery, carrot, courgette and half an onion fairly finely and sauté in a frying pan with a knob of butter. Cook the vegetables until still fairly crisp and season with salt and pepper. In another saucepan, brown the remaining chopped onion and chopped rosemary in a little butter. Add the beans, previously boiled, and cook for about 5 minutes. Add a couple of ladlefuls of stock and remove from the heat. Whisk to form a thick purée.

Place the slices of pancetta in a fairly hot oven (100-150°C) and cook until golden brown and crispy. Cook the pisarei in plenty of boiling salted water, then toss in a frying pan with the vegetables and a tablespoon of grated cheese. Put a ladleful of the puréed beans in a soup bowl (or dish), place the pisarei in the middle and garnish with a slice of crispy pancetta.

Preparation method:

For the pisarei: Scald the breadcrumbs in the boiling stock and add to the flour on a pastry board. Knead together to obtain a fairly firm and uniform mixture (add some water if necessary). Divide the mixture thus obtained into lots of pieces and use each one to form some fairly thin “snake-like” shapes measuring about 30 cm each. Rip off small pieces with a diameter of about 2 cm each, then squash each one to give them their traditional “pisarei” shape (a kind of small shell). 

For the sauce: Chop the celery, carrot, courgette and half an onion fairly finely and sauté in a frying pan with a knob of butter. Cook the vegetables until still fairly crisp and season with salt and pepper. In another saucepan, brown the remaining chopped onion and chopped rosemary in a little butter. Add the beans, previously boiled, and cook for about 5 minutes. Add a couple of ladlefuls of stock and remove from the heat. Whisk to form a thick purée.

Place the slices of pancetta in a fairly hot oven (100-150°C) and cook until golden brown and crispy. Cook the pisarei in plenty of boiling salted water, then toss in a frying pan with the vegetables and a tablespoon of grated cheese. Put a ladleful of the puréed beans in a soup bowl (or dish), place the pisarei in the middle and garnish with a slice of crispy pancetta.