Whether you call it pasta fazool or pasta fadrool, its appearance in our house means one thing: we are ready to say goodbye to bathing suits and barbecues, and hello to falling leaves, wool sweaters and pumpkin patches. Our favorite way to ring in the new season is by making a big batch of pasta e fagioli, the traditional meatless Italian peasant soup featuring two of the most comforting ingredients ever: pasta and beans.

The hearty soup offers up complex flavors, but is easy enough to make on a weeknight if you use ready-made stock and precooked or canned beans. Bonus: you'll only dirty one pot! Pair it with good bread and a nice Chianti, and you might even be mentally whisked away to the Italian Riviera.

Pasta e Fagioli
Adapted from Mark Bittman's How to Cook Everything

- serves 6 -

Ingredients
5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
1 medium garlic clove, minced
28 oz. can diced tomatoes
2-15 oz. cans of beans (any variety will do, though I prefer one can of red kidney and one can of cannellini)
Pinch of dried rosemary
8 cups stock or water
Salt and pepper
1/2 lb. small pasta
Handful of chopped fresh parsley
Freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Procedure
1. Heat the extra-virgin olive oil in your soup pot over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic, and cook for about 5 minutes.

2. Add the tomatoes, beans and rosemary. Continue cooking over medium heat for about 10 minutes; stir occasionally.

3. Add the stock, salt and pepper to taste, and bring to a boil. Lower heat and let simmer for 10 minutes.

4. Add the pasta and cook for about 10 more minutes.

5. Stir in the parsley and cook for a few minutes, really just to warm and blend in the parsley.

Serve immediately! Top with a light drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil and the grated Parmesan.