1. Soak the borlotti beans overnight in plenty of cold water; the next day drain them, cook in fresh water with the bay leaf for 60-80 minutes until tender and drain (keeping 500 ml of the cooking liquid).
2. Dice the pancetta, onion, carrot and celery small and finely chop the garlic.
3. In a large saucepan, fry the pancetta in the olive oil for 3 minutes, add the vegetables and rosemary and cook gently for 8-10 minutes, then stir in the garlic and tomato purée and fry for 1 minute.
4. Add the beans, pour in the stock and bean cooking liquid and simmer for 15 minutes; then take out a third of the beans, blend them with a stick blender and stir back in to make the soup creamy.
5. Add the pasta and cook for the stated time, stirring often, until al dente; if it gets too thick, add a little hot water; season with salt and pepper and remove the rosemary sprig.
6. Rest for 5 minutes, then serve with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil.
Tip: In Italy it's made with borlotti beans - on busy days, 2 tins of borlotti or pinto beans, rinsed, work too, and you can skip the soaking and first cooking.
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