Pastina with Egg and Cheese, Otherwise Known As Comfort Food
This simple recipe for pastina with egg and cheese, otherwise known as comfort food, will make everything feel a little better! Especially when eaten out of a Peter Rabbit bowl.
Jump to:
- ❤️ Why I love this recipe
- 🤔 What is pastina?
- 🧀 Ingredients you need
- Ingredient notes and substitutions 📝
- 💡 Ingredient substitution ideas
- 👩🏻🍳 How to make this recipe
- 🤔 Recipe FAQs
- 💕 Other comfort food recipes we love
- 🧐 We want to know what you think!
- Pastina with Egg and Cheese, Otherwise Known As Comfort Food
❤️ Why I love this recipe
I love the general category of comfort food.
As in poached eggs on buttered toast. Cream of Wheat. Scrambled eggs with little dollops of ricotta cheese.
Sometimes a warm bowl of comfort food is the only thing that will do when you are feeling blue, or tired, or overwhelmed by the busy-ness of it all.
Or maybe you just want to be 5 years old again, for a few minutes. Anyway, I have my little repertoire of meals that fall into this category, and I was delighted to remember this one in this book I just finished reading.
The book is called I Loved, I Lost, I Ate Spaghetti by Guilia Melucci. For all of you who read Eat Pray Love it is basically the same type of book, only this time the eat and the love parts are combined.
And scattered throughout this book are Guila’s various recipes for this that and the other thing, mainly Italian dishes.
And that is what this recipe is based on. Tiny pasta swirled with a little butter, cheese and an egg. It’s comfort food perfection that is ready in 15 minutes.
🤔 What is pastina?
Pastina is the tiniest pasta there is – it is little tiny dots of pasta that cook up quickly, and because of its tiny size it tends to be a little softer than most pasta.
Perfect with butter…and even better with the other ingredients in this recipe!
🧀 Ingredients you need
The basic components are pretty simple: water, pastina, egg, butter, cheese, salt and pepper. It cooks up in about 5 minutes start to finish, and turns into a creamy, slightly cheesy concoction that needs to be eaten with a spoon.
Ingredient notes and substitutions 📝
- Pastina: And if you can’t find pastina, go for the tiniest pasta you can find. Little stars or even orzo.
- Egg: Any size egg will do.
- Butter: I like salted butter for this recipe, but unsalted will work too!
- Parmesan Cheese: Freshly grated if you can!
💡 Ingredient substitution ideas
Missing something or want to swap in something different? Check out the links below to find more ingredient substitution ideas. 👇🏻
👩🏻🍳 How to make this recipe
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities and nutritional information.
STEP 1: Bring one cup of water to boil in small saucepan.
STEP 2: Add pastina and salt and cook until most of the water is absorbed, 3-4 minutes or whatever the instructions on your box suggest.
STEP 3: Turn off heat and stir in egg, letting it cook in the hot pasta.
STEP 4: Add a little butter, a little grated Parmesan cheese and a little salt and pepper. Eat slowly out of your favorite bowl with your favorite spoon.
🤔 Recipe FAQs
Pastina can be a tricky thing to track down! First check your grocery store in the pasta aisle. If you can’t find it there, you can order a good-sized supply of pastina here. And all my friends and loved ones know that I go through it so fast that whenever they see it, they pick me up a box…or six!
You can use whatever kind of cheese makes you feel the most comforted! Just make sure it is a melty kind (like American or finely shredded cheddar) that will mix up into your pastina.
Pop your question in the comments section below and I will get back to you pronto!
I ladled mine into my Peter Rabbit bowl, settled into my favorite chair, and immediately felt much better.
So if you are looking for a good book to read give I Loved, I Lost, I Ate Spaghetti a try…and the next time you need a little pick-me-up, cook up some of this pastina. Preferably served in a Peter Rabbit bowl.
💕 Other comfort food recipes we love
🧐 We want to know what you think!
If you try this recipe, we would love to hear how it came out for you! I’d be super grateful if you could leave a star rating (you pick how many stars! 🌟 ) and your thoughts in the Comments section right below the recipe card.
Pastina with Egg and Cheese, Otherwise Known As Comfort Food
This simple recipe for pastina with egg and cheese, otherwise known as comfort food, will make everything feel a little better!
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Total Time: 15 minutes
- Yield: 1 serving 1x
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Italian
- Diet: Vegetarian
Ingredients
- 1 cup water
- 1/4 cup pastina
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 egg, lightly beaten
- 1 teaspoon butter
- 1 tablespoon freshly grated Parmesan
- Fresh ground pepper
Instructions
- Bring one cup of water to boil in small saucepan.
- Add pastina and salt and cook until most of the water is absorbed, 3-4 minutes or whatever the instructions on your box suggest.
- Turn off heat and stir in egg, letting it cook in the hot pasta.
- Add butter, cheese and pepper. Eat slowly out of your favorite bowl with your favorite spoon.
- Feel much better.
Notes
Pastina: These teeny dots of pasta are always my favorite choice for this comfort food recipe, but if you can’t find pastina, any small pasta (stars, orzo, etc) will do in a pinch.
Egg: You will be able to see it, but the egg really will cook in the hot pasta – stir it around until you see it forming little bits of scrambled egg.
Totally ruined one of the only memories I have of my grandmother before she became ill…. I really thought this was OUR! family recipe straite from Italy.. Im kidding though im glad other people have discovered this deliscious treat.. I do treat myself to it once in a while (prob not enough) I am an exec chef and this is my all time favorite comfort food… One of those things noone else in my family will eat so I get to have it all to myself.. Btw this is the first and prob last time Ive commented on anyones article. This just tickeled me to the bone, thank you so much for transporting me back to grams kitchen.
I’m so glad – there are some foods that are so forever linked to our grandmothers! For me it is her molasses cookies! Happy to bring back good memories. :)
Substitute water with chicken broth…seriously AMAZING :)
LOVE this idea!
I was looking for a recipe to finish my box of pastina for babies, and this is delicious. I made this for lunch today for my baby and he loves it. I stole the leftovers for my lunch! I never knew what to make with pastina, now i know and will need to buy more. Thank you.
Isn’t it great when we can share lunch with our babies? :)
Thanks so much for posting this! A treasure. My grandmother used to make this for me…it was the best thing, EVER. And I could never remember how she did it. I knew she didn’t boil and drain the pastina. Am going to make this for my niece and nephew immediately, and tell them all about how she made it for me.
These are the comments I love the most! Glad I could bring back some memories for you. :) :)
What I did is, I doubled the amount of water. In Italy, they eat it in soup. It’s AMAZING as soup!
Yes, it is SO good in soup – and so comforting! :)
In Sicily they eat it thick like risotto or cream of wheat.
Sounds absolutely amazing!
Just wanted to say thank you for posting this! I could never remember how my italian grandmother made this and to find this on your site made me so happy. I can now replicate what she made for us as young children. I can’t thank you enough.
I’m so glad! It always makes me extra happy when one of my recipes is something that reminds folks of their childhood. :)
Thank you, thank you, thank you! My 95 yr old mother kept trying and trying to remember how her mother made this pastina dish. I’m going to make it for her right now!
Thank you SO much for leaving this comment – notes like this are why I love writing this blog so much! Hope your mother liked it. :)
Especially when the recipe on the box of how to cook this is nothing like how its aupposed to be! Your recipe is spot on from my childhood!
My auntie used to make this for me and I never knew what it was called till a few weeks ago and can’t wait to try it :)
My auntie used to make this for me and I never knew what it was called till a few weeks ago and can’t wait to try it :)
Hello,
1/4 cup pastina cooked or dry?
Thanks
Hi Elizabeth! 1/4 cup dry pastina – it will cook up in the 1 cup of water in the first step. Happy cooking!
My grandma used to make this and it was the greatest thing ever ! she would make it a little soupier so add more water. Otherwise great recipe. could never get her to give me the recipe my italian family doesn’t believ in real measurements – only pinches, and smidgeons, etc…
My grandma used to make this and it was the greatest thing ever ! she would make it a little soupier so add more water. Otherwise great recipe. could never get her to give me the recipe my italian family doesn’t believ in real measurements – only pinches, and smidgeons, etc…
My Grandma used to make this for me all the time. I cook it for myself and it brings me right back to my childhood in her kitchen. Hands down one of my all time favorite meals!
My Grandma used to make this for me all the time. I cook it for myself and it brings me right back to my childhood in her kitchen. Hands down one of my all time favorite meals!
Me too. This recipe was just what I needed!
My mom used to make this when I was sick! I’m actually going to make this for myself right now. LOVE.
My mom used to make this when I was sick! I’m actually going to make this for myself right now. LOVE.
I doubled the recipe, so I could share it with my toddler. We used little star shaped pastina, which really tickled the girls fancy.
I used chicken broth instead of water. We didn’t have parm cheese, so I threw a handful of mozza in instead.
Oh my god this was SO GOOD! I’m addicted.