Pastina Risottata

Directions

1. 1
   Warm your broth of choice (or water) until hot.
2. 2
   In the meanwhile, peel and mince the aromatics.
3. 3
   Warm extra virgin olive oil in a pot, or a sautee pan, on medium heat. Add the aromatics, a pinch of salt, stir and let sweat for a couple of minutes. Here it's time to add those chopped parsley stems lost at the bottom of your freezer drawer or any other aromatics you might have on hand.
4. 4
   Add pastina, tomato paste, stir and add a ladle or two of hot broth to barely cover. Adjust the heat to constantly keep it to a simmer. Keep on adding more ladles of broth once the liquid in the pot has almost completely reduced. Let cook until done, using the pasta package timing as a reference. At this point you want the liquid to be almost completely reduced but still there. Adjust with salt if needed. If you have it, it's now time to stir in fresh herbs (hi basil!)
5. 5
   Remove from the heat, stir in grated pecorino and let rest for a couple of minutes before serving. Grate on top some more pecorino to taste.