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1
Preheat the oven to 400?F.
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2
Heat the olive oil in a medium skillet over medium heat. When hot and beginning to shimmer, add the onion, carrot, and celery. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are translucent and tender, about 8 to 12 minutes. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute.
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3
While the vegetables are cooking, bring a large pot of salted water to a rolling boil. Add the pasta and cook according to package instructions, but undercooking by 2 minutes (For instance, the box of ditalini I used gave a 10-11 minute cooking time. I cooked the pasta for 8 minutes.). Drain and rinse the pasta well.
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4
Add the beans, stock or broth, and tomatoes to the vegetables. Increase the heat to high and boil until the liquid is reduced by about a third. No need to be exact here, but you do want to reduce the liquid a bit. Add the cooked, drained pasta and salt and pepper to taste. Remove from the heat and stir in the parsley.
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5
Pour the mixture into a 3-quart baking dish. Scatter the cheese over the top, followed by the bread crumbs. Bake until the bread crumbs are nicely browned and the cheese is melted, about 25 minutes. If you want more browning action, run the pan under the broiler for a few minutes. Serve warm, with more chopped parsley to garnish.
