Pasta Fagioli

November 10, 2011 in pork

My husband has been gone for a couple weeks now and while I’m the first to admit that it pretty much sucks, there are some good points to being alone.

  • My grocery bill is less than half of what it is with him home! I knew he ate a lot but holy cow.
  • I can get up at 4 am and no one yells at me!
  • To go with the above, I can sleep on the couch so that I can get up at 4 am without my children hearing and no one yells at me!
  • I can read all 3 books of The Hunger Games (again) without anyone asking me why I’m reading books meant for teenagers (again).
  • Real Housewives marathons. Enough said.
  • Peanut butter and marshmallow fluff sandwiches are officially considered dinner.
  • I can make instant coffee and not feel guilty because I know he won’t ask for espresso unless he sees me prepping the machine.
  • There are no PTs to wash every night!
  • I can cook whatever I want, whenever I want! (!!)

And that last one is the reason I made this soup.

I don’t generally like soup as a meal. I mean, I like soup but soup by itself? That’s not a meal! It’s a side dish that needs a sandwich next to it. My husband is the same way so we very rarely ever have soup. But with him gone I decided to take a chance on a soup that I’ve heard such great things about.

Oh my goodness y’all. This is the best soup I’ve ever had! It’s got sausage, beans, and pasta which makes it so hearty and served alongside a roll or 2, this was the perfect meal for a cold night. And the best part is that overnight the pasta absorbed just about all the liquid and it became more of a pasta dish than a soup. Not gonna lie, I had 2 bowls for breakfast.

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Pasta Fagioli

Ingredients

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 carrot, peeled & chopped
1 stalk celery, chopped
1 lb hot Italian sausage (casings removed if necessary)
1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
1 -2 teaspoon red pepper flakes, to taste
1 15-ounce can crushed tomatoes
3 – 4 cups chicken stock (or vegetable stock)
1 can cannellini beans
1 cup ditalini (or other small pasta)
Parmesan cheese, for serving

Instructions

  1. Heat olive oil in a large heavy pot over medium high heat. Add the diced onion and cook until it just begins to soften, about 2 minutes. Add celery and carrots; cook, stirring frequently, for another 3 minutes. Add garlic and cook just until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
  2. Add the sausage to the pot, crumbling as it cooks. Cook until the sausage is no longer pink. Stir in Italian seasoning and red pepper. Stir in tomatoes and stock.
  3. Bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 30 minutes.
  4. Stir in the beans and ditalini. (Add an extra cup of stock or water at this point if it’s boiled down too much.) Simmer for 6- 8 minutes or until pasta is tender.
  5. Serve piping hot with Parmesan cheese. (I really liked the sharpness of the green onions with this as well.)
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