Pasta Fagioli

I don’t cook a lot of soup but it is always nice to have a bowl or two during winter. This soup was one of the many Italian dishes that I learned from a friend many years ago but I never thought of making it again until my good friend Shereen tasted it at Olive Garden. I told her I know how to make this soup but it might not be exactly the same as the one she tasted but I will try to replica it. So this here is the recipe and hope it is what she is looking for.

Ingredients:

½ pound ground beef
2 stalk celery – cut into tiny cubes
2 carrots – cut into tiny cubes
1 large onion – finely diced
4 cloves garlic 2 bay leaves
¼ cup chopped parsley
1 tsp dried oregano
28 oz can crushed tomato
6 oz can red kidney bean
6 oz can white beans
1 cup small shell pasta
1 cup pasta sauce
6 cups or more beef stock
Salt and pepper to taste

1. In a big pot, heat up 2 tbsp of olive oil. Add in the beef and sauté until it is lightly brown. Add in the onion and garlic. Continue to sauté for a minute and then add in the carrots, celery and crushed tomato. Bring it up to boil and let it simmer for 10 minutes.
2. Drain the beans and add it to the pot with all the rest of the ingredients except parsley. Bring it to boil and continue to simmer until carrots and celery are tender. It will take about 30 minutes.
3. Last add in the chopped parsley. Check seasoning.
4. Serve warm with bread.

Note: This is a thick and hearty soup. You can always add more beef stock to it. If you want to freeze this soup it is best if you don’t add in the pasta as cooked pasta doesn’t freeze well. You can always cook some pasta later on and add it into the soup when you want to serve it.