I was hungry. It was a cold evening. I was dreaming of soup! Soup, the hot, savory, veggie-laden concoction that is so comforting, warming, and delicious on a chilly night. There is no end to the recipes you can invent and customize according to your likes and dislikes. Isn’t that fun?

I decided to make a recipe using Italian sausage, since I was in the mood for it! It’s so juicy and has such a great flavor, with the pork and the fennel seed. I love it.

Here’s what I did to make my new favorite, Italian sausage-vegetable soup.

Mama Steph’s Italian Sausage-vegetable soup

Ingredients:

1 package of Italian sausage links (usually 5 links, around 1 pound)

small bag of shredded carrots

1 medium onion, chopped

3 stalks of celery, thinly sliced

2-3 cloves of garlic, minced (or use 2 tsp jarred minced garlic)

1 bunch fresh parsley, rinsed and chopped (don’t use stems)

1 TBS olive oil

1 TBS tomato paste

1 15 ounce can of Navy beans, rinsed

1 tsp red pepper flakes

1 15 can diced tomatoes

1 quart of chicken stock, homemade or canned

2 cups water

6-8 ounces dried small pasta, such as small elbow macaroni, or small rotini or ditalini.

Method:

Slice sausage into 1″ rounds, or even smaller, if you prefer. Brown the pieces in a TBS olive oil in a large pot or Dutch oven. (I didn’t use the whole package, but you certainly can if you’d like to! I used 3 links).

When sausage is browned, add a cup or more of shredded carrots, the onion, and the celery. Cook until softened, about 4 minutes.

Add the garlic and one TBS tomato paste. Stir in and allow a minute to warm the garlic and paste which releases their flavor and aromas.

Add the tomatoes, parsley, red pepper flakes and beans, and stir.

Add the chicken stock and water.Stir well. Add the dry pasta to the pot, and bring all to a boil. Allow to boil gently (but not boil so hard it scorches or boils over).

The pasta will be done in 10-15 minutes or so, and you can check by pulling out a piece and testing it before serving.

I don’t even add salt to this soup, as it has so much flavor on its own! You can add some if you’d prefer, along with some ground black pepper and even some grated parmesan cheese!

I’m hungry again.

Serve this fabulous soup with some crusty bread or crackers, and share it with those you love!

Note: since the soup contains pasta, you’ll notice that leftovers are not very soup-y the next day, as the pasta will soak up the broth. You’ll have the best-tasting pasta ever, and if you want to loosen the soup up, add two cups of hot water or a can of chicken broth to do so. It will be so delicious!

I hope you’ll let me know if you try it; I’d also like to hear about any variations you used to make it your own!

Enjoy!

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Tortellini-vegetable soup – quick, comforting, good for you!

Copyright 2012 Stephanie Hill Frazier. All rights reserved.