Pasta Fagioli Soup
My husband enjoys my version of this soup so much that he’s stopped ordering it at restaurants. He’d rather savor the version we can have at home. It’s so easy to make, yet hearty enough to be a full dinner. You can cut the spinach into fine shreds or larger chunks, whatever your preference.
—Brenda Thomas, Springfield, MO
Takes: 30 min. • Makes: 5 servings
- ½ lb. Italian turkey sausage links, casings removed, crumbled
- 1 small onion, chopped
- 1 ½ tsp. canola oil
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 2 cups water
- 1 can (15 ½ oz.) great northern beans, rinsed and drained
- 1 can (14 ½ oz.) diced tomatoes, undrained
- 1 can (14 ½ oz.) reduced-sodium chicken broth
- ¾ cup uncooked elbow macaroni
- ¼ tsp. pepper
- 1 cup fresh spinach leaves, cut as desired
- 5 tsp. shredded Parmesan cheese
- 1. In a large saucepan, cook sausage over medium heat until no longer pink; drain, remove from pan and set aside. In the same pan, saute onion in oil until tender. Add garlic; saute 1 minute longer.
- 2. Add the water, beans, tomatoes, broth, macaroni and pepper; bring to a boil. Cook, uncovered, until the macaroni is tender, 8-10 minutes.
- 3. Reduce heat to low; stir in the sausage and spinach. Cook until spinach is wilted, 2-3 minutes. Garnish with cheese.
1 ⅓ cups: 228 cal., 7g fat (1g sat. fat), 29mg chol., 841mg sod., 27g carb. (4g sugars, 6g fiber), 16g pro. Diabetic exchanges: 1 ½ starch, 1 lean meat, 1 vegetable, ½ fat.
