Pasta E Fagioli (An Olive Garden Copycat)

     I look forward to our school's PTO luncheon every month.  Those moms always make something delicious! Last year I remember having this soup and thinking how wonderful it was.  So when I walked into the teacher's lounge and saw the big pot of this last month, I made sure to track down the recipe!  By the way, this is one of those recipes that is twice as tasty the second (and third) day!

1 tsp. vegetable oil
1 lb. ground beef
3 oz. onions, chopped
4 oz. carrots, shredded
4 oz. celery, diced (about 2 stalks)
14.5 oz. tomatoes, canned and diced
8 oz. red kidney beans
8 oz. white kidney beans
22 oz. beef stock
½ tsp. oregano
½ tsp. pepper
½ tsp. Tabasco sauce
1 tsp. fresh chopped parsley (or ¼ tsp. dried)
12 oz. marinara sauce (or spaghetti sauce)
3 oz. dry pasta shell macaroni (about one cup of medium shells)

     Pour the vegetable oil in the bottom of the large pot.  Saute the beef in the large pot until the beef starts to brown.  Add onions, carrots, celery, and tomatoes and let simmer for about 10 minutes.

     Drain and rinse beans and add to the pot.  Add beef stock, oregano, pepper, Tabasco sauce, marinara sauce, and chopped parsley.  Simmer until celery and carrots are tender, about 45 minutes.  Meanwhile, boil pasta according to directions on the package.  Once the soup is done simmering, add the cooked pasta to the soup.

     Since my husband is a cheese lover, I topped each bowl with some shredded mozzarella.  I served this with salad and french bread.  Makes 9 servings.