{Recipe} Pasta, Sausage and Bean Soup

This is another recipe from my friend Pam and, once again, it's a major hit!

I would definitely add this one to your weekly rotation, especially in these cold weather months.

Pasta, Sausage and Bean Soup

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 lb Italian sausage

1 1/2 cups chopped onions

1 1/2 cup chopped carrots

3 chopped celery stalks

1 tablespoon chopped garlic

1 teaspoon dried basil

1 teaspoon dried rosemary (I used fresh)

1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper

1/4 teaspoon dried sage

3 cans (14.5 oz each) chicken broth

1 can diced tomatoes

1 can kidney beans, drained (I used 2)

1 cup elbow macaroni - cooking according to package

Salt and pepper to taste

1. Heat oil in large Dutch oven over medium high heat

2. Add sausage and sauté until beginning to brown, breaking up with a spoon- about 5 minutes

3. Add onions, celery, carrots, garlic, basil, rosemary, crushed red pepper and sage. Saute until vegetables begin to soften - about 10 minutes

4. Add broth, tomatoes and beans.

5. Bring soup to boil

6. Reduce heat and simmer until vegetables are tender and flavors blend - about 20 minutes.

7. Add macaroni to soup and simmer until heated through 

It does change the name of the soup, but you could definitely leave out the pasta of this soup and it would still be delicious! 

And if you could, I would use fresh rosemary- it really brings out the flavor of the soup.  Plus there isn't much better than fresh rosemary cooking on the stove.

P.s.- to clear up a few questions from yesterday's post- yes, as far as I know, you can take your dog to Lowes/Home Depot.  We have never been greeted with anything but a warm welcome taking Floyd in but that could vary store to store.
And one more thing- I received a couple comments yesterday that I couldn't reply back to because the user was set up as a no reply blogger.  I hate that! I love responding to comments and answering your questions!
Please check out Cassie's post here if to double check your blogger settings are correct!