Pasta e Fagioli – Hearty Weeknight Soup

Pasta e Fagioli – A Recipe for a Hearty Weeknight Soup the whole family will love

Even though I am an introvert, I love having people gather in my home. Whether it’s around a board game, a movie night, or a Bible study, seeing my living room full to the brim just makes my heart happy. Of course, when a group of people are gathered together there has to be food, right? 

I have a collection of recipes that I make when people gather around our table. I choose them over and over again because they are simple, but hearty. This collection of favorites tends to make people feel welcome as soon as they step through the front door. Pasta e Fagioli is one of those recipes – easy enough to make for a weeknight dinner (or a large group of people), but hearty enough to fill their bellies and give them that warm feeling of a great family meal.

Pasta e Fagioli

To make this Pasta e Fagioli recipe, you’ll need:

• 1 lb ground beef
• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 cups chopped white onion
• 1 cup diced carrots (approximately 2 medium carrots)
• 1 cup diced celery (approximately 3 stalks of celery)
• 3 cloves garlic, minced (1 Tbsp)
• 3 (8 oz) cans tomato sauce
• 2 (14.5 oz) cans chicken broth
• 1 (15 oz) can diced tomatoes
• 1/2 cup water
• 2 tsp granulated sugar
• 1 1/2 tsp dried basil
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 1/2 tsp dried marjoram
• 1/2 tsp Italian seasoning
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1 scant cup dry macaroni noodles
• 1 (15 oz) can dark red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 (15 oz) can great northern beans, drained and rinsed
• Finely shredded Parmesan cheese

Now listen…this is a soup! Soup recipes are meant to be played with! If you family doesn’t like carrots, swap them for zucchini or leave them out entirely. If they love tomatoes, go crazy and add another can. Adapt this recipe to fit your family perfectly and they will ask for it again and again.

To start, cook the ground beef in a dutch oven or a large saucepan. If you want to, you can switch the ground beef for sausage – it will definitely add a kick! After the ground beef has cooked through, drain all the fat and then move it to a bowl.

Add the olive oil to the dutch oven and sauté the onions, carrots, and celery until they’re tender. It should take about 5-7 minutes depending on how many veggies you add (I tend to load this soup up with veggies – especially in the Winter and Spring). Once they’re tender, add the garlic and sauté for another minute.

Reduce your heat and add the cooked ground beef, tomato sauce, chicken broth, water, tomatoes, sugar, and spices. Cover it with a lid and allow it to simmer until the veggies get nice and soft. Stir it occasionally to keep it from sticking to the bottom of the pan. It should take about 20 minutes – this is the perfect time to clean up the huge mess that your kiddos inevitably made while you were cooking before the guests arrive. (Just me? Ok…nevermind!)

Now, you can keep this simmering for a good long while if you want. It’s a soup, so it only gets better with age. If it starts to get too thick, just add a splash more water or chicken broth.

Just a note here – if you aren’t planning to eat all the soup right away (it makes a pretty big pot), scoop some out before you add the pasta and just add it in when you reheat the soup. Otherwise the pasta might get soggy and your soup will be more of a stew.

Now, about 6-8 minutes before your guests arrive, toss in the pasta and beans. You’ll want to give the pasta long enough to cook according to the package directions. Again, I love a thick, hearty soup, but if it gets too thick for your tastes, just add a bit more liquid.

Now serve it up with some shredded parmesan cheese and a loaf of crispy bread (for sloppy dipping, of course) and enjoy the warmth.

Here’s a handy printable recipe for Pasta e Fagioli:

[yumprint-recipe id=’32’]