Recipe: Quick and Easy Italian Soup

I love how comforting soups are. And how versatile they are too. They are perfect in the cold winter months but can also be a deliciously simple and light accompaniment to a dish in the spring or summer.

I also love that soups can be such an easy way to drink more homemade nutrient dense, mineral rich, joint healing broth.

With it being winter and all, I am on a soup kick and decided to dig out a favorite recipe I haven’t used in a while. Scott got it from a friend I believe, or maybe a customer of his. I can’t remember which one but big thanks go to her because this soup is awesome. It’s almost like a sausage chili.

It’s hearty and bursting with flavor. There is lots of good stuff in it. It’s quick. And easy (hence the name). It’s totally delicious and I promise you won’t be disappointed.

Quick and Easy Italian Soup
*****Please remember to use as many local, pastured, organic ingredients as you can to maximize the nutrient quality of this recipe.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup onion (chopped)
• 1 cup celery (chopped)
• 3 carrots (chopped thin)
• 2 Tbl Garlic (finely chopped)
• 1 Tbl butter
• Drizzle of olive oil
• 8 oz hot (or mild) italian sausage (from pastured pork please!!)
• 2 15oz cans diced tomatoes
• 3 15oz cans cannelloni beans (Eden Organic has BPA free lined cans)
• 50-64oz homemade chicken broth (or if absolutely necessary, 2 32oz boxes of free range chicken broth)
• 1/4 tsp basil
• 1/4 tsp italian seasoning
• 2 cups rotini or piccolini pasta (optional, or whatever kind of pasta you have on hand that would work well with recipe)
• unrefined sea salt to taste (I use Real Salt brand)
• black pepper (I use Frontier spices because they are not irradiated)
• organic full fat sour cream (optional garnish)
• freshly shredded cheddar cheese (optional garnish)

Directions:

1. Saute the onion, celery, garlic and carrots in the butter and olive oil until soft. I sauteed them in the 6qt soup pot I used so I didn’t have to dirty more dishes than necessary. Season veggies with black pepper and salt
2. While veggies are cooking, remove the sausage casing, break up the sausage and add to the veggies. Brown
3. Add diced tomatoes, cannelloni beans, chicken broth, basil and italian seasoning. Bring to a boil, cover and simmer for 30 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste
4. At this point, you can add the pasta if you want. **Originally the recipe called to cook the pasta in the soup but because I end up freezing half the batch, I cook the pasta separately so I can add what I need to my bowl. That way when it comes time to use my frozen batch the noodles aren’t soggy. I’ve also found that when I keep noodles in the soup and refrigerate, the noodles tend to suck up the juice
5. Allow the soup (if you can) to sit for 30 minutes.
6. Add a dollop or two of sour cream and freshly grated cheese, serve

This batch was unusually spicy (I can not handle spicy) so I added a dollop of sour cream and freshly grated cheddar cheese and it was excellent! We had never done that before but it totally works with the soup and makes it extra creamy and tasty!

Enjoy!

Until next time,
Loriel - Healthy Roots, Happy Soul

This post is part of : Melt in Your Mouth Monday, Made from Scratch Mondays,
Better Mom Mondays, Make Your Own Monday, Mix it Up Mondays,
Natural Living Monday, Thank Goodness It’s Monday Wonderful Wednesday, Real Food Wednesday