Pasta Fagioli Soup

I love this soup at Olive Garden. I combined a lot of recipes to come up with this one and it is perfect. Once in a while you come across a really great recipe - this is it. Serve it with crusty french bread (for dunking) and sprinkle the top with fresh parmesan cheese.

1 pound ground beef
3/4 cup onion -- chopped
1 cup carrots -- slivered in 1" strips
1 cup celery -- diced
2 14 ounce cans peeled and diced tomatoes -- undrained
1 15.5 ounce can kidney beans -- rinsed and drained
1 15 ounce can garbanzo or small white beans -- rinsed and drained
6 cups water
6 teaspoons beef bouillon granules -- (cubes too salty)
1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano
1 1/4 teaspoons black pepper
2 1/2 teaspoons parsley flakes
1 teaspoon Tabasco sauce
26 1/2 ounces spaghetti sauce -- (Hunt's Canned)
4 ounces dried pasta -- small shells or salad macaroni

Saute' beef in a small amount of oil in a large stock pot until beef starts to brown. Add onions, carrots, celery and tomatoes and simmer for about 10 minutes. Drain and rinse the beans and add to the pot. Also add water, bouillon granules, oregano, parsley, pepper, Tabasco and spaghetti sauce. Simmer for 15 minutes more and then add pasta. Simmer until pasta is done, about 30 minutes.

Tip: This makes a lot of soup. If you don't think you'll use it all in a day or two, freeze some of it before you add the pasta, since pasta doesn't freeze well. Another idea is to eliminate the pasta in the soup and when you serve it, place a small amount of cooked pasta in a serving bowl before you ladle it up. Either way - this is a great soup!!