Home Sweet Homemade: Olive Garden Pasta e Fagioli

Olive Garden Pasta Fagioli

I just love Olive Garden’s soups! Like my Chicken & Gnocchi soup recipe, I think this at-home version tastes even better and everyone who’s had it agrees!

This makes enough to feed an army! We don’t have an army here, so I usually freeze half of it. If you want to do this, leave out the pasta and reserve half of the soup for freezing. Cook ½ cup dried ditalini pasta and add when ready to eat!

Olive Garden Pasta Fagioli

Ingredients

½ lb. ground beef
2 Tablespoons oil (olive or vegetable)
1 cup diced onions (about 1 medium onion)
1 cup julienned carrots (I grate mine)
1 cup chopped celery (about 3 stalks)
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes
1 15-ounce can tomato sauce
1 15-ounce can red beans
1 15-ounce can great northern beans
2 cups V-8 juice
1 Tablespoons Frank’s Redhot (or other prepared hot sauce)
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon oregano
1 teaspoon basil
½ teaspoon black pepper
½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 cup ditalini pasta (or other small pasta)

Directions

1. In a large pot, brown ground beef over medium-high heat. Drain, return beef to pot and lower heat to medium.

2. Add 2 Tablespoons oil, onion, carrot, celery and garlic; saute for 10 minutes or until onion is soft and translucent.

3. Add remaining ingredients except pasta. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, cover and simmer for 1 hour.

4. Meanwhile, cook pasta according to package directions;drain. Add to soup during the last 10 minutes of cooking. Serve garnished with grated Parmesan cheese, if desired.

Makes 12 1½-cup servings