Betty Crocker Italian Sausage Soup

This soup is great. Mine was better than this recipe but it didn’t photograph well, so this is Betty Crocker’s photo. The first thing I did was buy the wrong soup. I got the Progresso bean & pasta soup (pasta fagioli). This was accidental because the C&C has stacked them all mixed up on the shelves. I also doubled the amount of fennel yet still could not taste it well. I used a full bag of broccoli. I added as much mostaccioli as I wanted (more than 1/2 lb.), and I had run out of basil, so I dumped in a bunch of Italian seasoning. I'm going to use hot sausage next time. Or perhaps a combination of sweet and hot. I don't cook the sausage first. In order to keep the flavor, and because there is barely any fat in the Italian sausage I buy, I simply toss it in with everything else and everything cooks all together. We use pork sausage, not turkey sausage. With White Mountain Bread from Currier’s, this was a great supper. I should have added a salad, and I had the salad things here for once. But we figured there were enough vegetables in the soup. To all of you soup making experts out there, I want to emphasize how difficult soup has been for me. Stews give me no problem, but soups come out awful. Throw-away-to-the-coyotes-awful. So this recipe intrigued me because it used soup to make soup.

Warm and hearty! This rich Italian soup combines sausage, broccoli, tomatoes and, best of all, pasta.

Prep Time: 10Minutes
Total Time 30Minutes
Makes 6 servings

1 lb turkey Italian sausage links, cut into 1-inch pieces
2 cups broccoli flowerets
1 cup uncooked mostaccioli pasta (3 oz)
2 1/2 cups water
1/2 teaspoon dried basil leaves
1/4 teaspoon fennel seed, crushed
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 can (28 oz) whole peeled tomatoes with basil (Italian style), undrained
1 can (18.5 oz) Progresso® Vegetable Classics French onion soup

1. In 4-quart Dutch oven, cook sausage over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until no longer pink; drain.
2. Stir in remaining ingredients, breaking up tomatoes. Heat to boiling; reduce heat to medium-low.
3. Cover and cook about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until mostaccioli is tender.

Makes 6 servings (about 1 1/2 cups each)

Make the Most of This Recipe With Tips
From The Betty Crocker® Kitchens

Variation
You can skip step 1 and give this soup a new flavor twist by substituting 1 pound fully cooked smoked bratwurst for the sausage, heating it with the remaining ingredients.

Nutrition Information:
1 Serving (1 Serving)Calories 230 (Calories from Fat 70), Total Fat 8g (Saturated Fat 2g, Trans Fat 0g), Cholesterol 40mg; Sodium 1260mg; Total Carbohydrate 23g (Dietary Fiber 3g, Sugars 6g), Protein 16g; Percent Daily Value*:Calcium ; Exchanges:1/2 Starch; 0 Fruit; 1/2 Other Carbohydrate; 0 Skim Milk; 0 Low-Fat Milk; 0 Milk; 1 Vegetable; 0 Very Lean Meat; 2 Lean Meat; 0 High-Fat Meat; 1/2 Fat; Carbohydrate Choices:1 1/2; *Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.

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