Italian Sausage & Vegetable Soup

Chew and I's schedules have drastically changed over the past few weeks. Its been a bit weird and disorganized! Chew started his Graduate School program and I started working more events (at night) than usual. Most weeks we do not see much of each other except the hour before work and maybe an hour before bed. In response to this new schedule I am trying to cook all of our weekly meals on Sunday or Monday so that we are set for the week. I love making soups it is so easy to double the recipes and freeze for those nights you don't want to cook! They also typically require one pot which equals fewer dishes to wash...win, win.

Italian Sausage & Vegetable Soup

1lb Ground Sausage
(I used half turkey, half sweet Italian because thats what I had on hand)

2 Cloves Garlic, minced

1 c. Chopped Onion

1 1/2 c. Baby Carrots, diced

2 Zucchini, diced
1 Green Bell Pepper, diced

1 can Garbanzo Beans, rinsed

1/2 c. White Wine (preferably dry)

5 c. Low Sodium Chicken Broth

1 lb. Italian Plum Tomatoes (fresh or canned), peeled and rough chopped

2 tsp. Dried Basil

1 tsp. Dried Oregano

1 tsp. Fennel Seed

1 lb. of a Tiny Pasta (I used Gluten Free Rotini)

Brown the the sausage in the bottom of a large stock pot over a medium heat. I use a splash of olive oil here because turkey sausage is so lean I think it helps it brown better. Once the sausage is cooked through, remove sausage to a paper towel to drain. Leave at least 1 tbsp. of fat in pan and add onions and garlic. Cook until translucent, about 5 minutes. Then toss in your carrots, zucchini, green pepper, wine, broth, tomatoes, basil, oregano and fennel. Bring to a medium boil and cook for 20 minutes (I covered with a lid but left it cracked). Once the veggies are cooked to your liking, throw in the pasta, turn down the heat a bit to a low boil/simmer for about 10 minutes. Serve with a sprinkle of Romano or Parmesan Cheese!

This recipe was adapted from The Junior League's Centennial Cookbook with changes to reduce fat, sodium and gluten.