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Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 pound ground Italian sausage, mild
  • 1 onion, finely chopped
  • 2 cloves of garlic, minced
  • 1 carrot, finely chopped
  • 1 celery stalk, finely chopped
  • Sea salt and ground black pepper
  • 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
  • 1/4 teaspoon chili flakes
  • 28 ounce can crushed tomatoes
  • 3 cups low-sodium chicken stock
  • 1 cup water
  • 1/2 pound orecchiette pasta (or other small pasta)
  • 15.5 ounce can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed
  • 1 cup baby spinach leaves
  • 1/3 cup grated parmesan
  • Additional Parmesan cheese, shavings (optional)
  • Extra-virgin olive oil (optional)
  • Parsley, roughly chopped (optional)

Directions

  1. Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the Italian sausage and cook until browned, making sure to break the sausage into little pieces.
  2. Add the onion, garlic, carrot and celery and cook until tender, about 6-8 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
  3. Add the dried basil and chili flakes and sauté for a minute or so. Then add the crushed tomatoes, stirring the mixture thoroughly to blend all the ingredients.
  4. Pour in the chicken stock and water, bringing the mixture to a steady boil. Then add the pasta and cook until the pasta is al dente, approximately 10 minutes.
  5. Stir in the chickpeas and spinach leaves, cooking until the spinach is wilted.
  6. Add additional salt and pepper to taste and stir in the grated parmesan.
  7. Serve this dish hot and add some Parmesan shavings and parsley to the top, along with a drizzle of olive oil (optional).
  8. A great dish to serve with rustic bread for dipping.

https://www.cutco.com/learn/tomato-italian-sausage-pasta-soup