Hearty Italian Sausage Soup

A few weeks ago my sister Maria made a Hearty Italian Sausage Soup that was really good. She got the recipe from the back of the Saltine's box. I've been sick the past few days and wanted to make soup tonight, so I made this recipe. It's very easy and doesn't take much time to put together. I didn't have rotini pasta, so I used orecchiette instead. I made a double recipe and put a pound of pasta in which was a little too much (it would have been fine if I added a little more chicken broth). This is a great recipe to make when you don't have much time to put dinner together and want something warm and filling!

Hearty Italian Sausage Soup

Recipe Courtesy Kraft Foods

1 pound ground Italian Sausage

1 onion chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 teaspoon Olive Oil

2 cans (14-ounces each) 25% Less Sodium Chicken Broth

1 soup can water

1 can (15-ounce) cannellini beans, rinsed

1 can (14.5-ounce) stewed tomatoes, undrained

1 cup rotini pasta, uncooked

1½ cups baby spinach

½ cup KRAFT 2% Milk Shredded Mozzarella Cheese

PREMIUM Saltine crackers

Cook sausage, onions and garlic in oil in large saucepan for 10 minutes, stirring frequently.

Add the next 4 ingredients. Bring to a boil. Stir in pasta; cook 8 minutes or until tender. Remove from heat.

Stir in spinach; cover. Let stand 5 minutes. Top with cheese.

Serve with Saltine crackers.

Makes 10 servings.

Photos by JoJo