Beef, Tomato and Acini di Pepe Soup

A few years ago, my oldest sister, Caterina, sent me a recipe for Beef, Tomato and Acini di Pepe Soup. She told me it was one of her family's favorites. I never got around to making it until yesterday, and realized I have really been missing out! Most of the soup recipes I make use either chicken or sausage. This is the first one I've made with ground beef. My sister makes it in a slow cooker, but I made it on the stove. I am only including the stove top directions below, but the link above also has slow cooker and instant pot directions. I used petite diced tomatoes and added a teaspoon of coarse black pepper to the soup, but otherwise I followed the directions. This soup was very easy to make, and tasted delicious! Just remember to plan ahead a little bit since it needs to simmer for 1 to 1.5 hours before adding the pasta.

I was able to fit one recipe in a 4-quart pot. If you have a larger family, you will probably need more than one recipe. My husband and I were the only ones that ate it, and I had two bowls leftover. I will definitely be making this recipe again soon!

Beef, Tomato and Acini di Pepe Soup

Recipe Courtesy Skinnytaste.com

1 pound 90% lean ground beef

1½ teaspoons kosher salt

1 teaspoon coarse black pepper

½ cup diced onion

½ cup diced celery

½ cup diced carrot

28-ounce can petite diced tomatoes

32 ounces beef stock

2 bay leaves

4 ounces (2/3 cup) small pasta, such as Acini di Pepe

Grated parmesan cheese, optional

In a large pot or Dutch oven, sauté the beef, salt, and pepper on high heat until browned, breaking the meat up into small bits. Add the onion, celery and carrots and sauté 3 to 4 minutes. Add the tomatoes, stock and bay leaves; cover and cook on low until the beef and the vegetables are tender, about 1 to 1½ hours (you may need to add more broth or water if it evaporates too much). Add the pasta, stir and cook according to package directions.