Olive Garden Pasta e Fagioli (Copycat Recipe)

After moving into the farmhouse and after Christmas, Sherry came out from Cali to help me do some painting!! She found this recipe on Pinterest so we gave it a shot. Very easy to make & very yummy, especially the next day.  In fact, I think next time I make it, I’ll make it the day before and let it sit in the fridge overnight! Here’s the recipe and the link:

Olive Garden Pasta e Fagioli

• 1 cup ditalini pasta
• 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
• 1 pound spicy Italian sausage, casing removed
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 onion, diced
• 3 carrots, peeled and diced
• 2 stalks celery, diced
• 3 cups chicken broth
• 1 (16-ounce) can tomato sauce
• 1 (15-ounce) can diced tomatoes
• 1 teaspoon dried basil
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 3/4 teaspoon dried thyme
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 1 (15-ounce) can red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 (15-ounce) can great northern beans, drained and rinsed

• In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook pasta according to package instructions; drain well and set aside.
• Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large stockpot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add Italian sausage to the skillet and cook until browned, about 3-5 minutes, making sure to crumble the sausage as it cooks; drain excess fat and set aside.
• Add remaining 1 tablespoon oil to the stockpot. Stir in garlic, onion, carrots and celery. Cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 3-4 minutes.
• Whisk in chicken broth, tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, basil, oregano, thyme, Italian sausage and 1 cup water; season with salt and pepper, to taste. Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer, covered, until vegetables are tender, about 10-15 minutes.
• Stir in pasta and beans until heated through.
• Serve immediately. (Sherry & I added cheese, because everything is better with cheese!) 😉

Olive Garden Pasta e Fagioli

Oh my gosh – this is incredibly good!!!  My daughter made this for Thanksgiving and I’m TELLING you this is excellent and you realllyyyy should add it to you Christmas Menu!! Brown sugar, pecan crust – uhhhhhhhhh yessssss!!!!

Here’s the link: http://tinyurl.com/ll2mydk