MeMe's Pasta Fagioli

Ingredients

• 1 pound lean ground beef
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 thin slice onion , diced
• 1 stalk celery , diced
• 1 carrot , diced
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 1 bottle tomato-vegetable juice cocktail , 32 ounce
• 1 can chicken broth , 14 ounce
• 1 tablespoon dried parsley
• 1 tablespoon dried basil
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• freshly ground black pepper to taste
• 1.5 cups ditalini pasta
• 1 can cannellini beans , 15 ounce

Instructions

1. 1

   Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook and stir beef in the hot skillet until browned and crumbly, 5 to 7 minutes. Use a slotted spoon to transfer beef to a paper towel-lined plate to drain; discard grease.

2. 2

   Heat olive oil in the same skillet over medium-high heat; sauté onion, celery, and carrot until softened, 5 to 10 minutes. Add garlic and sauté until fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes. Stir vegetable juice cocktail, chicken broth, parsley, basil, oregano, and black pepper into vegetable mixture; bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer soup for 20 minutes.

3. 3

   Meanwhile, bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook ditalini pasta in boiling water, stirring occasionally, until tender yet firm to the bite, about 8 minutes. Drain and set aside.

4. 4

   Stir beef and cannellini beans into soup; cook and stir until soup is heated through, about 10 minutes.

5. 5

   Spoon about 1/3 cup pasta into each serving bowl; ladle soup over pasta.