Italian-Style Beef & Pepperoni Soup
Why I Love This Recipe
This was on the AOL homepage one day a couple of winters ago and I love ground beef, pepperoni and soup so it seemed a perfect fit! With some variations for my tastes of course - I don't think I've ever followed a recipe to a "T"
Ingredients You'll Need
1 lb extra-lean ground beef
1 cup-ish sliced turkey pepperoni
Vegetable cooking spray
1 cup sliced fresh mushrooms
1 green bell pepper, seeded & chopped (I omit this)
1 bunch green onions, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced (or 5, if you like garlic : D)
1 tsp olive oil
2 tbs tomato paste
1 (28oz) can crushed tomatoes
4 cups low-sodium, fat-free chicken broth (I actually use beef broth and prefer it)
1 tbs chopped fresh or 1 tsp dried basil
1 tbs chopped fresh or 1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp freshly ground pepper
Garnishes: sliced fresh basil, shredded Parmesan cheese
Directions
Cook ground beef & pepperoni in a Dutch oven coated with cooking spray over medium-high heat 8 minutes or until beef crumbles & is no longer pink. Rinse & drain beef mixture.
Saute mushrooms, bell pepper, green onions & garlic cloves in hot oil in Dutch oven 5 minutes. Stir in beef mixture, tomato paste & next 5 ingredients. Bring to a boil; reduce heat & simmer 30 minutes.
Garnish, if desired
