Italian Sausage and Eggplant Soup

breezermom's Note:

This is a wonderful soup for a cold winter day. Very hearty and delicious! Plus it's very nutritious too. Feel free to use fresh herbs is you have them on hand, just increase the amount.

• Total Time: 3 hrs 20 mins
• Prep Time: 20 mins
• Cook Time: 3 hrs

Ingredients:

Yield: 18 cups

• 1 lb Italian sausage
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 medium onion , chopped
• 4 cloves garlic , minced
• 1 medium eggplant , peeled and diced
• 8 large tomatoes , peeled and quartered
• 3 medium zucchini , diced
• 3 carrots , scraped and diced
• 2 stalks celery , diced
• 4 cups beef stock
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon dried basil leaves
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano leaves
• ¾ cup Burgundy wine
• ½ cup elbow macaroni , uncooked
• ¼ teaspoon black pepper , freshly ground

Garnish

• parmesan cheese , freshly grated

Directions:

1. Brown the sausage in a large Dutch oven over medium heat, stirring until it crumbles; drain.
2. Add the olive oil and onion. Cook over medium heat until the onion is getting tender. Add the garlic and continue to cook until tender.
3. Add eggplant, cook, stirring constantly for 3 minutes. Add the tomato and the next 8 ingredients (up to the oregano leaves, stopping before the wine); bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer uncovered, for 2 hours. (Stir occasionally).
4. Stir in wine, macaroni, and pepper; cook 15 to 20 minutes or until the pasta is done.
5. Ladle soup into individual soup bowls. Top each serving with grated Parmesan cheese.

Reviews

[JackieOhNo!]

This was super flavorful and filling. I used 1 lb. of sweet Italian sausage links and sliced them, then browned them well. This seemed to be in keeping with the other chunky ingredients. I used 4 fresh tomatoes and a 14.5 oz can of diced fire-roasted tomatoes. I stirred about 1/3 cup Parmesan cheese into the soup before serving, and this seemed to finish off the seasoning perfectly. This makes a hearty bowl of soup that is perfect for this extra-wintry winter! Made for Please Review My Recipe Tag Game.

[Boomette]

I feel like I'll be doing this soup quite often this winter. The taste is amazing. I used spicy italian sausages. I didn't use salt. Thanks Breezermom :) Made for PRMR tag game