Italian Bean Soup

With all this snow, I ended up changing out my menu last night. I made up a quick pot of Italian soup. This hearty, thick soup is quick to fix, but it tastes like it's been simmering all day long.

Italian Bean Soup
Ingredients:

• 2 lbs lean ground beef
• 1 onion, chopped fine
• 4 TBS garlic cloves, minced
• Seasoning salt to taste
• Pepper to taste
• 1 large can (6lbs 12oz) dark red kidney beans, drained
• 1 can (28oz) crushed tomatoes
• 1 jar (1 lb 10oz aprox) spaghetti sauce
• 3 cups beef stock
• 8oz sliced button mushrooms, drained

Directions:

1. Brown the ground beef and chopped onions, drain off the grease and season with seasoned salt.
2. Add the browned beef, onions, garlic, beans, tomatoes, spaghetti sauce, beef stock, and mushrooms to a large soup pot. Season as needed with oregano and basil.
3. Bring to a slow boil, then reduce heat and simmer at least 10 minutes. Stir occasionally to keep it from scorching.

**my notes**

1. Fresh mushrooms can be substituted..
2. You can use more or less of any of the ingredients... it's a basic recipe, and it's very easy to make substitutions. Example, stewed tomatoes, instead of crushed tomatoes.
3. I like to use a thick spaghetti sauce with peppers and onions in the sauce.

There's something about a hot mug of soup served with crusty bread... it warms me up and makes me feel cozy.