Ingredients
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- 1 medium onion, chopped (about 1 cup)
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 pound lean ground beef (or extra lean ground turkey*)
- 1 teaspoon fennel seeds, chopped
- 1 teaspoon oregano (or Italian seasoning if you prefer)
- 1 25-ounce jar marinara (or 2 1/2 cups homemade)
- 1 32-ounce container reduced-sodium beef broth
- 1 9-ounce box frozen leaf spinach (~ 2 cups)
- 1 1/4 cups dry campanelle pasta (or 5 lasagna noodles broken into pieces)
- Black pepper to taste and 1/4 teaspoon salt (optional)
- 1/2 cup reduced-fat shredded mozzarella cheese
Preparation
Step 1
1. Heat the oil in a large soup pot over medium-high heat. Add the onion and cook for 4 minutes or until lightly translucent. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, for 30 seconds. Crumble in the beef, fennel and oregano and cook, breaking up the beef with a large fork or spoon, until the beef is no longer pink.
2. Add the beef broth. Stir well and add the frozen spinach. Bring to a simmer, reduce the heat, cover, and cook on low for 10 to 15 minutes. Add pasta and cook for 10 minutes (or one minute less than on package). Pasta will continue to soften as soup sits.
3. To serve ladle 1 1/2 cups of hot soup into a bowl and top with 2 tablespoons cheese.
SLOW COOKER INSTRUCTIONS: Using the browning function of your slow cooker, or a skillet, cook meat and seasoning per step 1. Sppon the mixture into your slow cooker, add remaining ingredients, except for the mozzarella cheese, and cook for 3 1/2 to 4 hours, or until pasta is tender. Top each serving with 2 tablespoons of cheese.
NUTRITION INFORMATION PER SERVING (1 1/2 cups) Calories 285 | Carbohydrate 24g (Sugars 7g) | Total Fat 9g (Sat Fat 4g) | Protein 25g | Fiber 5g | Cholesterol 55mg | Sodium 710mg | Food Exchanges: 3 1/2 Lean Meat, 2 Vegetable 1 Starch | Carbohydrate Choices: 1 1/2 | Weight Watcher Plus Point Comparison: 7 | SmartPoint Comparison 5 (3 if made with extra lean ground turkey)