Pasta Fagioli Soup

Ingredients: 

1 pound ground beef

1 small onion diced

1 large carrot diced

3 stalks celery chopped

2 cloves garlic minced

2 14.5 oz canned tomatoes

1 15 oz can red kidney beans with liquid

1 15 oz can great northern beans with liquid

1 15 oz tomato sauce

1 12 oz can V-8 juice

1 Tablespoon white vinegar

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1 teaspoon dried basil

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

salt to taste

1/2-pound ditalini pasta

5 cups chicken broth

Brown the ground beef in a large pot, drain off fat.   Add onions, carrot, celery and garlic and sauté for 10 minutes.  Add remaining ingredients, except the pasta and simmer for 1 hour.  Just before the soup has completed cooking in a separate pot boil water and cook paste until al dente (slightly firm), drain.  Add pasta to the soup post and simmer for the remining 5 minutes.  Check seasonings and adjust with salt and pepper, serve in large soup bowls,

Garnish with fresh grated Parmesan cheese