I first made this soup some time ago and found a couple of pictures of the finished dish. I’m not even sure how I came up with this soup. I just started throwing ingredients together, and my Sweet Italian Sausage and Cavatelli Soup was born.
I just bought an induction burner, and I was super excited to try it out. I know it’s going to work perfectly when my sister and I film my next video. Anyway, I decided to make this soup while I had some time off from work.
We’re living in extraordinary times due to COVID-19. People are doing a lot more grocery shopping and cooking at home because of a shelter-in-place order. That said, many products, because of high demand, had limits placed on them, or they weren’t readily available. I wasn’t able to find any Cavatelli pasta, so I’ll be substituting baby shells. I found the shape of the two kinds of pasta to be similar. Cavatelli pasta will be back on the grocery shelves soon enough, so I’m keeping the name for this dish.
Whenever I make a soup that includes sausage, I like to cook the sausage separately and then incorporate it into the soup. This makes what I call a “clean broth.” Cooking the sausage individually and leaving all the grease in the pan, I believe, makes a big difference in the finished soup.
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour
Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
Yields: 6 to 8 servings
Equipment: 1 (6-quart) Dutch oven, 1 (12-inch) sauté pan, chef’s knife, cutting board, mesh sieve, 1 (6-quart) stockpot, colander, large slotted spoon
Ingredients:
2 tablespoons of olive oil
1 pound of sweet Italian sausage, casings removed (substitute a hot variety)
1 sprig of fresh rosemary
1 head of green cabbage, cored and quartered
1 1/2 cups of carrots, 1-inch dice
1 1/2 cups of onion, 1-inch dice
3 ribs of celery, 1-inch dice, including leafy tops
1 Fresno Chili, seeded and minced, substitute jalapeno
1 fresh bay leaf, substitute dried
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 cup of Roma tomatoes, diced
1 (10-ounce) package of frozen spinach, thawed and drained (squeeze all excess water from the spinach)
1 quart of chicken stock, unsalted, substitute broth
1 tablespoon of Kosher salt
1 teaspoon of freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons of fresh thyme leaves, finely chopped
1 1/2 cups of Cavatelli pasta (substituting baby shells)
Garnishes: Kcal count is omitted
Italian flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, freshly-grated
Homemade Croutons, see link below
Instructions:
Begin by dicing and mincing all the vegetables. Drain and squeeze as much water from the thawed spinach.
Remove the casings from the sausage links. In a large sauté pan over medium heat, add olive oil and sausage. Using a wooden spoon, break up the sausage and cook until the sausage is no longer pink, about 10-12 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, allow as much grease as possible to remain in the pan. Transfer to a bowl or plate lined with a paper towel, and set aside.
In a preheated Dutch oven over medium-high heat, add olive oil, diced onions, and red pepper flakes. Add the diced carrots, celery, bay leaf, Kosher salt, fresh ground black pepper, and fresh, finely chopped thyme. Stirring frequently, cook for 5-7 minutes or until the mixture is tender. Add the minced garlic, and cook for 1 minute.
Next, add the cooked sausage, cabbage, and diced tomatoes. Add the chicken stock, bring it up to a boil, reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 40 minutes.
After 30 minutes, remove the cover, and taste for seasoning (add salt if needed). Add the Cavatelli pasta, and stir to combine. Continue cooking for another 10 minutes before adding the spinach, again stir to combine. Turn the heat off, and serve.
Ladle a good helping into a porcelain soup bowl. Add fresh parsley, freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, and Homemade Ciabatta Croutons.
There you have it, my Sweet Italian Sausage and Cavatelli Soup.
Notes:
1) Linda Lou Hamel is not a nutritionist or dietitian, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and nutritional value are important to you, I recommend running the ingredients through the online nutritional calculator of your choice. Calories and values can vary depending on the brands you choose.
2) Tip: The night before, place the frozen spinach in a mesh sieve over a bowl to drain. You could also use the defrost setting on your microwave to thaw out the spinach.
Sweet Italian Sausage And Cavatelli Soup
Equipment
- 1 Dutch oven 6-quart
- 1 saute pan 12-inch
- 1 chef's knife
- 1 cutting board
- 1 mesh sieve
- 1 stock pot 6-quart
- 1 colander
- 1 slotted spoon Large
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 pound sweet Italian sausage Casings removed (substitute a hot variety)
- 1 sprig fresh rosemary
- 1 head green cabbage Cored and quartered
- 1 1/2 cups carrots 1-inch dice
- 1 1/2 cups onion 1-inch dice
- 3 ribs celery 1-inch dice, including leafy tops
- 1 Fresno chili Seeded and minced, substitute jalapeno
- 1 fresh bay leaf Substitute dried
- 3 cloves garlic Minced
- 1 cup Roma tomatoes Diced
- 1 10-ounce package frozen spinach Thawed and drained (squeeze all excess water from the spinach)
- 1 quart chicken stock Unsalted, substitute broth
- 1 tbsp kosher salt
- 1 tsp black pepper Freshly-ground
- 2 tbsps fresh thyme leaves Finely chopped
- 1 1/2 cups Cavatelli pasta (substituting baby shells)
Garnishes: Kcal count is omitted
- Italian flat-leaf parsley Finely chopped
- Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese Freshly-grated
- Homemade Croutons See the link for the recipe
Instructions
- Begin by dicing and mincing all the vegetables. Drain and squeeze as much water from the thawed spinach.Remove the casings from the sausage links. In a large sauté pan over medium heat, add olive oil and sausage. Using a wooden spoon, break up the sausage and cook until the sausage is no longer pink, about 10-12 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, allow as much grease as possible to remain in the pan. Transfer to a bowl or plate lined with a paper towel, and set aside.In a preheated Dutch oven over medium-high heat, add olive oil, diced onions, and red pepper flakes. Add the diced carrots, celery, bay leaf, Kosher salt, fresh ground black pepper, and fresh, finely chopped thyme. Stirring frequently, cook for 5-7 minutes or until the mixture is tender. Add the minced garlic, and cook for 1 minute.Next, add the cooked sausage, cabbage, and diced tomatoes. Add the chicken stock, bring it up to a boil, reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 40 minutes.After 30 minutes, remove the cover, and taste for seasoning (add salt if needed). Add the Cavatelli pasta, and stir to combine. Continue cooking for another 10 minutes before adding the spinach, again stir to combine. Turn the heat off, and serve.Ladle a good helping into a porcelain soup bowl. Add fresh parsley, freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, and Homemade Ciabatta Croutons. There you have it, my Sweet Italian Sausage and Cavatelli Soup.
Notes
1) Linda Lou Hamel is not a nutritionist or dietitian, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and nutritional value are important to you, I recommend running the ingredients through the online nutritional calculator of your choice. Calories and values can vary depending on the brands you choose.
2) Tip: The night before, place the frozen spinach in a mesh sieve over a bowl to drain. You could also use the defrost setting on your microwave to thaw out the spinach.https://lindalouhamel.com/2019/07/10/summer-time-flowers-and-herbs/
https://lindalouhamel.com/2015/11/02/homemade-ciabatta-croutons/
