Crock Pot Sausage and White Bean Soup

Sometimes I like to just throw some stuff in a crock pot, have it do all the work, and come home to a sweet smelling house after a long day at work. Well, not just sometimes...practically all the time. It is just so dang hard for some reason to find good healthy crock pot recipes. But, I happened across a pretty cool cookbook with some pretty cook recipes. I have made this one several times and it is delish.

Sausage and White Bean Soup

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 lbs sweet Italian sausage, meat pushed out of casings (I use turkey)

1 medium onion, finely chopped

1 tablespoon minced garlic

1 14.5 oz cannellini beans, drained (um, I actually use 3 15 oz cans, I like beans)

2 tablespoons tomato paste

1 teaspoon black pepper

1 tablespoon quick-cooking tapioca (not sure why but I did it)

1 14.5 oz can of chicken broth

1 head escarole, washed and chopped (I couldn't find escarole so I used cabbage)

1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1. In a large skillet cook onions and sausage until meat is brown and onions are soft. Drain off fat (you won't get a lot of fat if you use turkey.

2. Add sausage and onion mixture to crock and then add all remaining ingredients except for the escarole and Parmesan. Mix gently until tomato paste dissolves.

3. Cover and cook on low for 7 hours. Chop escarole, stir well and cook 1 more hour. Scoop into individual bowls and top with Parmesan cheese.

Cheers!