Cookin' for a Crowd...Doing the Math, Pasta e Fagiole for a Crowd!

I got a call from a long time client today, with a group of 16 needing a Soup Dinner for Monday. Boy, was I ever glad to get that call!!! It's been kinda sparse around here, lately! Anyway, Italian Pasta e Fagiole is the requested soup...it'll be delicious, since the weather is still cold and damp! Absolutely perfect for a business luncheon with a nice side salad and a complimentary flat of my Rosemary Parmesan Focaccia Bread!! The party size is 16 and the client wants each guest to have a grand portion of two cups of soup! That's hearty, my friends! I'll be doing a pictorial of the actual process on Monday, as this is due for pick-up on Monday afternoon. Stay tuned, my Steemian friends! I'll be pulling out the big pots! There's bound to be some comedy!

My ideal Italian Pasta e Fagiole Soup has a combination of Italian hot sausage, sweet Italian sausage and ground beef. It makes the perfect meatiness for a company worthy soup...and, then some!

farmland

You probably already knew that I am seasoning my own ground pork, right?? You don't have to, it's perfectly fine to get the pre-made Italian sweet and hot sausage meat from the market case. Since I'm doing this for a client, though, it's important to put the best presentation that I can on the finished product, and that it represent the Garden Gate Specialty Foods. One pound of the ground pork will be sweet Italian, the other half, hot. I'll season each and let it sit in the fridge for a few hours, if not overnight. There will, also, be a pound of ground chuck, coarse grind. I'll season this with garlic powder, onion powder and Italian seasoning blend. It, too , can rest. These steps will ensure a serious flavor foundation for our soup.

So, we've got 1# each, of ground pork ...on to the veggies, the prime base of a great Pasta e Fagiole! For the original family recipe, there'd be 1# total of meat...generally just one type. ..unless you want to get fancy...it's your kitchen! Rule it!

Your List:

• 2# fresh ground pork, seasoned, or not...as it suits your schedule and budget
• 1# fresh ground 80/20 chuck (1#, your preference of mix)

growitalian

I'll be putting all of the usual suspects into our Pasta e Fagoile and a couple of unexpected ones, for the sake of color and flavor. Onion, Bell Pepper, Celery, Garlic and Tomatoes are coming to the soup party. The traditional compliment is a combination of both red and white kidney beans, which we'll add, as well. For those of you keeping track, the original family sized recipe is 1/4th of the current. Amounts in parenthesis

• 4 cups sweet onion, chopped (1 cup)
• 2 cups red bell (other colors welcome, too) (1/2 cup)
• 2 cups diced or sliced celery (1/2 cup)
• 6 - 8 cloves minced garlic (2 cloves)
• 2 - 32 oz. cans of diced Italian tomatoes (1 15.5 oz can, or close)
• 2 - 15.5 oz. dark red kidney beans, rinsed and drained (1/2 can, freeze remainder)
• 2 - 15.5 oz. cannelini beans, rinsed and drained (1/2 can, freeze remainder)
• 1 - 8 oz. pkg spinach, chopped...fresh, preferably
• Enough blended stock to make up the batch, at least 4 quarts, allow for extra! (4 cups) We'll talk about the stock when I actually make this Soup!
• Oregano, Basil, Italian Seasoning...in the pantry! Kosher/Sea Salt & Pepper, too!
• 6 oz. to 12 oz. Ditalini Pasta, cooked, tossed with olive oil and packaged separately. This depends on how much pasta you like in your soup, honestly! I'll do a larger amount for the group; the men folk like their pasta!

I actually, started with the original recipe, and bumped it up, to make what it needed to be. Soups will always be difficult to guage...it's just the nature of the beast!

I'll get to the rest of this on Monday...shopping, and prepping and packaging!! Oh, my! It's all good, my friends...so, until then, Steem on! This Soup makes a wonderfully economic feast for feeding your farmers or ranch hands, packaging and storing, or just having a family dinner! I keep the pasta separate, as it will bloat if left in the broth...if I'm freezing the soup for future suppers, I just wait until the day of to cook the pasta. Use what's in season that makes you happy!
The pictures in this post are all web images...I'll be making this in real time on Monday, though!!!