Reviewed: Nov. 11, 2009

Great recipe. I didn't have regular tomato sauce so Iused a tomato cream jarred sauce. It actually made the soup taste creamier and added more of a tomato flavor. I also left out the bacon to cut back on the fat. Never missed it.

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COREENIE

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Reviewed: Nov. 7, 2009

Fantastic! I subbed turkey bacon and frozen spinach. I also used whole wheat pasta. Will definitely make again, it was so easy too. Thanks for sharing!

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rachal

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Reviewed: Oct. 28, 2009

Perfection!!! We loved every bite of it! The only changes I made was that I used 10 oz of frozen spinach and added it toward the end and used turkey Italian sausage instead of bacon. Next time, I may parboil the pasta so the soup does not get so thick. Great with crusty bread and a salad. This one will be on our menu often. Thanks for an awesome recipe!

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Cranker, the cook and baker

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Home Town: Duluth, Minnesota, USA

Living In: Roseville, Minnesota, USA

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Reviewed: May 7, 2009

Oh YUM!!! I used a bit extra bacon and cooked the soup down so the flavors were a little stronger...way better than the Olive Garden soup which I remember as being pretty bland. Thank you for this recipe! I will use it often.

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goodandgoodforyou

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Reviewed: Apr. 7, 2009

I was nervous to try this recipe, thinking my boyfriend wouldn't like it. Boy, was I wrong, this is awesome. Great flavor. I did use italian sausage instead of bacon like other users suggested, you definately need to add more water because the noodles soak up alot, and I added an onion because I had extra around the house - not sure if that changed the flavor much or not. Also I didn't have minced garlic so I left that out, it had enough garlic with the garlic powder. Definately will make this again and again.

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Ann S

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Reviewed: Apr. 2, 2009

In order to make this recipe even healthier, I replaced the bacon with clams, used vegetable broth instead of chicken broth, and used fresh parsley and spinach instead of canned or frozen. We like "fusion" dining so we ate it with Mexican oven-baked corn tostadas.

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Rebecca

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Reviewed: Mar. 25, 2009

I printed this out over a year ago and have used it so often i can make it blindfolded and my kids won't eat it anymore! LOL So after a long break i'm making a couple changes and trying it again. i've never used the bacon or the tomato sauce -- just don't have them on hand normally. they object to spinach (in the past i've used frozen chopped), so this time i substituted carrots and celery. i do have some fresh spinach that i'll add to mine! we're using tortellini as the pasta, and i'm making it in the crockpot. undecided as to whether i should eliminate the water, cook the tortellini separately and add at the end, or toss it all in there together. i usually do the pasta separately as it tends to get stew-y after sitting together overnight.

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reikifeet

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Home Town: Indianapolis, Indiana, USA

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Reviewed: Feb. 23, 2009

Loved this super easy delicious recipe! Followed the directions exactly and it was super terrific! As someone else mentioned serve this with the Whole Wheat Beer Bread and it's a fabulous meal!

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tholland

Cooking Level: Beginning

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Reviewed: Feb. 19, 2009

Very good soup! I used ground pork instead of the bacon.

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STibbs

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Living In: Lyman, Maine, USA

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Reviewed: Jan. 25, 2009

I love this soup; it is exactly what I wanted!

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shalom226

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Reviewed: Jan. 18, 2009

This s a great recipe but quite salty. next time I will omit the extra salt all together. I used spicy Turkey sausage instead of bacon and it was perfect. This is also quite a bit thicker than a soup - more like a stew, but wonderful - serve it Olive Garden style with breadsticks and a great little side salad.

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tinyscout

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Living In: Kansas City, Missouri, USA

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Reviewed: Jan. 10, 2009

I made this soup, with a few changes, and it is great. Instead of bacon, I sauteed the garlic with a mix of turkey and lean ground beef...not much, probably between 1/4 and 1/2 lb. Then I added all of the ingredients, except for the basil. I boiled the pasta separately and add it separately. This allows the soup to not get so thick, especially for the leftovers. Great soup.

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Kerry

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Reviewed: Jan. 3, 2009

This recipe is the closest to how my mom made it when I was a kid! I modified it slightly(used soy bacon and veggie broth) to become vegan for a friend of mine and it still came out fabulous!

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Monica

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Reviewed: Nov. 15, 2008

This was wonderful soap. I made this for my Mom who will soon be 93. I need to be sure she eats healthy. She loved it. My sister-in-law and brother-in-law also thought it was great. I still have some in my freezer. I will take it out in a couple of weeks.

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Alice/Miami

Cooking Level: Expert

Home Town: Baltimore, Maryland, USA

Living In: North Miami, Florida, USA

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Reviewed: Sep. 23, 2008

Love, love, love this recipie. It is fast, easy and the results are fantastic!!! That being said, I did make some major changes mostly to reduce the level of fat and salt, so I could feel a little better about serving it to my family. Sauteed and onion and 2 cloves fresh garlic in a dutch oven. Then added about 1/2 to 3/4 cup finely chopped turkey smoked sausage to pan. Added diced tomatoes, 1 can great northern beans and 1 can navy beans (rinsed and drained, to reduce the salt),1 - 2 cups fresh spinach, 2 cans chicken broth, tomato sauce, fresh parsley, salt, pepper and fresh basil if I have it, if not then I use 1 teaspoon of basil. Simmered for approximately 40 minutes, then added the pasta at the end, but not as much and the submitter recommended, maybe about 1/4 - 1/2 cup cooked pasta... I like ditalini. Anyways really great topped with parmesian cheese. I also like to add a couple of cups of cooked, diced chicken breast to the ingredients as they simmer as it makes the meal heartier... Yum!

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Toasty Mama

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Reviewed: Sep. 12, 2008

I made this for my Bunco group of 11 women. While I tried to do it right, of course, I botched it up! However, they all loved it! I used my crockpot and started it early in the day... put the pasta in too early so it got mushy - oh well. Forgot to put the spinach in (I bought fresh) but it still ended up okay. I added fresh garlic (lots) and onions and then added more garlic and seasoning as it cooked. It was quite tasty and the ladies loved it - mushy pasta and all! Thanks for this one - husband also said to put it into rotation - without the spinach for him!

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susi891

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Reviewed: May 28, 2008

Overall a good soup. Needs a little something more though. Good for a quick soup.

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LindaMae

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Reviewed: May 18, 2008

A very nice recipe that has plenty of room for adjustments and personal tastes. I used fresh spinach and added a can of peas. Didin't want to use bacon so I browned chunks of mild italian sausage instead. Yum! I also chopped 1/4 of a vidalia onion, used fresh parsley and threw in a little sugar and crushed red pepper. I felt like the soup lacked richness so I poured in a little olive oil and right at the end tossed in about 1 Tbsp. butter. Served it with grated parmesan cheese and "Whole Wheat Beer Bread" from this site. Great!!

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krista v.

Cooking Level: Expert

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Reviewed: May 9, 2008

I just have to say Thank You! This is soooo good. I took Chicagocook's review tips and sauteed onion and celery with garlic first, only used 1 can of diced tomato and 5 strips of bacon as he/she suggested and I used a bag of fresh spinach and ditalini pasta just because that is what I had on hand. The seasonings are perfection in this recipe - some fresh baguette and a nice ceasar salad and you have a wonderful meal. Thank you so much for sharing.

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cooking42

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Living In: Sarasota, Florida, USA

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Reviewed: Apr. 29, 2008

Great! So many great flavors and textures in this soup. We followed recipe except we only added 3 slices bacon and did not add water, but did add extra can of chicken broth (low sodium). In addition, we added some shitake mushrooms and 1 and a half teaspoon chipotle Tabasco sauce to make it more smokey flavor. Added combo of freshly ground Romano and Parmesan cheese before serving.

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