Hearty Minestrone

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Ingredients

• 1 pound lean ground beef
• 6 cups water
• 1 (28-ounce) can tomatoes
• 1 cup each chopped onion, celery and bell pepper
• 1 cup sliced carrot
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 (14-ounce) can red kidney beans
• 1 cup shredded cabbage
• 1/2 cup macaroni
• 1 3/4 cups freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Directions

• 1
  Heat a stockpot over medium-high heat. Place ground beef in hot stockpot. Cook until browned and crumbly.
• 2
  Place the ground beef in a colander and drain well. Return the ground beef to the stockpot.
• 3
  Add the water, undrained tomatoes, onion, celery, bell pepper, carrot, salt, Worcestershire, black pepper and bay leaves to the ground beef in the stockpot and mix well. Bring to a boil; reduce the heat.
• 4
  Simmer, covered, stirring occasionally, for about 1 hour.
• 5
  Drain the beans. Add beans, cabbage and macaroni to the ground beef mixture and mix well; cover. Simmer over low heat, stirring occasionally, for 30 minutes. Discard bay leaves. Ladle into soup bowls. Sprinkle with Parmesan. Serve with crackers or crusty bread, if desired.