A hearty Italian-style ground beef soup with tomatoes, onion, garlic, green beans, mushrooms, herbs and broken spaghetti pasta.

Beefy Spaghetti Soup

1/2 pound ground beef
1 onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 teaspoon olive oil
4 cups beef broth
1 1/2 cups broken dried spaghetti
1 cup frozen green beans
1 (8-ounce) can tomato sauce
1 (4-ounce) can mushrooms, drained
1 teaspoon dried parsley
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon crushed dried oregano
1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 bay leaf

1. In a large microwave-safe baking dish combine ground beef, onion, garlic and olive oil. Cook on HIGH until the meat is no longer pink, stirring once during cooking; drain.
2. Add beef broth, spaghetti, green beans, tomato sauce, mushrooms, parsley, salt, oregano, pepper and bay leaf. Cover and cook on HIGH until the spaghetti is tender, 15 to 20 minutes.
   Stir occasionally. Serve hot.

Makes 6 servings.