Tomato Orzo Soup

Ingredients:
2 tbsp. olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
1 1/2 c. diced carrots
1 1/2 c. diced zucchini
1 c. frozen peas
5 1/2 c. water
2 10.75 oz. cans condensed tomato soup
2 c. vegetable broth
1 1/2 c. uncooked orzo pasta
Salt and pepper to taste
1/4 c. chopped fresh parsley
1/4 c. chopped fresh basil
Shaved Parmesan and/or Romano cheese for garnish 


Directions:
In a large pot, heat the oil over medium heat, add the onion and carrots and saute for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the zucchini and peas and stir until heated through, just about a minute. Next, add the water, soup, vegetable broth, orzo, salt and pepper and stir well to combine. Turn the heat up to high and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and allow soup to simmer for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent to orzo from sticking. Remove from heat and stir in the parsley and basil. Serve immediately, garnished with shaved cheese. Makes 6 generous servings.

Notes: Today is the first day of fall and it was rainy and chilly outside...perfect day for soup! Randy and I both loved this stuff! It was packed full of great flavor and was super filling. I found this recipe on allrecipes.com and it didn't have the best reviews so I made a few changes and it was delicious! We will definitely be eating this more this fall and winter.