Crockpot Pasta Fagioli

1 pound lean ground beef, browned and drained
1/2 large red onion, chopped
1 cup carrots, chopped
2 celery stalks, sliced
2 cans (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes (and juice)
1 can kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 can white beans, drained and rinsed
4 cups beef broth
1 jar (26-ounce) pasta sauce
2 tsp oregano
1 T Tabasco sauce
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/2 cup dry pasta, to add at end of cooking time
10 oz chopped spinach, to add at end of cooking time (optional)

1. Use a 6 quart or larger crockpot, or cut the recipe in half. This makes a lot.
2. Brown the meat on the stovetop, and drain well. Let it cool a bit.
3. Chop up the carrots, onion, and celery. Add it to the empty crockpot.
4. Drain and rinse the beans, and add them. Add the whole cans of tomatoes, and the pasta sauce. Add the beef broth. Add the salt, pepper, oregano, and Tobasco sauce. Stir in your meat.
5. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours, or high for 4. When the vegetables are tender, stir in the 1/2 cup of dry pasta.
6. Cover and cook for another hour on low, or until the pasta is tender. It will swell quite a bit.
7. Serve with a bit of parmesan cheese if you have it.

Source: A Year of Slow Cooking

Try #1 - April 22, 2013
This was a quick and easy meal, with ingredients I usually have on hand.  It was good, although fairly rich, and too salty for my taste.  Next time I would omit the 1/2 tsp extra salt. I added 1 cup of pasta instead of 1/2 cup because 1/2 cup just sounded ridiculously small.  I also just added a few drops of hot sauce instead of a full Tbsp because I didn't want to risk it being too spicy for the kids.  It was not spicy at all and they seemed to like it.  I also added about 10oz of frozen chopped spinach just before serving, because I wanted to give the meal some green.  The spinach made no difference in the taste or texture, since it was finely chopped, so I think it was a good addition.