ITALIAN SAUSAGE SOUP

1 pound Italian pork sausage (spicy or sweet)
1 onion, chopped
3 cups chicken broth
1 14.5 ounce can chopped tomatoes (with their juices)
1 cup orecchiette (ear shaped pasta)
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 cups loosely packed spinach, washed, drained, and trimmed of tough stems
4 basil leaves, thinly sliced

Cut open the sausage casings and squeeze the meat into a large skillet over medium-high heat, discarding the casings. Add the onion and saute the sausage and onion for about 5 minutes, stirring occassionally, until the sausage is light brown all over and the onion tender and translucent. Drain the fat from the skillet, and add the chicken broth, tomatoes (with their juices), and pasta; season to taste with salt and pepper, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer the soup for 8-10 minutes, until the pasta is al dente. Turn off the heat and stir in the spinach and basil. Season with additional salt and pepper if desired and serve warm.

Foster, Sara, and Carolynn Carreno. Sara Foster's Casual Cooking: More Simple Fresh Recipes from Foster's Market. New York: Random House, Inc, 2007. 168.

Notes:
The soup soaked up most of the liquid, so I added more chicken broth and more canned tomatoes.  I wouldn't have been bothered if there was less onion, but that's just a personal preference.