Lentil Soup with Veggies and Pasta

Ingredients:

1 cup of lentils, rinsed
1 cup of spaghetti or fettuccine broken into small pieces (or use small pastina)
1 carrot, diced
1/2 cup onion, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
1 celery stalk, diced
3 teaspoons fresh parsley, chopped (you can substitute about 1 teaspoon dried herbs if you don’t have fresh. I used Italian seasonings)
1/2 cup tomato sauce
1, 10.5 ounce can cream of mushroom or cream of celery soup
3 tablespoons olive oil
Salt & pepper to taste
Red pepper flakes to taste
1/4 cup grated Romano cheese for garnish
1-2 bacon strips, cooked and crumbled into small pieces (or about 1/4 cup cooked pancetta)

Course: lunch,soup,main course,main dish,dinner