Portuguese Bean Soup - cooking recipe

Ingredients

2 smoked pork shanks or 2 ham hocks
1 portuguese sausage, sliced
8 cups water
2 (8 ounce) cans tomato sauce
1 large onion, cut in large chunks
2 large potatoes, cut in 1-inch cubes
3 carrots, sliced
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1 (15 ounce) can kidney beans
1 small head of cabbage, chopped
1 cup uncooked macaroni

Preparation

Bring water to a boil in a large pot. Simmer ham and sausage for 2 hours. Remove ham and cut into bite size pieces, then return to pot.
Add potatoes, carrots, onions, spices and tomato sauce. Continue simmering until carrots are cooked (about 15 minutes), then add beans and cabbage. Simmer until cabbage is wilted.
Ten minutes before serving, add macaroni and stir well, then simmer until macaroni is cooked.
This soup is easy to personalize to your own tastes, so feel free to add any other veggies (green beans are a favorite!) or ingredients you'd like.