CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- My Sept. 5 column about Gina Majestro's eggplant Parmesan drew recipe requests for the pasta e fagioli of Mary Ellen Providenti, as well as Tony Majestro's squash dish. They were happy to share their recipes.

Mary Ellen's soup can be made as written, or you may substitute ground turkey or turkey Italian sausage for the beef. It can be made meatless altogether. If you make the change from meat, use vegetable broth in place of the beef broth.

Majestro's wife, Prudence, always caramelizes her onions and sautés the squash and peppers in a similar dish, but she said Tony decided one day to put his together without any precooking. She warned him his end result would be soup. It wasn't.

He chooses the young, smaller squash that doesn't give off as much liquid, and he prefers a mixture instead of just one type. He suggests fresh tomatoes can be layered in the dish, especially this time of year, in place of the canned.

Pasta e Fagioli

Makes 12 servings.

     1     pound ground beef

     1    cup diced onion

     1    cup chopped carrot

     3    ribs celery, chopped

     2     cloves garlic, minced

     2    14-ounce cans diced tomatoes

     1    15-ounce can red kidney beans, undrained

     1    15-ounce can Great Northern beans, undrained

     1    15-ounce can tomato sauce

     1    12-ounce can V-8 low sodium juice

     3    cups beef broth

     1    cup water

     1     tablespoon white vinegar

     1 1/2     teaspoons salt

     1     teaspoon oregano

     1     teaspoon basil

     1/2     teaspoon pepper

     1/2     teaspoon thyme

     1/3  cup fresh chopped parsley

     8     ounces ditalini pasta

BROWN beef in large saucepan; drain.

ADD onion, carrot, celery and garlic; sauté 10 minutes; add remaining ingredients except parsley and pasta and simmer 1 hour.

COOK pasta 50 minutes into simmer time in another pot to al dente (about 10 minutes); drain then add to soup with parsley; simmer 10 minutes longer.

Nutrition information:Per 1 cup: 250 calories, 35 calories from fat, 4 grams fat, 1.5 grams saturated fat, 15 milligrams cholesterol, 670 milligrams sodium, 35 grams carbohydrates, 6 grams fiber, 17 grams protein.

Tony's Zucchini

Makes 8 servings.

     4     medium-size squash, zucchini or yellow, sliced

     Coarse-grind black pepper

     Olive oil

     1     medium-size sweet onion, diced

     1    bell pepper, diced

     1    plus half a can more (about 21 ounces) diced tomatoes

ARRANGE half the squash in 13- by 9-inch baking dish; sprinkle with pepper to taste; drizzle with light coat of olive oil; top with half the onion, bell pepper and tomatoes; repeat layers for remaining ingredients.

BAKE uncovered at 375° about 1 hour, stirring once after 30 minutes of cooking.

Reach Judy Grigoraci at ...@suddenlink.net.