1. Place the olive oil in a stock pot over medium-high heat. Crumble in the ground beef and break it up with a wooden spoon. Add the salt and pepper. Cook, stirring, until the beef browns all over and is cooked through, 3 to 4 minutes. Stir in the 2 cans of tomatoes with their liquid and the beef broth, frozen vegetables, and bay leaf. Fill both the larger and smaller tomato cans with water, add this to the pot, and stir. Bring the mixture to a boil, stirring, 3 to 4 minutes, then reduce the heat to medium-low, cover the pot, and let the soup simmer until the flavors blend, 20 minutes.

2. Stir in the pasta and cover the pot. Let the soup simmer until it has thickened somewhat and the pasta is al dente, 8 to 10 minutes.

3. To serve, ladle the soup into serving bowls. The soup can be frozen for up to 3 months.