Lasagna Soup

 
Today was our last day of our Classical Conversations tutorial for the fall. (Insert loud cheer here!) The last 12 weeks (or so) have been full, full, FULL, but I think over all we have finished well. I knew I would be tired today after our last day so I'm not sure why I picked this soup to make for dinner instead of my normal crockpot Tuesday plan. However, I'm so glad I did! I was cold all. day. long. and it turns out that cooking something hot and scrumptious slowly over the stove when I got home was just what I needed today. I wish I remembered exactly where I saw this recipe the first time ... maybe life {in} grace? ... so I could give credit.

Lasagna Soup
My edits are in parenthesis; most things I left out were because I didn't have the ingredient.

for the soup:
2 tsp. olive oil
1-1/2 lbs. Italian sausage (I used Italian turkey sausage)
3 c. chopped onions.
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp. dried oregano
1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes (left this out)
2 T. tomato paste
1 28-oz. can fire roasted diced tomatoes (used regular diced)
2 bay leaves (left out)
6 c. chicken stock
8 oz. mafalda or fusilli pasta
1/2 c. finely chopped fresh basil leaves
salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

for the cheesy yum:
8 oz. ricotta
1/2 c. grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 tsp. salt
pinch of freshly ground pepper

additional cheesy yum:
2 c. shredded mozzarella cheese

Preparation

Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add sausage, breaking up into bite sized pieces, and brown for about 5 minutes. Add onions and cook until softened, about 6 minutes. Add garlic, oregano, and red pepper flakes. Cook for 1 minute. Add tomato paste and stir well to incorporate. Cook for 3 to 4 minutes, or until the tomato paste turns a rusty brown color.

 

Add diced tomatoes, bay leaves, and chicken stock. Stir to combine. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes. Add uncooked pasta and cook until al dente. Do not over cook or let soup simmer for a long period of time at this point, as the pasta will get mushy and absorb all the soup broth. You may even want to consider cooking the noodles separately, and then adding some to individual bowls before ladling the soup over them. This would be an especially smart move if you are anticipating any leftovers. Right before serving, stir in the basil and season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper.

 

While the pasta is cooking, prepare the cheesy yum. In a small bowl, combine the ricotta, Parmesan, salt, and pepper. To serve, place a dollop of the cheesy yum in each soup bowl, sprinkle some of the mozzarella on top and ladle the hot soup over the cheese.

 

Source (these were notes from the original recipe)Adapted from  300 Sensational Soups by Carla Snyder and Meredith Deeds, as seen in the February-April 2011 edition of At Home with Kowalski's magazine from Kowalski’s Markets .

 
My notes: this was DELICIOUS. The cheese mixture made the soup in my opinion and was well worth the calories. The only thing that I think I will do differently the next time is used crushed tomatoes instead of diced. I have several that will eat tomatoes without complaint as long as they can't see the big chunks. Though there weren't any complaints, I think I'll get an even better response without the chunks.

Enjoy!