With spring officially arriving last weekend, this house could pretty much assume that soup would be a rarity for a few months. I’m just not the kind to put a hot pot on the stove during the spring and summer, unless we have some unseasonably cool weather. My husband, on the other hand, would welcome a cup of hot chili or soup almost any day of the year.
But just as soon as spring finally decided to peek out, it disappeared.
Gone.
Nowhere to be found.
When we awoke Wednesday morning, it was to the broadcast of yet another winter storm warning. The midwest was cold and once again blanketed in snow. It’s been one heckuva white winter in these parts!
But you know the saying…“if you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em”…
So I made soup!
I found this Lasagna Soup recipe in our local Kowalski’s Markets magazine, originally from the cookbook 300 Sensational Soups. I’ve always had good luck with recipes that Kowalski’s prints, but what especially caught my eye was that Chef Sarah Molten named 300 Sensational Soups as one of the top cookbooks of the year on Good Morning America’s Top 10 List for 2008. And one of the book’s co-authors is a local Minnesotan. I really felt the need to taste this soup!
The soup is truly like lasagna in a bowl. The flavors are lovely. And the cheesy concoction that gets hot soup ladeled over it in your bowl is yum! Kinda like this Chicken Tortilla Soup with its hidden mozzarella surprise. Only in Italian this time!
I substituted mafalda pasta for the recipe’s fusilli, because aren’t they just the cutest mini lasagna looking noodles you ever did see? I couldn’t resist!
And after picking up 300 Sensational Soups, I know I will be trying more recipes from this book. There are many calling my name.
But, next week, folks…I promise you’ll be seeing spring around here. Even if all I see outside is white.
Ingredients
- 2 tsp. olive oil
- 1-1/2 lbs. Italian sausage
- 3 c. chopped onions
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 tsp. dried oregano
- 1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
- 2 T. tomato paste
- 1 28-oz. can fire roasted diced tomatoes
- 2 bay leaves
- 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
- 8 oz. ricotta
- 1/2 c. grated Parmesan cheese
- 1/4 tsp. salt
- pinch of freshly ground pepper
- 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
Source: 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.
I’m linking up with:
Cheryl at TidyMom for “I’m Lovin’ It”
Kim at Quit Eating Out for “Saturday Swap”
Rachel at A Southern Fairytale for “Mouthwatering Mondays”.
Thank you so much for sharing this awesome recipe! We tried it out and loved it! Made it for a friend who is recording from surgery and made it for a new Mom. Definitely a go to recipe and perfect for Fall!
Thanks for letting me know, Cindy! Hope you’re having a great weekend!
On a perfect fall day–this was the perfect soup! I know that if a recipe appears on this blog, it’s definitely worth trying. On this particular day, my in-laws were in town, and I wasn’t a bit fearful creating this meal for the very first time. We all loved it!
Thank you so very much, Jessica. I really appreciate your faith in the recipes that appear here. I’m so glad you liked this wonderful soup.
Just finished eating a heaping bowl of this and LOVED it. I’m so full but I want more!
Thank you so much for letting me know!
We loved it. My mom made this. sooo good thanks
Thanks for letting me know, Jana!
I am in the process of making your lasagna soup for dinner. It smells divine. I can’t wait to give it a try. I am also planning on making many more of your recipes. Thanks for sharing!
So nice to hear from you – thank you! And I hope you enjoyed the soup!
I just found this on Pinterest and made it last night. I had to improvise a little, but it still turned out amazing. Even my picky husband told me to save the recipe.
Wonderful! Thanks for letting me know, Becki. Hope you’re having a great weekend!
I made this for a “made over main dish” category for a cook off at work & got rave reviews! I absolutely love this soup. It’s so delicious!
Made this soup tonight for dinner and we loved it! Thanks for the recipe.
I am so glad you liked it – thanks for letting me know!
Running out to by groceries and am going to make this tonight for supper! Can’t wait – now that hubby is just about done with harvest, after working a long day he will be thrilled that I made something warm and filling. Thank you!!
Thanks, Lisa – I hope you both liked the soup, and that harvest is going well.
This looks really delicious! What a great idea to put all the flavors of lasagna in a soup!
sara recently posted..Get Well Soon Chicken Soup
Nice to hear from you, Sara – it really is a great tasting soup!
This looks so unique and delicious. I love new twists on classics. Very nice.
Thank you, Beth – nice to hear from you!
mad this tonight with the addition of mushrooms and zucchini…SOO GOOD..will be making this all the time!
I’ve thought about adding mushrooms myself – now I’ll definitely have to give it a try next time. Thanks for letting me know you made (and liked!) this soup, Kaity!
any good substitute to make the soup vegetarian or just leave out the sausage?
Hello, Sharona! Kaity, who left a comment just a couple minutes before you did, said she added mushrooms and zucchini. I think those would be great additions to give the soup some bulk. I’ve been wanting to add mushrooms myself, and now I definitely will try it out. I’d love to know what you think after you make it!
I will stick with your recipe. It looks yummy. I love pasta and with today’s weather, a serving of soup will always be good addition for every meal. Your lasagna soup rocks! Will definitely try this!
Great to hear from you, Anna! Hope you like this – it’s a family favorite around here!
Any idea how well this freezes? It always makes me sad that it takes hours to reheat frozen lasagna.
Honestly, there’s never been enough left for freezing! But if you want to, I would suggest not adding the noodles to the soup, as they soak up the broth and get soggy after awhile. Prepare your noodles separately and add them to individual bowls of the soup. Hope you like it – nice to hear from you, Matt!
Oh my goodness this is cooking right now and smells DELICIOUS!! Thank you so much for this recipe!
Yay! Thanks for letting me know!!
Oh my! Yummy Yummy Yummy . . . . . . it smells. I’m in the process of making this divine dish and I cannot wait to try it. Since I saw the pic I said it’s a must try. Thank you for the recipe
Help! I’m having a fall festival party where the main course is going to be a bunch of different soups and after finding this one its an absolute menu must! But here’s my problem…the party is on Monday at 630 and I don’t get off work til 5. Is there a way to make this before hand…preferably the night before and just reheat it? Or even if I made it at 5… I guess what I’m asking is can I make it the night before/a couple hours before and heat it up in a crockpot on the keep warm setting? Will the noodles get mushy that way or will it keep a yummy consistency?
Hello! Yes, you can get it prepared the day before. Just don’t add the noodles to the soup – they do get mushy and break down when left on the stove for too long, or as leftovers. Make the soup and the noodles separately the day before – and refrigerate them separately. Or you could just boil up the noodles the night of the party. Have fun at your party!
Hi, I came across your soup on Pinterest and made it for supper tonight. It was delicious. My husband is picky about eating chunky tomatoes so I used my submersible blender for just a second before I put the noodles in and it worked great and made the juice just a tad thicker which he likes better as well. Everybody agreed the cheese was very yummy.
It’s great to see a blog from another Midwest girl and I can’t wait to try more of your recipes.
Angel recently posted..Home Completed!
Thank you, Angel – so nice to meet you! I was just in your beautiful state a couple weeks ago for the Iowa Cornucopia Tour. Glad you liked the soup!
I found this on Pinterest and it is DELICIOUS! Thank you for sharing!!
Thanks, Michelle, for letting me know – hope you’re having a great weekend!
Omg!! Just discovered your blog and I’m loving it! Thank you for sharing just wonderful recipes.
Great to hear from you, Ivonne – thank you!!
I made this soup this week and I really wasn’t a fan. I did use 4% lean ground meat instead of sausage so, that could have made a big difference. I felt like it lacked depth. I think adding 1/2 to 3/4 c. of red wine in the tomato paste step and letting it cook down a bit would make all the difference and make this a 5 star recipe. I will probably try this again with the addition of the wine. : )
Hello, Meredith – I tweak most every recipe I make, so I think you should add wine if you want to add wine. Enjoy!
Does the 2T for the tomato paste mean to 2 tablespoons? Sorry for such a silly question just want to make sure I’m doing right.
Hello Susan! Yes, “T” is for tablespoon. And “tsp” is for teaspoon. Not a silly question…it’s just how I learned growing up. I know everyone has their own way with writing recipes. Thanks for visiting – hope you like this!!
cheesy yum
I’ll be making this for my husband and I and 4 of our dearest friends tomorrow night — sounds so yummy! Wondering how it would work out in a crock-pot?? Any ideas on having to cook the sausage first before putting it in the crock-pot? Love your blog!
Hi Vickie! I apologize for replying later than you probably needed this…I’ve been at a photo clinic most of the day. I have not tried this in a crock pot, but would suggest cooking the sausage first. And I would leave out the noodles and boil them separately, to add when you’re ready to eat. The noodles will turn to mush if left sitting in the liquid for hours. I hope you had a great night of soup and friendship!
I just had to tell you that I love this soup!!! I posted your recipe on a forum in My Fitness Pal and everyone went nuts over this soup!!! I also added it to my recipe site. I just found your website on pinterest and I can’t wait to make something else.
Wonderful to hear from you, Claudia – thanks for letting me know you liked the soup!
oh my word… this soup was AMAZING! Definitely sharing it on my blog! Thank you so much!
Hi Shelly! So glad you liked the soup!!
Made this on a campfire in a dutch oven with three variations. The first one was making meatballs using beef and Italian sausage and browning them. Second, I used 16 oz of curly pasta instead of 8 but with the same 6 cups of broth. I didn’t want to keep up with an open bag of pasta around camp which usually just ends up in waste. I took it off the heat a little before the pasta was done and it soaked up the broth and finished cooking while it sat a few minutes. Third, I mixed the fresh chopped basil with the cheese yum so the flavor wouldn’t evaporate as it sat in the hot soup. The result was something more like a “campfiretop” lasagne than a soup. Delicioso!!! Thanks for the recipe.
Great to hear from you, James! How fun – love the idea of eating this around a camp fire. So glad you liked it!
I made this soup tonight for me and my husband… we loved it!!! I used whole wheat fusili, dried basil (it’s all I had!) and the butcher at whole foods took the casings off some links of spicy italian chicken sausage for me. I doubled the garlic and added extra onion as well (we both love garlic and onions!!)
This soup will be a new staple! So cheesy and delicious, would be impressive enough for company! My brother in law is vegetarian so I think next time I’ll try it with black beans and mushrooms or other veggies instead of sausage. I think this would be great with black beans, some spinach and pepper jack cheese as well.. you could substitute some cumin for the basil for a southwestern flare!
Five stars!!!
All great substitutions, Claire! Thanks for letting me know you liked it!
Awesome recipe! I am a college student and found your recipe on Pinterest. Very easy to make. My boyfriend and his baseball teammates loved it! Thank you
Hi Lauren – thanks for letting me know! I smile to know that it can make a baseball team happy.
This soup was SO delicious! It was also really easy to make. Thank you for posting it!!
This was amazing! Thank you so much for this wonderful recipe. It was such a big hit!
The only thing I would have liked to know ahead of time is how long it took to make. I did leave a lot of time since I usually do the first time I make something, but it took a little longer than I expected.
I’m glad you liked the soup, Lindsey – thanks for letting me know. I haven’t ever included total prep and cook time on my recipes – but, yes, this does take a bit of time to prepare. But it’s SO worth it!!
My family loved this recipie…I found it on Pinterest, thanks for sharing!
Thank you for letting me know, Shanna!
I LOVE lasagna and this looks absolutely amazing. I am going to try it soon!!
Thanks for sharing!
Found this on Pininterest and will be making it for dinner tonight!! Looks and sounds wonderful!
A friend posted your recipe on…yes, Pinterest. I just got home from the store with all the ingredients! Like all the others, I can’t wait to make it. The only thing that made me sad was not finding any of the little lasagna looking pasta. I went with the bowties sice they were bogo and I know it will be just as good!
I seriously cannot wait to try this soup…am going to make for the family this weekend
Just made the lasagna soup and it is AWESOME! Thank you for the receipe!
YUM! The family loved it too
Thanks for a great recipe!
This soup was delish!! Thanks for sharing.
Hello Carmen – so glad you liked it! Thanks for visiting!
THIS SOUP WAS AMAZING!!!!!!!!
So glad you liked it, Nicole! Thanks!
Making this soup for dinner tonight! My husband is beyond thrilled!! Thanks for sharing such awesome recipes.
Thanks, Rebecca – hope you liked it!
Oh wow! We made this for dinner tonight and it is fabulous! Thanks for sharing! I forgot to pick up ricotta but had some goat cheese and it’s delicious this way too – a bit more powerful in taste. We will be making this again I know! I also couldn’t find the pasta you used so broke up regular lasagna. How big are the little lasagna shapes that you used? These pieces seem kinda big. Thanks!
Hello Cassie! I love goat cheese – I bet that was good! The pasta I used is a little more than 1″ long, about 1/2″ wide. So glad you liked the soup!
Looks great! I’m in the hospital now but when I get out I’m gonna make it! Thanks!
This was as delicious as it looks. My husband saw me looking at this on pinterest, and HE said we needed to have it the next day! GREAT recipe. Thanks!
The only thing I would add to the Cheesy Yum is some creamed cheese – great for melting and great for flavor! I always add it to my famous lasagna:)
Found you on Pinterest and made this ah-mazing soup for my family (used gluten free pasta for my hubby). I’ve been raving about it to my co-workers and so now we will be having a soup potluck tonight. So excited to make it again. I know this will be the best dish tonight!
I was wondering how accurate the 8 servings designation is as I’m cooking for 6 people instead of my normal 2 and want to make sure there’s plenty for everyone. Do you know if it’s 8 large servings? I want there to be enough so everyone has their fill plus a little more if possible. Thanks!
Karen H. recently posted..Stuffed Mushrooms
Hello Karen! If those 6 people are especially big eaters, you may want to increase the quantities by another half recipe just to be safe. But if you have some garlic toasts, etc. to go with your meal, I’m betting you’ll be just fine with it as it is. Abby left a comment shortly after you did yesterday and she addressed your question as well, if you want to take a look. Thanks for stopping by!
I make this soup often and freeze it into three separate servings. Each of the three servings serves my husband and I with enough left over for him to have lunch the next day. I think it should be enough for you party of six.
Side note: this soup freezes well (in fact it gets even better,) but I’d follow Brenda’s suggestion and prepare the pasta right before serving and then add it to the soup. It can get mushy if it sits.
What is the 2 T. of tomato paste? is that supposed to be a tablespoon?
Yes, Mikayla – “T.” stands for tablespoon. Hope you like this – thanks for visiting!