Lasagna Soup

This is the best lasagna soup — hearty, cheesy, and made in one pot. An easy comfort-food dinner that tastes just like classic lasagna.

Course Soup

Cuisine Italian

Keyword lasagna recipes, pasta soup recipes

Prep Time 20

Cook Time 1 20

Total Time 1 40

Servings servings

Calories 679kcal

Author Kathleen

Ingredients

Soup:

1 pound sweet Italian sausage, casing removed
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 1/2 cups yellow onion chopped
2 large carrots, peeled and diced
2 stalks celery, diced
16 ounces crimini mushrooms, sliced
2 tablespoons fresh garlic, minced
1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
1 teaspoon dried rosemary, crushed in hands
64 ounces, plus more for thinning low sodium chicken broth
1 cup red wine
8 ounces tomato sauce
1 (14.5-ounce) can petite diced tomatoes
Parmesan cheese rind
1 heaping tablespoon chicken flavored Better Than Bouillon
1 dried bay leaf
1/4 teaspoon sugar
3 cups dried Campanelle pasta, uncooked

Cheese Mixture:

12 ounces ricotta
2 cups Mozzarella
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

Toppings:

1/2 cup fresh basil, julienned
1/2 cup shaved Parmesan cheese

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Soup

In a large Dutch oven, brown and crumble (into bite sized pieces) sausage (1 pound) over medium-high heat until there is no longer any pink remaining. Stir in tomato paste (2 tablespoons) then cook, stirring constantly, until tomato paste is slightly deeper red in color, about 2 minutes. Transfer to paper towel lined plate.
Add onion (1 1/2 cups), carrot (2), and celery (2 stalks) to the Dutch oven then sauté, stirring often, over medium-high heat, for 3-4 minutes.
Stir in mushrooms (16 ounces), adjusting heat as necessary, so the mushrooms sauté and do not steam. Add Italian seasoning (1 tablespoon), and rosemary (1 teaspoon) then sauté, digging down to the bottom of pot to lift up brown bits, for 7-8 minutes, or until mushrooms are soft (They don't need to be completely cooked because they'll cook more. We just want them to reduce in size and release their juices).
Add garlic (2 tablespoons) and continue to cook, stirring often so it doesn't burn, until fragrant, about a minute.
Add chicken broth (64 ounces), wine (1 cup), tomato sauce (8 ounces), diced tomatoes with liquid (1 can), Parmesan rind, Better Than Bouillon (1 heaping tablespoon), sugar (1/4 teaspoon), and bay leaf (1) to the Dutch oven. Bring to a boil. Continue to boil for 2-3 minutes. Immediately reduce the heat, stir in cooked sausage, then gently simmer for 1 hour.
If any foam has formed on top of the soup, skim off and discard. Remove and discard Parmesan rind and bay leaf. Add pasta (3 cups) and continue to simmer until pasta is al dente, about 10 minutes.

Cheese Mixture

Add all cheese mixture ingredients and stir to combine evenly.

Assemble:

Ladle soup into individual bowls. Use a cookie scoop to scoop cheese mixture into bowls. Sprinkle a tablespoon of julienned basil over top of soup bowl. Serve soup and pass the Parmesan on the side.

Notes

Brown for flavor, not just “until it’s cooked”. Let the meat get some real browning before you add liquids. Those browned bits on the bottom of the pot build the deep, lasagna-like flavor that makes this soup taste “special,” not flat.
Break noodles into larger pieces than you think. Aim for 2–3 inch pieces. Too small and they disappear into the soup; a slightly bigger piece gives you that true “lasagna bite” in every bowl.
Keep the simmer gentle once the pasta goes in. A rolling boil can make noodles break down faster and thicken the soup too aggressively. A gentle simmer keeps the texture hearty instead of gummy.
Add cheese off the heat for the smoothest melt. If the soup is boiling when cheese goes in, it can clump or turn grainy. Turn the heat down (or off), stir gently, and let it melt into the broth.
Plan for leftovers: loosen with broth when reheating. This soup thickens as it sits because the noodles keep soaking up liquid. A splash of broth brings it right back to that cozy, spoonable consistency.

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