I think many meals - soup in particular - are sometimes best the second and third time, but my husband does NOT like leftovers. We have many lunches where I just say we are having leftovers and he will make peanut butter sandwiches instead.
The recipe looks long, but it's a really easy soup to make. The very best part is the ricotta cheese mixture that goes in the bottom of the bowl under noodles and soup. It MAKES the dish - I promise! It's an art to dipping your spoon to the bottom and catching a little bit of this goodness with each bite.
Also, you'll notice in one of my pictures that I've browned the sausage using what I've heard is a potato masher. Growing up, Mom used a hand mixer to "mash" potatoes and used this potato masher utensil for browning meat. In college I was helping one of my roommates in the kitchen and got it out to mash the meat and she questioned why I was using a potato masher for meat. I simply told her that it's not a potato masher, that it helps crumble meat when you're browning it. She assured me that it was called a potato masher and that was its function, but I'll still refer to it in our house as the meat masher - haha!
Anyway, here's the process with the recipe below!
Heat the oil in the pot and brown the sausage.
Add the onions and cook until they are soft.
Add the garlic, oregano and red pepper flakes. (Notice: MEAT masher)
Add tomato paste and cook for 4 minutes, then add tomatoes, stock and bay leaves.
Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 30 mins.
While those flavors are developing, make your pasta in a separate pot and stir together the ricotta cheesy goodness.
Once the soup is ready, start putting together the bowls! First, some cheesy yum..
Then a few noodles..
Ladle in some soup.
And top with mozzarella!
Lasagna Soup
2 T olive oil
1 1/2 lbs. Italian sausage
2 c. chopped onion
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 t. dried oregano
1/2 t. crushed red pepper flakes
2 T tomato paste
1 28 oz. can fire roasted tomatoes
2 bay leaves
6 c. chicken stock
16 oz. pasta (rotini or bowtie)
1/2 c. finely chopped fresh basil leaves
salt and pepper to taste
Ricotta mixture:
8 oz. ricotta
1/2 c. grated parmesan
1/4 t. salt
pinch of ground pepper
Topping: mozzarella cheese
Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add sausage and brown. Add onion and cook until soft. Add garlic, oregano, and red pepper flakes and cook for one minute. Add tomato paste and cook for 4 minutes. Add diced tomatoes, bay leaves and chicken stock. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes.
Cook pasta in a separate pot according to it's directions on packaging.
In a small bowl, mix ricotta, parmesan cheese, salt a pepper and stir until combined.
Right before serving, add basil, salt and pepper to soup pot.
In individual bowls, place a dollop of ricotta mixture in bottom of the bowl. Spoon noodles on top and pour hot soup over noodles. Sprinkle mozzarella cheese on top.
Recipe adapted from http://www.afarmgirlsdabbles.com/2011/03/24/lasagna-soup/
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