Lasagna Lover's Soup

I am a soup girl. Chicken Noodle, Cheesy Potato, Regular Potato, Minestrone, Chili...... I  just love the cozy feel of soup on a cold day!  So when I found this recipe on Pinterest for a Lasagna Soup , I knew I had to make it! When my husband learned I was going to attempt to put Lasagna in soup form, he wasn't quite sure what to expect, but after his 3rd bowl I'm pretty sure he loved it;) This soup is the perfect winter soup that classifies as some serious comfort food! I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!

Ingredients

2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil, divided

1 lb lean ground beef

garlic powder to taste

onion powder to taste

4 cups low-sodium chicken broth

1 (14.5 oz) can petite diced tomatoes

1 (14.5 oz) can crushed tomatoes

2 1/2 Tbsp tomato paste

1 3/4 tsp dried basil

3/4 tsp dried oregano

1/2 tsp dried rosemary, crushed

1/2 tsp fennel seeds, crushed

1/2 tsp dried thyme

1 tsp granulated sugar

1 1/2 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley, plus more for garnish

Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

8 lasagna noodles, broken into bite size pieces (6.5 oz)

1 1/4 cups shredded mozzarella cheese (5 oz)

1/2 cup finely shredded parmesan cheese (2 oz)

8 oz ricotta cheese

Directions

Heat one tablespoon olive oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Once hot, crumble beef into pot, season with salt and pepper to taste and cook, stirring occasionally until browned. Drain fat from beef and set aside. In another pot  Add in chicken broth, diced tomatoes, crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, basil, oregano, rosemary, fennel seeds, thyme, sugar, parsley, the cooked ground beef and season with salt and pepper, garlic and onion powder  to taste. Bring just to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low, cover and simmer 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, prepare lasagna noodles according to directions listed on package, reserving 1 cup pasta water before draining pasta.

Add cooked pasta to soup along with 1/2 cup - 1 cup pasta water as desired. In a mixing bowl, using a fork, stir together mozzarella, parmesan and ricotta.

Ladle soup into bowls, dollop with a large scoop of the cheese mixture and sprinkle with chopped parsley (you can help the cheese melt better by cooking in the microwave after dolloping over soup for a bit but mine melted and mixed just fine!)