Lasagna soup is a fun one pot twist on the classic Italian dish. A hearty tomato based soup with ground beef, lasagna noodles and a creamy ricotta cheese topping!
Lasagna Soup Recipe
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If you love Italian food, pasta, cheese, and soup... this is the ultimate recipe for you! Taking the classic comfort food of lasagna and transforming it into a soup is simply genius. No need to stress about layering pasta, sauce and cheese. No more stressful slicing and serving of lasagna. Instead this soup is made in one pot and served family style.
What is Lasagna Soup?
Lasagna soup is a soup version of the classic Italian lasagna! Instead of assembling the lasagna in a baking dish by layering lasagna noodles, Bolognese sauce and cheese. There are endless flavor combinations that can add a ricotta cheese layer, a cheesy spinach layer, and more.
This recipe is much simpler than making a classic lasagna. The soup broth is a tomato based broth with cooked ground beef, this replicates the Bolognese sauce of lasagna. Lasagna noodles are broken into small bite sized pieces and cooked. They are then added into the top. The broth is packed with Italian spices, garlic and onion.
As an added bonus the soup is topped with a creamy ricotta cheese based topping. A delicious combination of ricotta, mozzarella and parmesan cheese. What's not to love about that! Serve the cheese mixture on top of the soup and then stir in for an extra creamy and cheesy soup.
What to Serve with Lasagna Soup
- Olive Garden Breadsticks
- Jalapeno Popper Pull Apart Garlic Bread
- Olive Garden Salad
- Strawberry Panzanella Salad
- Feta Bruschetta
What is in Lasagna Soup?
- Lasagna Pasta - you can't have lasagna soup without the pasta. The pasta is boiled until al dente and then added into the soup.
- Ground Beef - we recommend using medium or lean ground beef for this recipe. The beef is cooked first and the excess fat is drained so you can use any ground beef you prefer. You can also use a combination of ground beef, Italian sausage (casings removed), ground pork, ground turkey, or ground chicken.
- Beef Broth - the base of the broth for the soup. Store bought, home made, or beef bone broth can be used.
- Crushed Tomatoes - the broth of the soup is a combination of tomato and beef broth. The crushed tomatoes adds a smooth tomato base to the broth.
- Diced Tomatoes - we love using a combination of both crushed and diced tomatoes. The diced tomatoes make the broth a bit heartier with nice pieces of diced tomatoes throughout.
- Tomato Paste - has a more concentrated tomato flavor than crushed and diced tomatoes. It also has a deep rich red color and thicker consistency. This helps thicken the soup and adds a rich flavor.
- Onion and Garlic - sautéed into the soup broth.
- Italian Seasoning - this is a store bought mix of basil, oregano, rosemary, thyme, and marjoram.
- Salt and Pepper
- Ricotta Cheese Topping
- Ricotta - this is a common ingredient in classic lasagna as a layer with spinach. It has a creamy texture and does not fully melt when heated, instead it remains creamy.
- Mozzarella - since the ricotta does not fully meal when heated the mozzarella adds a nice stretchy and stringy cheese texture.
- Parmesan - this flavorful and salty cheese adds a beautiful flavor to the cheese topping.
How to Make Lasagna Soup
Full Printable Recipe at Bottom of Page
1 In a large Dutch oven or soup pot, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add in the ground beef. Use a spatula to breakup the meat into small bite sized pieces. Cook for 8-10 minutes or until fully cooked. Drain any excess fat if needed.
2 Add in the diced onion and garlic. Cook for approximately 2-3 minutes, or until fragrant.
3 Stir in the tomato paste, Italian Seasoning, salt and pepper until fully combined and continue cooking for 1-2 minutes.
4 Add in the diced tomatoes, crushed tomatoes, and beef broth. Bring the soup to a boil and stir in the lasagna pieces.
5 Reduce heat to medium-low and cook for about 10 minutes or until noodles are tender. Season with salt and pepper to taste if needed.
6 While the soup is cooking prepare the cheese topping. In a small bowl, combine the mozzarella, parmesan, and ricotta cheeses. Stir until evenly combined.
7 To serve, ladle soup into a bowl and top with a dollop of the cheese mixture. Garnish with chopped parsley or fresh basil if desired. Serve and enjoy!
Tips for the Best Lasagna Soup
- Make Ahead - if you are not serving the soup immediately or freezing, you can also cook the pasta separately and then add to individual servings, so the pasta does not get soggy or overcooked. Reserve and store the remaining noodles (tossed with oil) for leftovers separately.
- Pasta Variations - technically for a lasagna soup we should use lasagna noodles. However, lasagna noodles are more expensive then most pastas. Another great and cheaper pasta option is to use bowtie pasta. Bowtie pasta is sturdy, inexpensive and is always available. You can also use penne, rigatoni or really any pasta you like.
- Meat Variations - this recipe in on repeat in our house! To keep the recipe unique we like to change up the ground beef and use a combination of Italian sausage, ground pork, ground turkey or ground chicken. All are great options!
- Vegetables - to amp up the nutrition in the soup you can also add in chopped spinach, broccoli, zucchini, cauliflower, carrots, and more. Use your favorite veggies, dice them small and they will be hidden in the soup! This is a great way to sneak some extra veggies into your diet. Add in the veggies with the onion and garlic after cooking the ground beef.
FAQs Lasagna Soup
Reheat stove top in a pot on medium heat for about 5 minutes, or until warmed through. Or microwave in 30 second intervals (stirring after each) until warmed through. As the pasta sits in the soup in the fridge the soup will thicken, add a splash of water to reheat if needed.
Allow lasagna soup to cool completely and refrigerate in an airtight container up to 3-4 days.
To make this soup ahead of time, prepare the soup up to where you need to add your noodles. When ready to eat, remove the soup from refrigerator and bring to a light boil, add the uncooked noodles and finish making the soup. Prepare the cheese topping in advance and store in the fridge. Serve with the cheese dolloped on top of the soup and enjoy!
Freeze the soup in a freezer safe container for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge overnight and reheat stove top or microwave the thawed soup.
For a healthier recipe use extra lean ground beef or ground turkey or chicken. You can also use beef bone broth for added nutrients and add additional vegetables (spinach, carrot, broccoli) into the soup.
For a vegetarian recipe, swap the beef broth for vegetable broth. Instead of ground beef use a plant based meat alternative or a combination of diced mushrooms, zucchini, carrots and yellow squash.
For a vegan lasagna soup, swap the beef broth for vegetable broth. Instead of ground beef use a plant based meat alternative or a combination of diced mushrooms, zucchini, carrots and yellow squash. Omit the cheese topping or use a combination of creamy vegan cheeses.
Use gluten free pasta.
For a dairy free recipe, use dairy free or vegan cheese (or omit the cheeses from the recipe).
Looking for More Soup Recipes
- Cream of Mushroom Soup
- Zuppa Toscana (Olive Garden Copycat)
- Chorizo Chickpea Stew
- Hamburger Soup
- Creamy Tortellini Soup
- Chicken and Gnocchi Soup (Olive Garden Copycat)
Enjoy!
- Sab
Lasagna Soup
Ingredients
Soup
- 2 lb ground beef (lean or medium; or combination of ground beef with Italian sausage (casings removed), ground pork, turkey or chicken)
- 1 large onion (diced )
- 5 garlic cloves (minced)
- 4 cups beef broth (plus more if needed to thin as desired)
- 2 cans diced tomatoes (14 ounce cans, or one 28 ounce can (depending on your location the can sizes may vary))
- 2 cans crushed tomatoes (14 ounce cans, or one 28 ounce can (depending on your location the can sizes may vary) or unseasoned canned tomato sauce)
- 3 tablespoon tomato paste
- 3 teaspoon Italian seasoning (or 1 teaspoon basil and ½ teaspoon each oregano, rosemary, thyme, parsley)
- 2 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoon pepper
- 10 lasagna noodles (broken into bite size pieces)
Ricotta Cheese Topping
- 1 ¼ cups shredded mozzarella cheese
- ½ cup finely shredded parmesan cheese
- 1 cup ricotta cheese (optional)
Garnish
- Fresh parsley (for garnish)
- Parmesan cheese (grated)
Instructions
- In a large Dutch oven or soup pot, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add in the ground beef. Use a spatula to breakup the meat into small bite sized pieces. Cook for 8-10 minutes or until fully cooked. Drain any excess fat if needed.
- Add in the diced onion and garlic. Cook for approximately 2-3 minutes, or until fragrant.
- Stir in the tomato paste, Italian Seasoning, salt and pepper until fully combined and continue cooking for 1-2 minutes.
- Add in the diced tomatoes, crushed tomatoes, and beef broth. Bring the soup to a boil and stir in the lasagna pieces.
- Reduce heat to medium-low and cook for about 10 minutes or until noodles are tender. Season with salt and pepper to taste if needed.
- While the soup is cooking prepare the cheese topping. In a small bowl, combine the mozzarella, parmesan, and ricotta cheeses. Stir until evenly combined.
- To serve, ladle soup into a bowl and top with a dollop of the cheese mixture. Garnish with chopped parsley or fresh basil if desired. Serve and enjoy!
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