Lasagna Soup

The first night I served this soup, my six year old told me he had a new favorite meal! Score one for mom! It really is simple to throw together and can be on the table in about 30 minutes.
It gives you all the lasagna flavor you love without the fuss and the added veggies increase it's health factor. I used my home-canned sauce  which I'm sure added to the great flavor, but you can use any pasta sauce you choose. I also had some Artisan Bread in the freezer that was easy to heat up to round out this simple, yet tasty meal.

Lasagna Soup

Ingredients:

2 cups pasta sauce

4 cups water

4 tsp chicken bouillon

2 carrots, peeled and sliced

2 stalks celery, chopped

1 can green beans, drained or 1 cup frozen green beans

½ lb browned sausage

8 oz small fancy egg noodles*

1 cup ricotta cheese**

½ cup Parmesan cheese

Spice to taste with oregano, basil, and garlic

Salt and pepper to taste

Directions: Combine the pasta sauce, water, bouillon, carrots, celery, green beans, and sausage in a stock pot. Bring to a boil and simmer until vegetables are tender. Add the pasta during the last 15 minutes of cooking. Stir in cheeses and spices just ahead of serving.

If you want to do it in the crockpot, combine the pasta sauce, water, bouillon, carrots, celery, green beans, and sausage in your crock. Cook on high until vegetables are tender (3-4 hours). Add the pasta during the last 30 minutes of cooking. Stir in cheeses and spices just ahead of serving.

*You could use small shell pasta or even elbow macaroni

**If you don't have ricotta cheese, cottage cheese will work. Just use a hand immersion blender to blend it until it has a smooth texture. We do this most of the time because I do not regularly purchase ricotta cheese.