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by Jeffrey | 20 Comments
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Lasagna is the cake of the pasta world – but it’s a small time commitment to assemble and it will get a bit messy. That’s where Lazy Lasagna Soup comes in – not only do you get all the flavors of a classic, meaty, cheesy lasagna, but it’ll take the most minimal of time and effort and it’ll be on the table in under 30 minutes!
Watch The Video!
The BEST Lazy Lasagna Soup
Brown The Meat
Add Some Flavor
Combine The Soupy Touches
Make The Cheese Dollop Mixture
Add The Pasta
Serve It Up Like This…
Or You Can Serve It Like This…
The Taste Test
Yield: 6
The Best Lazy Lasagna Soup
Lasagna is the cake of the pasta world - but it's a small time commitment to assemble and it will get a bit messy. That's where Lazy Lasagna Soup comes in - not only do you get all the flavors of a classic, meaty, cheesy lasagna, but it'll take the most minimal of time and effort and it'll be on the table in under 30 minutes! For an Instant Pot version, see the notes section at the bottom.
Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time15 minutes
Total Time25 minutes
Ingredients
The Soup
- 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 ½ pounds ground meat (any combo will work, see Jeff’s Tips)
- 1 heaping tablespoon tomato paste
- 1 ½ teaspoons Italian seasoning
- 1 ½ teaspoons dried oregano
- 1 bunch fresh basil leaves, stems removed
- 4 cups beef, chicken or vegetable broth
- 3 cups marinara sauce (p. 000 or your favorite brand)
- ½ cup heavy cream or half-and-half (optional, but suggested)
- 6 ounces mafalda (my preference for this) or mafaldine/lasagne noodles broken into bite-size pieces
The Cheese Dollop (see Jeff’s Tips)
- 1 ½ cups shredded Mozzarella cheese
- 1 cup ricotta cheese
- ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 1 tablespoon dried parsley flakes
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ cup heavy cream or half-and-half
Instructions
- Place an 8-quart nonstick pot on the stove and set to medium-high heat. Add the oil and let it heat up. Once shimmering, add the meat and sauté for 3-5 minutes until browned and crumbled. Do not drain the pot of the meat’s juices – it adds loads of flavor to the soup!
- Add the tomato paste, Italian seasoning, dried oregano, and basil leaves and sauté for 1 minute more.
- Add the broth, marinara sauce, and cream (if using) and stir. Once bubbling, reduce the heat to medium and let simmer for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Add the pasta and stir. Cook according to the package instructions, stirring occasionally.
- Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, add the cheese dollop ingredients, with the cream poured over everything last. Combine and set aside.
- Once the pasta’s cooked to your liking, turn the heat off. Ladle the finished soup into bowls and add a generous dollop of the cheese mixture to each before swirling it within the bowl to combine (this will also add that amazing, cheesy savory touch which is why we don't add salt to the soup itself when seasoning). Or, feel free to add all of the cheese dollop mixture directly to the pot of soup, stir to combine and serve.
Jeffrey's Tips
For the meat, I personally love using a meatloaf mixture for this (comprised of ground veal, beef, and pork – many markets carry this prepackaged in the meat section). But you can absolutely use Italian sausage meat (uncased) or a plant-based variety as well.
I like using one of two types of pasta for this. I choose either mafaldine - a narrow, long noodle with ruffled edges similar to a lasagna noodle but much more convenient for eating in a soup. Or I use mafalda which is a short-form mafaldine. If using the longer mafaldine, I break it into shorter pieces (about 4 pieces per noodle) - this ensures it's more soup-friendly.
To keep this dairy-free, omit the chese dollop mixture. But since that supples the soup with a savory element, you may want to add some salt to the finished soup, to taste, in Step 4 once the pasta is done cooking (or Step 6 if using the Instant Pot - see below).
To Make In An Instant Pot:
- Add the oil to the Instant Pot, hit Sauté and Adjust to the More or High setting. Once shimmering, add the meat and sauté for 3-5 minutes until browned and crumbled. Do not drain the pot of the meat’s juices – it adds loads of flavor to the soup!
- Add the tomato paste, Italian seasoning, dried oregano, and basil leaves and sauté for 1 minute more.
- Add the broth and marinara sauce and stir.
- Once bubbling, add the pasta and stir. Hit Cancel followed by Pressure Cook or Manual at High Pressure for 6 minutes. Quick release when done (NOTE: Make sure the pasta is done to your liking. If undercooked for whatever reason, hit Sauté and let it simmer in the soup until you're happy.)
- Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, add the cheese dollop ingredients, with the cream poured over everything last. Combine and set aside.
- If using, stir in the cream. Ladle the finished soup into bowls and add a generous dollop of the cheese mixture to each before swirling it within the bowl to combine (this will also add that amazing, cheesy savory touch which is why we don't add salt to the soup itself when seasoning). Or, feel free to add all of the cheese dollop mixture directly to the pot of soup, stir to combine and serve.
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Reader Interactions
Comments
Audrea
OMGosh, it’s like you were in my kitchen! A few days ago I was searching your site & all of your cookbooks for this recipe. Then I was delayed a few days because We unexpectedly lost one of our fur-babies. Today I thought I’d try looking on Pinterest for this recipe in the hope of keeping my mind busy/distracted & here you are with the exact recipe I want to make for my family on this chilly, Fall Minnesota day. Your timing is perfect! You truly are the Best! Thank you for all you do for my family without even knowing it & so many others. I’m so happy y’all had a great vacation – I really enjoyed your posts. Welcome home to both you & Richard & hugs to Banjo!
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Jeffrey
I am so sorry to hear about your fur babies. May their memory be a blessing and may this soup bring you comfort!
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Audrea
Thank you so much, Jeffrey. 💔
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Kate U
Kite Hill makes a fabulous vegan ricotta (almond based) and Follow Your Heart makes a pretty good shredded parmesan (I think it’s coconut oil and some kind of starch, mostly). For mozarella, I really like the shredded cashew-based option at Trader Joe’s. So not an option for people with nut allergies, but a great option for people avoiding dairy/animal products.
Looking forward to trying out this soup!Reply
Jeffrey
Enjoy it!
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Alexandra
This sounds amazingly delicious. I will soon cook this soup in my Instant Pot, I still have some ground beef in the freezer. My husband will love it, I am sure! Greetings from Switzerland
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MARNIE
Oh Jeffrey, I enjoy your recipes so much. I’ve been making the chili for years. My grown kids ask me to make it for them when they go camping or have friends over to their house! I saw this recipe when you posted it and couldn’t wait to make it. Well, last night I did and it did NOT disappoint. The only thing I added was garlic (measured with my heart) and it was DELISH and so easy. Thank you for all the years of excellent recipes.
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Jeffrey
You are so welcome and I’m so glad you enjoyed!!!
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Lisa Searcy
Thank you for this. We just made it and it’s delicious! Came together quickly. I found very similar though differently named noodles at Winco’s bulk section.
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Donna Comeau
Does this freeze well?
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Jeffrey
Sure does!
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Kathleen Clary-Cooke
This soup is absolutely amazing… easy to make, hearty and filling, and made special with the ricotta dollop on top. Like most of Jeffrey’s recipes, it is a lot of servings. My pan was filled to the brim! After our first dinner, I stirred the ricotta mixture into the soup. Like baked lasagna, it tasted amazing the second day, too. I used sweet Italian sausage because that’s what I put in my lasagna. I had to order the pasta from Amazon, but I’m used to that, living in Wyoming. Three boxes will be enough for at least six batches of soup.
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Jeffrey
I’m so thrilled you enjoyed it!
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Toni
Want to try this. Do you think bow tie pasta can be a sub?
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Jeffrey
Sure!
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Emelie
how could I find the nutrition info for your recipes?
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Jeffrey
Use an reputable inline nutrition calculator to plug-in your exact brand of ingredients used for most accurate results.
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Becky K
Excellent!!! I shared some with my parents who rated it 11/10. Will make it again thank you!
I added a couple of generous scoops of minced garlic, broke up lasagna noodles I had in my pantry and did 1/2 ground beef and 1/2 sausage.
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Jeffrey
SOUPerb!
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Ruth Cooney
I made this tonight using my Instant Dutch Oven for the first time. It was soooo good. Of course I added garlic. I cooked the meat on saute, simmered the sauce on manual 1 then cooked the noodles in braise. It turned out perfectly.
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