Lasagna has always been more about the layering of flavors than the layering of sheets — and this soup makes that case decisively. Italian sausage goes into the pot first, browning until the fat renders and the fond builds on the bottom of the pan; that’s your flavor foundation.
Broken lasagna noodles go in rough and ragged, and as they cook they shed just enough starch to pull the soup toward something richer — thicker than a broth, looser than a sauce, with that silky, clingy quality that makes you want to chase every noodle around the bowl.
An almost full tube of double-concentrated tomato paste blooms directly in the sausage fat, turning deep brick-red and caramelizing at the edges before a pour of chicken broth lifts everything into a broth that tastes like it simmered for hours. (You can use regular tomato paste, but the flavor will be milder.)
Fresh spinach wilts in at the end, barely needing a minute. The finishing move is a generous spoonful of seasoned ricotta dropped straight into each bowl, where it softens at the edges and slowly folds into the broth — the same creamy counterpoint it’s always provided, just without the oven and the longer wait time.
TIP: The pasta will continue to absorb liquid as the soup sits, causing it to thicken. If making ahead, reserve the noodles until reheating; drop them into the bubbling broth just before serving and cook until al dente, adding splashes of water as necessary to thin the broth.
Serve with crusty garlic toast and a side salad to round out the meal.
Broken Lasagna Noodle Soup with Spinach
Ingredients
- 2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 lb. hot or sweet Italian sausage, (casings removed if in links)
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 1 tsp. Diamond Crystal or ½ tsp. Morton kosher salt, plus more
- 5 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
- 1 4.5-oz. tube double-concentrated tomato paste (about ½ cup)
- 4 cups chicken broth, preferably homemade
- 10 oz. dried lasagna noodles (about 10 noodles), broken into 2″–3″ pieces
- 1 cup whole-milk fresh ricotta
- Freshly ground pepper
- 5 oz. fresh baby spinach
Directions
- Heat 2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil in a medium Dutch oven or other heavy pot over medium-high. Arrange about 1” pieces of 1 lb. hot or sweet Italian sausage, casings removed, in pot in a single layer. Cook, undisturbed, 3 minutes, then continue to cook, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon or heatproof rubber spatula, until browned all over and just cooked through, 3–4 minutes more. Using a slotted spoon, transfer sausage to a plate. (Depending on the size of your pot, you may have to do this in two batches.)
- Place 1 medium onion, chopped, in same pot and season with kosher salt. Cook, stirring often, until slightly softened and starting to brown, about 3 minutes. Add 5 garlic cloves, thinly sliced, and one 4.5-oz. tube double-concentrated tomato paste (about ½ cup) and cook, stirring often, until paste is starting to stick to pot and has darkened significantly, about 3 minutes. Pour in 2 cups water, scraping up any browned bits stuck to bottom of pot.
- Pour in 4 cups low-sodium chicken broth and add 1 tsp. Diamond Crystal or ½ tsp. Morton kosher salt. Increase heat to high and bring to a boil. Add 10 oz. dried lasagna noodles (about 10 noodles), broken into 2”–3” pieces, and cook, stirring often, until very al dente, about 9 minutes.
- Meanwhile, place 1 cup whole-milk fresh ricotta in a small bowl and season with salt and freshly ground pepper; mix well.
- Stir another 2 cups water into soup (it will have thickened up by this point); return sausage to pot. Reduce heat to low and cook just until meat is warmed through, about 5 minutes. Remove pot from heat and stir in 5 oz. fresh baby spinach; season soup with more salt and pepper if needed.
- Ladle soup into bowls. Top each with a dollop of ricotta mixture and season with more pepper.
Adapted from a recipe by Rebecca Firsker for Bon Appétit
Tasty ingredients and a pasta doing a different ‘thing’ from the ‘usual’ making up a drawcard offering – nice!