Garden Vegetable Lasagna Soup

Ingredients

• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 yellow onion
• 4 cloves garlic
• 2 carrots
• 1 zucchini
• 15 oz can diced tomatoes
• 15 oz can tomato sauce
• 1 Tbsp Italian seasoning blend
• 4 cups vegetable broth
• 8 oz lasagna noodles
• 1/4 lb frozen spinach
• 15 oz ricotta
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella, divided
• 1/4 cup Parmesan, grated or shredded
• 1/8 tsp salt
• Freshly cracked pepper

Directions

1. Chop the onion into dice and finely mince the garlic. Put them in a large soup pot with the olive oil, then cook over medium heat until the onion turns soft and translucent, about 3-5 minutes.
2. As that cooks, peel the carrots and cut them into slices. Slice the zucchini too, then quarter those rounds. Stir the carrots and zucchini into the pot and cook for about 2 minutes more, stopping when the zucchini has just started to soften.
3. Pour in the diced tomatoes, juices included, plus the tomato sauce, Italian seasoning blend, and vegetable broth. Stir everything together, cover the pot, raise the heat to medium-high, and bring it to a boil.
4. While the soup comes up to heat, snap each lasagna noodle into 1-inch pieces. When the pot reaches a boil, stir in the noodle pieces and let the soup keep boiling for 10-12 minutes, until the pasta is tender.
5. While the noodles cook in the broth, spoon the ricotta into a bowl. Add 1/2 cup of the shredded mozzarella, then the Parmesan, salt, and freshly cracked pepper; stir until the seasonings and cheeses are evenly blended. Set aside the rest of the mozzarella for the tops of the soup bowls.
6. When the noodles are tender, tip in the frozen spinach. Stir until it has thawed and is distributed through the soup.
7. For each serving, add a spoonful of the cheese mixture to the bowl first, then pour the hot soup over it. Finish with a small pinch of the reserved shredded mozzarella.