In honor of the 5th birthday of Food n’ Focus this week I thought that it would be fun to go back and remake my very first recipe: Lighter Tastes Like Lasagna Soup. I’m not changing anything about the recipe, because it really is delicious, I just remade and photographed the soup to make it look prettier. I know that soup season is coming to an end but this is really something that you and your family can enjoy throughout the year. And I like that it includes ground turkey sausage to keep some of the fat and calories down.
I’m almost embarrassed to go back to my first recipe posts because of how ugly the photos look! The lighting was off, the styling was bad but the recipes were always delicious. In my opinion you eat with your eyes, so I do plan to go back and remake some of the other first posts as well. I keep telling myself that I had to start somewhere and as I look at more recent posts I realize all of the progress that I have made.
This soup is not complete without the croutons. So don’t skip that topping. I also find that this soup tastes better on the second day because it allows for all of the flavors to really melt together. I found miniature lasagna noodles at my grocery store called Mafalda but you can use any shape that you like. I like that the ripples on the Mafalda really scoop of all of the flavors of the soup. You can whip up a batch of this soup in 30 minutes and enjoy a hearty meal with your family!
- 2 teaspoons olive oil
- 1 pound Italian turkey sausage, casings removed
- 1 small onion, chopped
- 1 red bell pepper, chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 (32-ounce) container chicken broth
- 1 (15-ounce) can tomato sauce
- 1 (14½-ounce) can petite diced tomatoes
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper
- ½ tablespoon dried oregano
- 4 ounces Mafalda noodles, cooked
- ½ cup chopped fresh basil
- 4 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
- ½ cup reduced-fat shredded mozzarella cheese
- 3 slices Italian bread, cubed
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ½ teaspoon garlic salt
- Heat the olive oil in a large pot. Add in the turkey sausage along with the onion, pepper and garlic and cook until the meat is browned.
- Add in the chicken broth, tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, salt, oregano and crushed red pepper. Simmer this for 20 minutes, until the soup will begin to thicken. Add in the cooked noodles.
- While the soup simmers prepare the croutons by tossing the bread with 1 tablespoon olive oil and garlic salt. Bake in the oven at 350 degrees F for 8-10 minutes, until golden brown.
- Before serving add in the basil, Parmesan and mozzarella. Serve the soup in bowls topped with the garlic croutons.
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