Lasagna Soup

*adapted from 300 Sensational Soups by Carla Snyder and Meredith Deeds

Ingredients:

2 tsp. olive oil

1 lb. ground turkey

1/2 tsp. cayenne

3 tsp. sage

1 1/2 tsp. ground ginger

1 tsp. sea salt

2 tsp. fresh ground black pepper

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3 c. finely chopped onion

6 cloves garlic, minced

2 tsp. dry oregano

1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes

4 Tbsp. sun-dried tomato paste

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2 14 oz. cans diced tomatoes with juice

2 Bay leaves

6 c. chicken stock

8 oz. broken lasagna noodles (or mafalda or fusilli)

1/2 c. finely chopped fresh basil

salt and fresh ground black pepper, to taste

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8 oz. ricotta

8 oz. cottage cheese

2 c. mozzarella or Italian blended cheese, grated

1/4 tsp. sea salt

fresh ground black pepper

Directions:

1. Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add ground turkey and break up with a spatula. Add spices and brown well, breaking up the turkey very well.

2. Add onions and garlic and cook until softened.

3. Add oregano, and red pepper flakes. Cook for 1 minute.

4. Add tomato paste and stir well to incorporate. Cook 3-4 minutes.

5. In a medium bowl, combine cheeses, salt, and pepper. Refrigerate until serving.

6. Add diced tomatoes (which I pulsed a couple times in the food processor because we don't like big chunks), Bay leaves, and chicken stock. Stir to combine. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 30 minutes. Add uncooked pasta and cook until al dente, about 7-10 minutes. Stir in basil just before serving.

To serve, place a generous dollop of the cheese mixture in each soup bowl and ladle on the soup.



Kickin' Black Bean Soup

This recipe got its legs from the best black bean soup recipe I ever found on All Recipes. I only kept the legs, mind you.

Ingredients

• 2 pounds black beans, cooked, drained and rinsed
• 1 1/2 cups vegetable, chicken, or ham stock
• 1 1/2 cups favorite salsa
• 1 medium onion, minced
• 5 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tsp. dry cilantro
• 3 tsp. ground cumin
• 1/2 tsp. or more cayenne powder
• juice of 1/2 lime
• salt and pepper to taste
• 4 Tbsp. sour cream for garnish
• 2 thinly sliced green onions for garnish

Directions

1. Throw all but the last 4 ingredients in your 4-quart crock pot. You need just enough broth to barely cover the beans and no more. (Too much and the soup will be too thin.)
2. Cook on high 1 hour and then low for 5-6 hours.
3. Scoop out one cup of beans to reserve.
4. Use an immersion blender (or food processor or potato masher) to puree remaining beans.
5. Stir in whole, reserved beans.
6. Add lime juice, salt and pepper to taste and stir together, simmering an additional 15-30 minutes.
7. Garnish with sour cream and green onion to serve. Tortilla strips are a nice touch too

I serve this regularly, often with quesadillas for dipping. The whole family loves this! Nick prefers it with more whole beans and the rest of us love it pureed more. Just play with it to get it right for you.

Creamy Chicken Gnocchi Soup

I got the bones of this recipe from a lady who tried to copycat Olive Garden's chicken gnocchi soup. I tweaked it, but even before tweaking this recipe was WAY better than Olive Garden (of which I'm no fan, so take that as you like).

Ingredients

* 2/3 c. olive oil

* 4 cloves fresh garlic, minced

* 4 chicken breasts, diced into bite-size pieces

* 2/3 c. flour

* 1/2 c. shredded carrots

* 2 stalks celery, finely chopped

* 1 c. fresh spinach, finely sliced

* 5 c. milk (I used skim milk)

* 3 c. heavy cream (I used half and half to make it healthier)

* 3 chicken boullion cubes (I used 3 tsp. chicken soup base)

* sea salt and pepper to taste (I used a white/black pepper combo)

* 1 full batch of the homemade gnocchi (about 180 pieces)

Directions

1. Heat your olive oil into a large soup pot.

2. Cook chicken through.

3. Add garlic and cook until fragrant.

4. Stir in flour and allow to cook into the chicken (3-5 minutes), stirring frequently

5. Add the rest of the ingredients, except the gnocchi.

6. Cover and simmer 10-15 minutes, stirring frequently.

7. Bring to a gentle boil, continuing to stir frequently (you don't want that milk and cream to scorch).

8. Add your gnocchis. Lower the heat and simmer the gnocchis about 10 minutes.

This soup was sooooo good!!! At least as good as Olive Garden's. Ironically, this is the only thing I even like to eat at that place...Anyway, it's a new family favorite.

Zesty Lentil Soup

My lentil soup gets a lot of play in this house, and a lot of praise wherever it goes!

It is such an easy recipe and tastes so fabulous that I thought I'd share it here. Served alongside my homemade bread (did I post that recipe yet?) it is a perfect, nutritious meal.

Ingredients

1 medium onion, finely chopped

2 large carrots, finely chopped

2 large stalks celery, finely chopped

6 cloves garlic, minced

4 tsp. Italian Seasoning (or combine oregano, basil, and parsley)

3-5 dashes cayenne powder

1 large bay leaf

1 can diced tomatoes

2 cups dry lentils, rinsed (any variety of lentils. I combine 3 varieties)

1/3 c. raw quinoa, rinsed (optional but kicks up the nutrition and thickens the soup)

6-8 c. water or stock (stock is better)

1 c. fresh spinach, sliced

zest and juice of 1/2 a lemon

salt and pepper to taste

Balsamic vinegar to drizzle and serve (MAKES the dish!)

Directions

I clean and roughly chop my veg and then throw them in the food processor to get a very fine chop, and then I puree the tomatoes.

Throw all but the last 4 ingredients into a 4-quart crock pot. Cook on high for 2 hours, then low for an additoinal 4-6 hours. In the last 1/2 hour of cooking time, add your sliced spinach and lemon juice and zest. Salt and pepper the soup to taste. When serving, drizzle the Balsamic vinegar (we use a yummy pomegranate-infused Balsamic) over the soup. Enjoy!!!

This is a very easy recipe to double and serve a crowd or put away in the freezer for another day, which I just love to do! This is a very healthy meal, but don't let that turn you off. Even if you don't like lentils or THINK you don't like lentils, this could change your mind.