Lasagna Soup - AZ Healthzone

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil (or oil of your choice), divided in recipe
• 1 pound ground meat (pork, beef, chicken, or turkey) or 16 ounces of mushrooms, sliced
• salt and pepper, to taste
• 2 teaspoons dried Italian herbs, divided in recipe
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 bell pepper, chopped
• 2 carrots, peeled and chopped
• 6-8 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• ½ cup tomato paste
• 2 15 ounce cans of diced tomatoes or 3 ½ cups fresh tomatoes, chopped
• 6 cups of broth or stock (vegetable, beef, or chicken)
• 2 cups of water
• 8 lasagna sheets, broken into bite-size pieces or 2 cups small pasta (shells, fideo, elbows, or bowties)
• Optional Toppings:
• red pepper flakes, to taste
• fresh herbs, chopped (parsley, basil, etc.)
• ricotta cheese, shredded melting cheese (mozzarella, provolone, etc.), or grated parmesan cheese