Lasagna Soup

** Recipe from  a farm girl's dabbles **

Soup:
* 2 tsp. olive oil
* 1-1/2 lbs. Italian sausage
* 3 c. chopped onions
* 4 garlic cloves, minced
* 2 tsp. dried oregano
* 1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
* 2 T. tomato paste
* 1 28-oz. can fire roasted diced tomatoes
* 2 bay leaves
* 6 c. chicken stock
* 8 oz. mafalda or fusilli pasta
* 1/2 c. finely chopped fresh basil leaves
* salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Cheese Mixture:
* 8 oz. ricotta
* 1/2 c. grated Parmesan cheese
* 1/4 tsp. salt
* pinch of freshly ground pepper
* 2 c. shredded mozzarella cheese

Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add sausage, breaking up into bite sized pieces,  & brown for about 5 min. Add onions & cook until softened, about 6 min. Add garlic, oregano & red pepper flakes. Cook 1 min. Add tomato paste & stir well to incorporate. Cook 3 -4 min, or until the tomato paste turns a rusty brown color.  Add diced tomatoes, bay leaves, and chicken stock. Stir to combine. Bring to a boil & then reduce heat and simmer 30 min. Add uncooked pasta & cook until al dente. Do not over cook or let soup simmer for a long period of time at this point, as the pasta will get mushy. Stir in basil and season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper.

While the pasta is cooking, prepare cheese mixture. In a small bowl, combine the ricotta, Parmesan, salt, and pepper.  To serve, place a dollop of cheese mix in each soup bowl, sprinkle some of the mozzarella on top and ladle the hot soup over the cheese.