Cheesy Spinach Lasagna Soup

The cover of the Tri-City Herald's Food & Wine section Nov. 18 will feature tips on working with pie dough. Inside you’ll find more recipes plus buying, cooking and health tips on a variety of food-related subjects.

Cheesy Spinach Lasagna Soup

Ingredients

1 pound Italian sausage squeezed from casing or chopped into small pieces

1 large onion, chopped

6 cloves garlic, minced

2 teaspoons dried organic basil (or 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil)

2 teaspoons organic oregano

1 teaspoon organic anise seed

4 cups chicken broth

1 (14 1/2-ounce) can petite diced tomatoes

1 (8-ounce) can tomato sauce

1 cup mini farfalle (bow-tie) pasta

2 cups fresh spinach, chopped

8 ounces fresh mozzarella, diced

1/2 cup fresh Parmesan cheese, shredded

Instructions

Brown the sausage in a large saucepan over medium-high heat until crumbly. Remove the sausage from the pan and drain all but 1 tablespoon of the fat. Add the onion to the pan and saute over medium heat until tender, about 5 minutes.

Return the sausage to the pan, stir in the garlic, basil, oregano and anise seed, and cook for 2 minutes. Add the chicken broth, diced tomatoes and tomato sauce, and bring to a boil over high heat. Stir in the pasta and cook, according to the manufacturer’s recommended cook time, until the pasta is al dente.

Remove the saucepan from the heat and stir in the spinach and mozzarella.

Serve the soup immediately topped with Parmesan cheese.

Makes 8 cups.

Per serving: 303 calories, 17 grams fat, 8 grams saturated fat, 18 grams protein, 19 grams carbohydrate, 2 grams fiber, 43 milligrams cholesterol, 1,109 milligrams sodium.

From: The Spice Kitchen: Everyday Cooking with Organic Spices, by Sara Engram and Katie Luber.