I love this recipe. It is adapted from A Farm Girl Dabbles:
Ingredients:
for the soup:
- 2 tsp. olive oil
- 1-1/2 lbs. Italian Spicy sausage
- 1 Large Onion
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 tsp. dried oregano
- 1 tsp. italian seasoning
- 1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 1 28-oz. can fire roasted diced tomatoes
- 2 bay leaves
- 6 c. chicken stock or (4 c. chicken stock and 2 c beef broth)
- 8 oz. mafalda or fusilli pasta
- 1/2 c. finely chopped fresh basil leaves
- salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
For the cheesy bottom:
- 8 oz. ricotta
- 1/2 c. grated Parmesan cheese
- 1/4 tsp. salt
- pinch of freshly ground pepper
- 2 c. shredded mozzarella cheese
- Shredded basil
Directions:
Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add sausage, breaking up into bite sized pieces, and brown for about 5 minutes. Add onions and cook until softened, about 6 minutes. Add garlic, oregano, italian seasoning and red pepper flakes. Cook for 1 minute. Add tomato paste and stir well to incorporate. Cook for 3 to 4 minutes, or until the tomato paste turns a rusty brown color.
Add diced tomatoes, bay leaves, and chicken stock (or the combo of chicken and beef stock). Stir to combine. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes.
Cook pasta until al dente in a separate pot. You will then add some cooked pasta to individual bowls before ladling the soup over them. The reason for not cooking it in the soup pot is that the pasta absorbs all the soup liquid if you have leftovers.
While the pasta is cooking, prepare the cheesy bottom. In a small bowl, combine the ricotta, Parmesan, salt, and pepper.
Right before serving, stir in the basil and season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
To serve, place a dollop of the cheesy bottom in each soup bowl, add noodles, ladle hot soup then top with mozzarella and basil. Before eating, stir everything together to incorporate the cheesy bottom.
