Slow Cooker Lasagna Soup has a tasty tomato base, cooked ground beef, and seasonings, all packed with cheese-filled tortellini and a creamy cheese mix.
Slow Cooker Lasagna Soup
This comforting and hearty soup channels all the best flavors from lasagna into a delicious, thick, and creamy soup.
This Slow Cooker Lasagna Soup begins with a saucy tomato beef base and is loaded up with tender bites of cheese-filled tortellini and a blend of three cheeses. The cheese topping melts beautifully into the soup adding a nice creamy element.
This soup is a total crowd-pleaser and is overall much simpler to make than a from-scratch lasagna!
Ingredients
- Olive Oil: Use extra virgin for the best flavor.
- Yellow Onion: Cook until soft to enhance sweetness.
- Minced Garlic: Add garlic after the onion to prevent burning.
- Lean Ground Beef: Adds protein. Use lean beef to keep the soup lighter.
- Crushed Tomatoes: Forms the soup base. Use high-quality tomatoes for better flavor.
- Fire-Roasted Diced Tomatoes: Substitute with regular diced tomatoes if unavailable.
- Tomato Paste: Cook the paste briefly with the onions for more depth.
- Marinara Sauce: Choose your favorite store-bought or homemade sauce.
- White Sugar: Balances the acidity of the tomatoes.
- Seasonings: Enhance the overall flavor of the soup.
- Beef Broth or Stock: Use low-sodium to control the saltiness of the soup.
- Frozen Cheese-Filled Tortellini: Provides a filling element and cheesy flavor.
- Cheese Toppings: Parmesan, Mozzarella, and Mascarpone or Ricotta Cheese adds a creamy texture.
Cooking the Tortellini Separately
You can prepare tortellini in the soup, but I prefer it separately for a few reasons:
- Different types of tortellini (pantry, frozen, fresh) have different cooking times. If you add it to the soup, frozen tortellini are best, but cooking times can vary with slow cookers.
- Tortellini absorb liquid as they sit, causing them to swell. The soup is tasty right after cooking, but it can alter the texture if left to sit.
- To store leftovers, keep tortellini separate from the soup to avoid excessive swelling. Heat them individually before serving.
How To Make Slow Cooker Lasagna Soup
- Sauté: Heat oil in a pan. Cook onion and garlic until soft. Add beef and cook until browned. Drain extra fat.
- Combine: Transfer to a slow cooker. Add tomatoes, tomato paste, marinara sauce, sugar, spices, and beef broth. Mix well.
- Cook: Cover and cook on high for 3-4 hours or low for 5-7 hours.
- Prepare Tortellini: Cook tortellini in salted water. Drain.
- Mix Cheeses: Combine mozzarella, Parm, and mascarpone or ricotta cheese.
- Serve: Pour soup into bowls, add tortellini, and top with the cheese mixture. Enjoy!
Slow Cooker Lasagna Soup Tips
- Salt the water: Salt the tortellini water to enhance flavor. Taste the soup frequently and adjust seasonings as needed.
- Use quality beef stock: Good stock, like Swanson®, greatly improves flavor.
- Choose San Marzano tomatoes: They’re sweeter and less acidic, and fire-roasted ones add smokiness.
- Opt for Rao’s® marinara: This thick, hearty sauce provides a homemade flavor.
- Add fresh parsley: It adds freshness and balances the richness of the soup.
Recipe Variations
- Try Italian sausage (mild or spicy) rather than ground beef.
- Stir in some red pepper flakes to individual bowls of the soup.
- Swap the ricotta cheese for mascarpone cheese for a creamy cheese filling.
- To thicken the soup, use less beef stock, and to thin it out, pour in more broth.
Quick Tip
If you don’t know Mascarpone cheese, it’s like cream cheese but uses whole cream rather than milk (making it good!). This fresh cheese can often be found at the deli counter, in the dairy aisle (next to cream cheese and sour cream), or in the specialty aisle (next to cheeses like brie).
More Soup Recipes
- Crockpot Chicken Wild Rice Soup with sweet potatoes
- Chicken Curry Soup with Baby Gold Potatoes
- Italian Sausage Orzo Soup with lots of veggies
- Chicken Pot Pie Soup with puff pastry toppers
- Broccoli Potato Soup with sharp Cheddar cheese
Slow Cooker Lasagna Soup
Slow Cooker Lasagna Soup has a rich, tomato-packed broth with tender ground beef, cheesy tortellini, and a creamy cheese topping.
Equipment
- Large pan
- Crock-Pot
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 cup finely diced yellow onion 1 onion
- 2 teaspoons minced garlic 2 to 3 cloves
- 1 pound lean ground beef
- 28 ounces crushed tomatoes 1 large can
- 14.5 ounces fire-roasted diced tomatoes 1 can
- 6 ounces tomato paste 1 small can
- 1-1/3 cups marinara sauce
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1-1/2 teaspoons dried basil
- 1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds optional
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1-1/2 teaspoon salt or to preference
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- 3 cups beef broth or stock, I love Swanson’s beef stock
- 12 ounces frozen cheese filled tortellini 1 package, see note 1
- 4 tablespoons fresh flat-leaf Italian parsley optional
Cheese Topping
- 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
- 1 cup freshly shredded mozzarella cheese
- 1 (8-ounce) container mascarpone cheese or ricotta
Instructions
- In a large pan over medium heat, drizzle in the olive oil. Once oil is shimmering, add onion and garlic; cook, stirring frequently, 3–4 minutes. Press to the edges of the pan, increase heat to high, and add ground beef to the center. Brown the ground beef, crumbling and incorporating the onions as you cook. Cook until the beef is browned. Drain off any grease (if needed) and transfer the mixture to a slow cooker.
- (No need to drain any of the cans.) Add the crushed tomatoes, petite diced tomatoes, tomato paste, and marinara into slow cooker. Add sugar and seasonings—dried basil, fennel, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper. Add in the beef stock or broth. Stir.
- Cover the slow cooker and cook on high for 3–4 hours or low for 5–7 hours.
- About 15–20 minutes before you are ready to serve, prepare the tortellini according to package directions. (Don’t forget to salt the pasta water; I add 1 teaspoon salt to every 4 cups of water.) Drain thoroughly.
- Meanwhile, stir together Parmesan, mozzarella, and mascarpone. Set aside.
- Taste the soup for any additional seasonings (remembering the Parmesan adds some saltiness). Ladle soup in bowls and spoon cooked tortellini into individual bowls and stir. Add a few spoonfuls of the cheese mixture into each bowl and top with a sprinkle of freshly chopped parsley. Enjoy! Store leftovers separately.
Video
Recipe Notes
Note 1: Any tortellini works, but I love Barilla Artisanal Collection Three-Cheese for shelf-stable and Giovanni Rana’s Classic Cheese Mini for fresh. For cooking in the soup, use frozen tortellini that cooks in 3–5 minutes, adding it 20 minutes before serving. Add extra beef broth, as the tortellini thickens the soup.
Storage: To store, keep the soup base and tortellini separate—only add tortellini to the portion you’re eating right away to avoid mushiness. The soup base lasts up to 4 days in the fridge.
Nutrition
Serving: 1serving | Calories: 421kcal | Carbohydrates: 50g | Protein: 31g | Fat: 12g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Trans Fat: 0.3g | Cholesterol: 68mg | Sodium: 2089mg | Potassium: 1236mg | Fiber: 8g | Sugar: 16g | Vitamin A: 1460IU | Vitamin C: 29mg | Calcium: 203mg | Iron: 8mg
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
This was excellent. My picky son wants me to make it again,
I am SO thrilled to hear this! Thanks Tina! 🙂
This recipe was surprisingly delicious and incredibly easy to get on the table. Thanks for the recipe. Will definitely make it again!
So thrilled to hear this! Thanks Liane! 🙂
Now a regular in our mealtime rotation! Delish!!!!
I am so happy to hear this! Thanks Michelle! 🙂
Can this be made in the Instant Pot?
Does the tortellini have to be frozen??
No not at all. You can use the tortellini fresh or frozen!
Ok… making this overnight tonight… I used ground Turkey and beef broth, didn’t even think about the clashing of flavors between the Turkey and beef broth. I really hope I didn’t ruin the recipe.
I think it should be fine! Let me know how it turns out! 🙂
How do I know that it’s done cooking? I have it on high and 3-4 hours is a huge gap. I checked it at 2 hours and it doesn’t seem very thick so I’m wondering if I need to look for a thick stew or what?
I’d say to the consistency you like it 🙂 The beef is cooked so it’s not a matter of food safety but more of getting it to your desired thickness, tenderizing the meat, and allowing flavors to meld. Hope that helps!
I kept it on high for 4 hours. The tortellini absorbed all the liquid just how I wanted. I also doubled the seasonings and added spinach. Very good!! Just felt like it was kind of missing a certain flavor.
This sounds delicious. Made lasagna yesterday and can never get enough of that fabulous taste!
I would like to add ricotta to the pot. How much would you recommend?
I’d recommend adding a large spoonful to individual bowls 🙂