Place ricotta in medium freezer bag. Remove excess air and seal.
Brown the hamburger or ground sausage in a large skillet.
Allow the meat to cool, then combine it with the oregano, basil, garlic, red pepper flakes, salt, pepper, bay leaves, fennel seed, nutmeg, onion, broth, tomatoes, and tomato paste in a large freezer bag.
Remove excess air from the bag and seal. Staple the medium bag to the large bag and freeze.
Cooking instructions:
Thaw.
Pour the ingredients into a large stovetop pot and cook over medium heat until boiling.
Reduce heat to low and simmer for 20 minutes to allow the flavours to meld.
Add broken lasagna noodles and cook until noodles are softened.
When ready to serve, spoon the soup into bowls and top each bowl with some ricotta and Parmesan cheese.
Notes
This recipe can be made with ground beef as well, but we've made it so often with ground Italian sausage, it has become our favourite way to eat it. You can choose mild or spicy sausage. If you wanted to use a different pasta than broken lasagna noodles, you can substitute about 4 oz. of any kind of pasta. Some specialty stores have mini lasagna noodles that would be a cute option if you can find them.