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This paleo lasagna soup is just the thing when you’re craving lasagna! It’s low-carb, dairy-free and easily adapted to be whole30, keto, and AIP compliant.

What is lasagna soup?

Who doesn’t love lasagna? My Italian-American family ate quite a bit of lasagna as I was growing up, and the flavors are just the best. Lasagna soup often makes its rounds as a popular recipe online, as basically a deconstructed lasagna in soup form. It’s made with tomato, broken lasagna sheets, ground beef, and a variety of cheeses… yum!

I decided to turn the idea on its head a bit for those of us with food intolerances and make a totally grain-free lasagna soup with vegetables instead of pasta, and dairy-free cheese. It will give you all of the lasagna vibes, but without grains or dairy.

The Ingredients You’ll Need for the Paleo Lasagna Soup

• Ground beef. You can also use something like ground turkey, or a compliant sausage of your choice.
• Tomato sauce/nightshade-free sauce. It’s not lasagna without a tomato flavor! If you can tolerate tomatoes, just opt for a sugar-free version. If you’re like me and don’t eat tomatoes, you can simply make this nightshade-free marinara sauce at home!
• Zucchini. Zucchini sliced thin is our substitute for pasta. It really looks like pasta in the soup, and it has far more nutrients!
• Spinach, basil, and Italian herbs. These add more flavor and nutrients to the dish.
• Dairy-free ricotta. This is the ricotta that I opt for.
• Coconut milk, coconut cream, apple cider vinegar, lemon, nutritional yeast, and gelatin. These are the ingredients to make the optional dairy-free ricotta if you don’t tolerate an almond-based ricotta. A few notes… I haven’t tried to make this coconut free and really think it would need the coconut cream to make it creamy! The gelatin cannot be swapped with collagen in this recipe. As for nutritional yeast, you can buy it in health food stores and online. Nutritional Yeast has a cheesy flavor which really helps this dairy-free alternative pass for cheese.

How to make paleo lasagna soup

• Cook and crumble the ground beef.
• Add the broth and sauce and simmer. 
• Prep the zucchini. While the soup is simmering prep the zucchini by slicing off the ends and then slicing vertically down the middle, and then in half, so you’ll have four sections. Use a mandolin slicer or knife to slice the zucchini into thin pieces, similar to lasagna sheets. Pat the zucchini dry to remove any excess liquid.

• Add the veggies to the soup and allow to simmer. 

• Top with ricotta of your choice and serve!

Tips & Tricks

• Switch up the veggies and protein. You can switch up the beef and use turkey instead. You can also add more vegetables like sliced mushrooms or kale if desired.
• Add more cheese. I only add ricotta to this recipe, but the more cheese the merrier… especially if you can tolerate dairy! This recipe is also great with parmesan and/or mozzarella.

Storage and reheating instructions

Store the recipe without ricotta on top in the fridge in glass for 2-3 days. Reheat it on the stove top in a pot until warm.

A few notes on the dairy-free ricotta…

• If using almond milk ricotta, add a large spoonful and break it up into the soup. The ricotta doesn’t melt in the soup but makes it flavorful. Serve topped with another spoonful and chopped parsley.
• If using AIP ricotta, spoon the ricotta over to serve. Note that this ricotta will melt in hot soup… but it only makes it creamier!

If you like this recipe, you may also like…

• One Pot Lasagna Skillet
• Paleo Cheeseburger Soup
• Greek Lemon Chicken Soup

Paleo Lasagna Soup (AIP, Whole30, Keto)

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★★★★★

4.8 from 6 reviews

• Author: Michelle
• Total Time: 30 minutes

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Ingredients

Units USM Scale 1x2x3x

For the AIP ricotta (Optional)

• 2 cups coconut milk
• 2/3 cup coconut cream
• 2 tsp apple cider vinegar
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 1 1/2 tsp nutritional yeast
• 1/8 tsp sea salt
• 2 tsp gelatin

For the soup

• 1 lb ground beef
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 3 cloves garlic, chopped
• 2 tsp dried oregano
• 2 tsp dried parsley
• Salt and pepper (omit pepper for AIP)
• 4 cups chicken broth
• 1 cup sugar-free tomato sauce (sub nightshade-free sauce for AIP)
• 2 large zucchinis
• 1 cup spinach
• Dairy-free ricotta (as seen above, or use this if tolerated)
• 1 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped

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Instructions

For the ricotta

1. Combine all of the ingredients (reserving the gelatin) in a medium sauce pan on low heat. Allow to heat for 5 minutes or so before adding the gelatin. Mix vigorously.
2. Remove from heat and allow to cool for 5-10 minutes before pouring into a lined container like a glass pyrex lined with parchment paper. Place in the fridge for about 2 hours to solidify.

For the soup

1. Using a large stockpot set to medium heat, add the ground beef, onion, and garlic. Season with salt, oregano, pepper, and parsley. Crumble and brown the ground beef until cooked through. Discard the majority of the fat.
2. Add the broth and tomato sauce and stir well to combine. Simmer for 15 minutes.
3. While the soup is simmering prep the zucchini by slicing off the ends and then slicing vertically down the middle, and then in half, so you’ll have four sections. Use a mandolin slicer or knife to slice the zucchini into thin pieces, similar to lasagna sheets. Pat the zucchini dry to remove any excess liquid.
4. Add the zucchini strips to the soup and simmer for another 5 minutes or so to let the zucchini soften. Stir in the spinach at the last minute to allow it to wilt.
5. If using almond milk ricotta, add a large spoonful and break it up into the soup. Serve topped with another spoonful and chopped parsley.
6. If using AIP ricotta, spoon the ricotta over to serve. Note that the ricotta will melt in hot soup… but it only makes it creamier!

• Cook Time: 30
• Cuisine: Italian

This recipe was originally published in 2018 and updated in 2023.