Start by heating the olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Once hot, add the minced onion and sauté until softened — about 3 minutes. Then add the minced garlic and cook for an additional minute until fragrant.

Add in the ground beef, breaking it apart with your spatula as it cooks. Stir occasionally until browned throughout — around 5 to 7 minutes.

Once the beef is browned, stir in the crushed tomatoes along with all your herbs and spices — bay leaf, basil, parsley, oregano, black pepper, and red pepper flakes if using.

Pour in the low sodium beef broth along with water. Bring everything to a gentle boil before reducing heat to let it simmer for about 15 minutes.

Stir in your reginetti pasta (or broken lasagna noodles) and cook according to package instructions — usually around 10 minutes.

Once everything is cooked through, remove from heat and discard the bay leaf. Ladle your Easy Lasagna Soup into bowls and top each serving with ricotta or Parmesan cheese if desired.