Easy Homemade Lasagna

Ingredients

Base

• 12 lasagna noodles, uncooked
• 2½ cups shredded mozzarella cheese
• ¼ cup shredded Parmesan cheese

Tomato Sauce

• ½ pound lean ground beef
• ½ pound Italian sausage
• 1 yellow onion, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 36 ounces pasta sauce (see notes)
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
• ½ teaspoon salt, more to taste

Cheese Mixture

• 2 cups ricotta cheese (or cottage cheese)
• ¼ cup chopped fresh parsley
• 1 large egg, beaten
• 1½ cups shredded mozzarella cheese
• ¼ cup shredded Parmesan cheese
• ¼ teaspoon salt

Instructions

1. Boil the noodles — Preheat the oven to 350°F. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the lasagna noodles and cook until al dente (firm) according to package directions. Drain, rinse under cold water, and set aside.
2. Brown the meat — In a large skillet or Dutch oven, brown the beef, sausage, onion, and garlic over medium-high heat until no pink remains. Drain any fat.
3. Build the meat sauce — Stir in the pasta sauce, tomato paste, Italian seasoning, ½ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon black pepper. Simmer uncovered over medium heat for 5 minutes, or until slightly thickened. Taste and season with additional salt if desired.
4. Mix the cheese filling — In a separate medium bowl, combine 1½ cups mozzarella, ¼ cup Parmesan, ricotta, parsley, egg, and ¼ teaspoon salt.
5. Layer the lasagna — Spread 1 cup of the meat sauce in a 9×13 pan or casserole dish. Top with 3 lasagna noodles. Layer with 1 cup of the ricotta mixture and 1 cup of meat sauce. Repeat twice more. Finish with 3 noodles topped with the remaining sauce.
6. Bake covered — Cover with foil and bake for 45 minutes.
7. Top with cheese and finish baking — Remove the foil and sprinkle with 2½ cups mozzarella and ¼ cup Parmesan. Bake uncovered for an additional 15 minutes, or until browned and bubbly. Broil for 2–3 minutes if desired.
8. Rest — Let rest at least 15 minutes before cutting (up to 45 minutes is fine — it holds heat well).

Notes

• Sauce amount — Each layer gets about 1 cup meat sauce. For a saucier lasagna, bump pasta sauce to 48 oz. Salt needs vary by brand — taste and adjust after simmering.
• Cheese layers — Layers are intentionally thin. For thicker cheese, divide the ricotta mixture across only the first two layers and use just meat sauce on the third. Adding more ricotta overall tends to overpower the dish.
• Fresh lasagna sheets — Skip the boiling step if you use fresh lasagna sheets from the deli section.
• Resting matters — Don't skip the rest. It keeps the lasagna from running and helps it hold its shape when cut. Resting is not required when reheating leftovers.
• Substitutions — Cottage cheese can replace ricotta; ground turkey or all beef can replace the sausage. If going all beef, add ½ teaspoon Italian seasoning (and ¼ teaspoon fennel seeds, optional) to the meat.
• Spinach variation — Thaw 10 oz frozen spinach, squeeze dry, and fold into the cheese mixture.
• Make ahead — Assemble and refrigerate up to 2 days before baking. Freeze (baked or unbaked) up to 3 months; thaw overnight in the fridge, then bake as directed (add ~20 minutes if still cold).
• Recommended sauce — Rao's if going store-bought.

Nutrition (per serving)

Tags: #recipe #pasta #lasagna #italian #beef #sausage #casserole #makeahead #familydinner