Lasagna is a perfect meal on a cold wintery night. Make it up, refrigerate and cook when you get home from work the next day. Or you can freeze and then thaw before cooking. It’s always better the next day after you cook it as the flavors mix together and when you warm it up, it’s delicious. Serve it with a salad or for watching the Super Bowl with a salad tray so that everyone can top the lettuce with their favorites.
This lasagna recipe is from scratch, but you could use a spaghetti sauce and add the meat or have meatless lasagna if you like. You can also substitute mushrooms for the meat – so make it to suit your taste. it’s limitless as to the combinations.
Ingredients:
- 1 lb sweet Italian sausage
- 1 lb ground chuck
- 1-1/2 cups minced onion
- 2 cloves garlic, crushed
- 1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes
- 2 (6-ounce) cans tomato paste
- 2 (6.5-ounce) cans canned tomato sauce
- 1/3 cup water
- 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper
- 3 tablespoons brown sugar
- 3 tsps dried basil leaves
- 1-1/2 tsp fennel seeds
- 1 tsp oregano
- 2 tsps Italian seasoning
- 1-1/2 tbsp salt
- 1 tsps ground black pepper
- 4 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
- 1/2 cup wine (can substitute broth)
- 12 lasagna noodles
- 16 oz ricotta cheese with 1/2 tsp nutmeg
- 1 large egg
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 pound mozzarella cheese, sliced
- 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Directions:
In a Dutch oven, cook sausage, ground beef, onion, and garlic over medium heat until well browned. Stir in crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, tomato sauce, red pepper, wine and water; season with sugar, oregano, basil, fennel seeds, Italian seasoning, 1-1/2 tbsp salt, pepper, and 2 tbsp parsley. Simmer, covered, for about 2 hours, stirring occasionally and adjust seasonings to your tastes.
Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook lasagna noodles in boiling water for 8 to 10 minutes. Drain noodles, and rinse with cold water. In a mixing bowl, combine ricotta cheese with egg, remaining parsley, and 1/2 tsp salt. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
To assemble, spread 1-1/2 cups of meat sauce in the bottom of a 9×13-inch baking dish. Arrange 6 noodles lengthwise over meat sauce. Spread with one half of the ricotta cheese mixture. Top with a third of mozzarella cheese slices. Spoon 1-1/2 cups meat sauce over mozzarella, and sprinkle with 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese. Repeat layers, and top with remaining mozzarella and Parmesan cheese.
Cover with foil: to prevent sticking, either spray foil with cooking spray, or make sure the foil does not touch the cheese.
Bake in preheated oven for 25 minutes. Remove foil, and bake an additional 25 minutes. Cool for 15 minutes before serving.
