Classic Cheese Lasagna Recipes

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Combine ricotta, egg, nutmeg, and salt in a medium bowl. Season with pepper. Coarsely grate 1/2 of the mozzarella, and stir into ricotta mixture. Using your fingers, shred remaining mozzarella into 2-inch strips, and reserve.
• Spread 1/2 cup marinara in a 9-by-13-inch baking dish. Place a layer of noodles over marinara. Spread 1/3 of the ricotta mixture over noodles, and sprinkle with 1/3 of the Parmesan. Place a layer of noodles over the cheese layer. Spread 1 cup marinara over noodles. Repeat layering (noodles, marinara, noodles, ricotta mixture, Parmesan) 2 more times. Spread remaining marinara over cheese layer, then sprinkle with shredded mozzarella.
• Place baking dish on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake until cheese is golden brown and sauce is bubbling, 45 to 50 minutes. Let stand for 15 minutes before slicing and serving.

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350°F.
• Mix ricotta, 2 cups mozzarella, 1/4 cup Parmesan, parsley and egg until blended.
• Spread 3/4 cup pasta sauce onto bottom of 13x9-inch baking dish; top with 3 lasagna noodles and 1/3 of the ricotta mixture. Repeat layers of sauce, noodles and ricotta mixture twice; cover with remaining noodles and sauce. Sprinkle with remaining mozzarella and Parmesan.
• Bake 45 min. or until heated through. Let stand 15 min. before cutting to serve.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add the lasagna noodles and olive oil; cook until al dente, 8 to 10 minutes; drain.
• Cook the ground beef and sausage in a large pot over medium heat; drain. Stir in the mushrooms, garlic salt, oregano, thyme, basil, and tomato sauce. Season with salt and pepper; simmer 30 minutes.
• Meanwhile, mix together the ricotta cheese, eggs, and Parmesan cheese in a bowl.
• Ladle enough of the meat sauce into a 9x13 inch baking dish to cover the bottom in a thin layer. Form a layer atop the sauce with 3 of the lasagna noodles. Spread about 1/4 of the ricotta cheese mixture over the noodles. Sprinkle about 1/3 of the mozzarella cheese over the ricotta cheese mixture and then ladle about 1/3 of the meat sauce over the mozzarella cheese. Repeat layering twice more, topping with the remaining 1/4 pound of mozzarella cheese.
• Bake in preheated oven 90 minutes. Allow to sit 10 to 15 minutes before serving.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
• Bechamel sauce:
• In a 2-quart pot, melt 5 tablespoons of butter over medium heat. When butter has completely melted, add the flour and whisk until smooth, about 2 minutes. Gradually add the milk, whisking constantly to prevent any lumps from forming. Continue to simmer and whisk over medium heat until the sauce is thick, smooth and creamy, about 10 minutes. The sauce should be thick enough to coat the back of wooden spoon. Remove from heat and add the nutmeg and tomato sauce. Stir until well combined and check for seasoning. Set aside and allow to cool completely.
• In a saute pan, heat extra-virgin olive oil. When almost smoking, add the ground beef and season with salt and pepper. Brown meat, breaking any large lumps, until it is no longer pink. Remove from heat and drain any excess fat. Set aside and allow to cool completely.
• In a medium sized bowl, thoroughly mix the ricotta and eggs. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside.
• Into the bottom of a 13 by 9-inch baking dish, spread 1/3 of the bechamel sauce. Arrange the pasta sheets side by side, covering the bottom of the baking dish. Evenly spread a layer of all the ricotta mixture and then a layer of all the spinach. Arrange another layer of pasta sheets and spread all the ground beef on top. Sprinkle 1/2 the mozzarella cheese on top of the beef. Spread another 1/3 of the bechamel sauce. Arrange the final layer of pasta sheets and top with remaining bechamel, mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses. Cut the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter into 1/4-inch cubes and top lasagna.
• Line a large baking sheet with aluminum foil. Place lasagna dish on top, cover and put on the middle rack of the oven and bake until top is bubbling, about 30 minutes. Remove cover and continue to bake for about 15 minutes.
• In a large casserole pot or Dutch over, heat oil over medium high heat. Add onion and garlic and saute until soft and translucent, about 5 to 10 minutes. Add celery and carrots and season with salt and pepper. Saute until all the vegetables are soft, about 5 to 10 minutes. Add tomatoes and bay leaves and simmer uncovered on low heat for 1 hour or until thick. Remove bay leaves and check for seasoning. If sauce still tastes acidic, add unsalted butter, 1 tablespoon at a time to round out the flavors.
• Add 1/2 the tomato sauce into the bowl of a food processor. Process until smooth. Continue with remaining tomato sauce.
• If not using all the sauce, allow it to cool completely and pour 1 to 2 cup portions into freezer plastic bags. This will freeze up to 6 months.

Steps:

• In large heavy pan, lightly brown beef and onion in oil.
• Add tomatoes (put through blender or cut with edge of spoon), tomato paste, water, parsley, salt, sugar, garlic powder, pepper, and oregano.
• Simmer uncovered, stirring occasionally, 30 minutes.
• Meanwhile cook lasagna as directed on package.
• Drain lasagna.
• In 13x9x2-inch baking pan, spread about 1 cup sauce.
• Alternate layers of lasagna, sauce, ricotta, mozzarella, and parmesan cheese, ending with sauce, mozzarella, and parmesan cheese.
• Bake at 350°F for 40-50 minutes until lightly brown and bubbly.
• Allow to stand 15 minutes; cut in squares to serve.

Steps:

• Make the sauce: Heat oil in a large, heavy bottomed pot over medium heat. Add sausage, if using, and cook, stirring occasionally, until it's starting to brown but not yet crisp, about 5 minutes.
• Add onion and garlic and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is totally softened and translucent (without letting it brown), 8 to 10 minutes. Add tomato paste and continue to cook, stirring until the tomato paste has turned a deeper brick red color, tinting the oil and onions a fiery orange color, about 2 minutes.
• Using your hands, crush the whole tomatoes into smaller, bite-size pieces and add them and the crushed tomatoes, stirring to scrape up any bits from the bottom of the pot. Fill one of the tomato cans halfway with water and add it to the pot. Season with salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, until the tomato sauce has thickened and flavors have come together, 20 to 30 minutes.
• Make the lasagna: Heat oven to 375 degrees and set a large pot of salted water to boil.
• Set aside 1 cup mozzarella. In a medium bowl, combine remaining mozzarella, ricotta, 1 cup Parmesan and cream; season with salt and pepper and set aside.
• Cook lasagna noodles in the large pot of salted boiling water until just softened (before they are even aldente), about 4 minutes. Drain and separate any noodles that are trying to stick together, slicking them with a bit of olive oil to prevent them from sticking further.
• Spoon a bit of sauce on the bottom of a 3-quart baking dish and top with a layer of noodles, avoiding any heavy overlap.
• Top with about 1 ¼ cups of sauce, and dollop ¼ of the cheese mixture over. Top with another layer of noodles and repeat three more times, ending with the last of the noodles (depending on size of the noodle/shape of the baking dish, you may have a few extra noodles) and the last of the sauce. Top with reserved 1 cup mozzarella and more Parmesan, if you like.
• Cover loosely with aluminum foil and place baking dish on a foil-lined rimmed baking sheet (to prevent any overflow from burning on the bottom of your oven).
• Bake until pasta is completely tender and cooked through and sauce is bubbling up around the edges, 30 to 40 minutes. Remove foil and increase temperature to 450 degrees. Continue to bake until lasagna is golden brown on top with frilly, crispy edges and corners, another 15 to 20 minutes. Let cool slightly before eating.

Steps:

• In a large saucepan, cook the sausage, beef, onion, carrot and pepper flakes over medium heat until meat is no longer pink. Add garlic; cook 1 minute longer. Drain. , Add the tomatoes, tomato paste, sugar, oregano, basil, salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 45 minutes or until thick, stirring occasionally. , In a small bowl, combine the ricotta, 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, egg, parsley and remaining pepper. , In a greased 13x9-in. baking dish, layer a fourth of the noodles, a third of the ricotta mixture, a fourth of the meat sauce and 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese. Repeat layers twice. Top with the remaining noodles, sauce and Parmesan cheese. , Cover and bake at 400° for 45 minutes. Sprinkle with remaining mozzarella; bake, uncovered, 10 minutes longer or until a thermometer reads 160°. Let stand 15 minutes before serving.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Bring a large pot of water to boil. Generously salt water; add noodles and cook according to package directions. Drain, and rinse with cold water. Lay noodles on a baking sheet, separating layers with parchment or waxed paper.
• In a medium bowl, combine ricotta, parsley, and egg. Season with 1 1/2 teaspoons salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper.
• Lightly coat a 9-by-13-inch baking dish with olive oil. Begin layering: Place 4 noodles in dish, slightly overlapping. Top with half the meat sauce and 4 more noodles. Top with half the ricotta filling, then half the mozzarella. Repeat the layering process, ending with the mozzarella. Sprinkle top with Parmesan.
• Cover with lightly oiled foil. Place on a rimmed baking sheet; bake for 30 minutes. Uncover, and bake until bubbling and browned, 30 to 40 minutes more. Let cool 10 minutes before serving.

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350°F.
• Brown meat in large skillet on medium heat; drain. Return meat to skillet. Add onions; cook 3 to 5 min. or until crisp-tender, stirring occasionally. Stir in pasta sauce; cover. Simmer on medium-low heat 15 min., stirring occasionally.
• Spread 1/3 of the pasta sauce mixture onto bottom of 13x9-inch baking dish sprayed with cooking spray; top with layers of 3 noodles, half the cottage cheese and 1/3 of the mozzarella. Repeat layers. Cover with remaining noodles, pasta sauce mixture and mozzarella; sprinkle with Parmesan.
• Bake 30 min. or until heated through. Remove from oven; let stand 10 min. before cutting to serve.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente; drain and lay lasagna flat on foil to cool.
• In a medium bowl, combine ricotta, Parmesan, eggs, salt and pepper; mix well.
• In a medium saucepan, heat oil over medium heat and saute garlic for 2 minutes; stir in spaghetti sauce and Italian seasoning. Heat sauce until warmed through, stirring occasionally, 2 to 5 minutes.
• Spread 1/2 cup of sauce in the bottom of a 9x13 baking dish. Cover with a layer of noodles. Spread half the ricotta mixture over noodles; top with another noodle layer. Pour 1 1/2 cups of sauce over noodles, and spread the remaining ricotta over the sauce. Top with remaining noodles and sauce and sprinkle mozzarella over all. Cover with greased foil.
• Bake 45 minutes, or until cheese is bubbly and top is golden.

Steps:

• In large heavy pan lightly brown beef and onion in oil.
• Add tomatoes, paste, water, parsley, salt, sugar, garlic, pepper, and oregano; simmer uncovered, stirring occasionally about 30 minutes.
• Meanwhile cook lasagne as directed; drain.
• In 13x9x2" baking pan, spread about 1 cup sauce.
• Then alternate layers of lasagne, sauce, ricotta, mozzarella and parmesean cheese, ending with sauce, mozzarella and parmesean.
• Bake at 350 for 40 to 50 minutes until lightly browned and bubbling.
• Allow to stand for 15 minutes; cut in squares to serve.
• Makes 8 servings.
• I make this a lot and serve with Italian garlic bread and salad.
• It always gets a rave review, especially if the mozzarella strings with every bite.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F Heat olive oil in a large skillet until shimmering. Add onion and saute until soft and translucent, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and saute until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add beef and saute until pinkness is gone. Drain and discard excess fat. Make a space in the center of the pan and add tomato paste; stir the paste around the open space until it begins to brown, then stir in meat and onions.
• Drain tomatoes; pour the juice into a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Boil the juice until syrupy. Process the tomatoes in a blender or with a stick blender until fairly smooth. Add tomatoes and boiled juice to drained beef and onion, along with wine, anchovy paste, basil, oregano, thyme, bay leaves, salt and pepper. Simmer gently, uncovered, 30 minutes, stirring occasionally, until flavors blend. Remove and discard bay leaves, and set sauce aside.
• Beat egg lightly. Add ricotta, basil and parmesan cheese and stir well to combine.
• Spray a 13x9x3 pan with non-stick cooking spray (13x9x2 will probably boil over!). Spread 1/3 cup of sauce across bottom of pan and top with 3 lasagna noodles. Spread 1/2-3/4 c sauce, 3/4 c ricotta, 1 c mozzarella and 1/4 c parmesan (in that order) across noodles. Repeat this a total of 3 times, using 9 noodles. Place the last 3 noodles on top. Top with remaining sauce, remaining mozzarella and remaining parmesan. Tent loosely with foil and bake in preheated oven 30 minutes. Remove foil and bake another 20-30 minutes, until bubbly and cheese is beginning to brown. Let rest at room temperature at least 15 minutes before cutting and serving.

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350°F.
• Cook noodles as directed on package, omitting salt.
• Meanwhile, remove casings from sausage if necessary; crumble sausage into large skillet. Cook on medium heat 8 to 10 min. or until done, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat; set aside. Mix eggs, ricotta, Parmesan and 1 cup mozzarella until blended.
• Drain noodles. Spread 1 cup pasta sauce onto bottom of 13x9-inch baking dish sprayed with cooking spray; top with layers of half each of the noodles, ricotta mixture, sausage, remaining pasta sauce and remaining mozzarella. Repeat layers.
• Bake 40 min. or until heated through. Let stand 10 min. before cutting to serve.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Fill a large pot with lightly salted water and bring to a rolling boil over high heat. Once the water is boiling, add the lasagna noodles a few at a time, and return to a boil. Cook the pasta uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the pasta has cooked through, but is still firm to the bite, about 10 minutes. Remove the noodles to a plate.
• Place the ground beef into a skillet over medium heat, add the garlic, garlic powder, oregano, salt, and black pepper to the skillet. Cook the meat, chopping it into small chunks as it cooks, until no longer pink, about 10 minutes. Drain excess grease.
• In a bowl, mix the cottage cheese, eggs, and Parmesan cheese until thoroughly combined.
• Place 4 noodles side by side into the bottom of a 9x13-inch baking pan; top with a layer of the tomato-basil sauce, a layer of ground beef mixture, and a layer of the cottage cheese mixture. Repeat layers twice more, ending with a layer of sauce; sprinkle top with the mozzarella cheese. Cover the dish with aluminum foil.
• Bake in the preheated oven until the casserole is bubbling and the cheese has melted, about 30 minutes. Remove foil and bake until cheese has begun to brown, about 10 more minutes. Allow to stand at least 10 minutes before serving.

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350ºF (180ºC). Grease a 9 x 13-inch (22 x 33 cm) baking dish lightly with nonstick spray.
• In a large bowl, mix together the ground beef and marinara sauce.
• In a separate large bowl, combine the ricotta, Parmesan, parsley, basil, salt, pepper, and olive oil.
• Spread 1 cup of the meat sauce over the bottom of the prepared baking dish. Top with 5 cooked lasagna noodles, overlapping as needed to completely cover the sauce. Spread 2 cups of the ricotta mixture over the noodles. Top with 1 cup of mozzarella cheese. Repeat with the remaining meat sauce, noodles, ricotta, and mozzarella to make 2 more layers.
• Bake the lasagna for 25-30 minutes, until the cheese is melted and the sauce is bubbling up through the layers. Turn the broiler to high and broil for 1-2 minutes, until the top layer of cheese is bubbly and golden brown.
• Let the lasagna cool for 30-45 minutes, then serve.
• Enjoy!

Steps:

• To make the meat sauce, heat 2 tbsp olive oil in a frying pan and cook 750g lean beef mince in two batches for about 10 mins until browned all over.
• Finely chop 4 slices of prosciutto from a 90g pack, then stir through the meat mixture.
• Pour over 800g passata or half our basic tomato sauce recipe and 200ml hot beef stock. Add a little grated nutmeg, then season.
• Bring up to the boil, then simmer for 30 mins until the sauce looks rich.
• Heat oven to 180C/fan/160C/gas 4 and lightly oil an ovenproof dish (about 30 x 20cm).
• Spoon one third of the meat sauce into the dish, then cover with some fresh lasagne sheets from a 300g pack. Drizzle over roughly 130g ready-made or homemade white sauce.
• Repeat until you have 3 layers of pasta. Cover with the remaining 390g white sauce, making sure you can't see any pasta poking through.
• Scatter 125g torn mozzarella over the top.
• Arrange the rest of the prosciutto on top. Bake for 45 mins until the top is bubbling and lightly browned.