Today’s recipe is my go-to recipe for crowds, taking to people, or just when we need a great meal in our house. It is really scrumptious! My Best Ever Lasagna is so good, that we haven’t found any that’s better at any Italian restaurant around our area. Everyone I know thinks this lasagna takes some kind of special talent to make, but the simplicity of it will shock you. This lasagna is no fail too. I’ve never had it turn out badly. It’s also great because you can alter a few ingredients to suit your needs. I must warn you that in our house, we LOVE cheese, so this thing is loaded up with it. I believe it might just be a sin to only have cheese on the top. No worries… this recipe doesn’t have cottage cheese in it. Who came up with that anyway? Ick!
Best Ever Lasagna
No Boil Noodles (I like the flattest ones that I can find because the texture is better. I also generally substitute whole wheat noodles when I make this at home.)
2 jars Newman’s Own Marinara Sauce
Garlic Powder
Black Pepper
½ c Freshly Grated Parmesan Cheese (Freshly grated is key)
1 15 0z Tub of Whole Milk Ricotta Cheese (The lower fat doesn’t do well.)
1 egg
1 lb of Ground Beef (browned) You can substitute sautéed veggies (mushrooms, zucchini, onions, yellow bell pepper , eggplant) instead or you can do a little less meat and add veggies too.
6 cups Mozzarella Cheese (Sometimes, I’ll use 2 cups of Italian blend cheese with 4 cups of mozzarella. We have also used the 2% and it does fine.)
Pre-heat oven to 375. In a 9x 13 glass dish, spoon just enough marinara sauce to cover the bottom of the dish. This prevents the lasagna from sticking. Combine, Parmesan, Ricotta and egg, and set aside.
Order for Layering:
1 layer of noodles un-cooked (Make sure they don’t overlap because they won’t cook through if they do.)
½ of the Ricotta cheese mixture spread on top of the noodles
½ of meat/veggies
1 jar of sauce (shake some garlic powder and ground black pepper to taste over the sauce)
Mozzarella
Repeat this layering once more in this order.
Cover with foil and bake for 45 minutes. Remove foil and continue baking at 375 for 15 more minutes.
Allow it to stand 10 minutes before cutting or serving.
*I sometimes make this in smaller, deeper dishes to get more of a restaurant look.
Have a Relaxing Weekend.
1 day ago
Mmmmmm...that sounds yummy! Must give this a try. I've been wanting to get my kiddos to try lasagna. Perhaps this is the one. I like the idea of adding veggies to it, might be a way to trick the little ones into eating them! Thanks for sharing.
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