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Lasagna
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4.91 from 11 votes

Homemade Lasagna

This homemade lasagna recipe uses homemade sauce, ricotta, and loads of mozzarella for a soul satisfying dish.
Prep Time20 minutes
Cook Time50 minutes
Total Time1 hour 10 minutes
Course: Main Dish
Cuisine: Italian
Keyword: Beef, Pasta
Servings: 6 servings
Calories: 623kcal
Author: Laura Lynch

Ingredients

For the sauce:

  • 1/2 pound ground beef
  • 1/2 pound Italian sausage
  • 1/2 onion chopped
  • 1 large carrot finely chopped
  • 4 cloves garlic minced
  • 1 teaspoon fennel seeds
  • 28 ounces crushed tomatoes
  • 15 ounces tomato sauce
  • 6 ounces tomato paste
  • 1/2 cup beef broth
  • 1/4 cup fresh basil chopped
  • 1 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

For the ricotta mixture:

  • 15 ounces ricotta cheese
  • 1 egg
  • 2 tablespoons fresh parsley chopped
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg

For the lasagna:

  • 12 lasagna sheets homemade pasta sheets, fresh pasta sheets, no-boil sheets, or pre-boiled pasta sheets
  • 2 cups mozzarella cheese grated
  • 1 cup Parmigiana-Reggiano grated
US Customary - Metric

Instructions

  • Pre-heat oven to 375°F(190°C). Prepare a 13x9 baking dish by spraying it with cooking oil.

For the tomato meat sauce:

  • Brown the ground beef and Italian sausage crumbling it as it cooks in a large sauce pan over medium high heat. When fully cooked, add onions and carrots. Cook for 6 minutes. Add garlic and fennel seeds. Stir and cook for 1 minute.
  • Add the crushed tomatoes, tomato sauce, and tomato paste. Stir to combine. Italian seasoning, salt, oregano, black pepper and sugar.
  • Then add the beef broth, basil, oregano, salt and pepper.
  • Allow the sauce to simmer for at least 30 minutes, up to 4 hours, covered

For the ricotta mixture:

  • Mix the ricotta, egg, fresh parsley, salt, and nutmeg in a bowl.

To assemble the lasagna:

  • Spread a little sauce on the bottom of the baking dish. Lay in pasta sheets, making sure not to overlap, and top it with about 1/3 of the ricotta mixture, mozzarella cheese, meat sauce, and Parmesan. Make 3 layers, reserving enough sauce and mozzarella for the top.
  • On top of the last layer of pasta, spread on the remaining meat sauce and top with mozzarella. Cover the baking dish with tin foil and bake for 25 minutes, remove the foil and cook for 25 more minutes.

Notes

  • Fresh homemade pasta sheets don't need to be precooked. Neither do "no boil" lasagna sheets.
  • If you prefer, you can substitute the ricotta with cottage cheese or a bechamel sauce.

Nutrition

Calories: 623kcal | Carbohydrates: 52g | Protein: 35g | Fat: 30g | Saturated Fat: 14g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 11g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 104mg | Sodium: 901mg | Potassium: 761mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 698IU | Vitamin C: 15mg | Calcium: 353mg | Iron: 4mg