Basic Lasagna
A quick and easy recipe for a classic Italian dish made with layers of pasta, meat sauce, and cheese.
A quick and easy recipe for a classic Italian dish made with layers of pasta, meat sauce, and cheese.
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 each proper sized lasagna pan (i use a disposable for easier cleanup)
- 1 each medium onion diced
- 1 pound ground beef (better with sweet italian sausage)
- 2 cans tomato sauce
- 1 each garlic cloves to taste (i use about a teaspoon from a jar of minced)
- 1 can sliced mushrooms (do not drain)
- 1 box lasagna noodles (uncooked)
- 250 mililiters cottage cheese (or ricotta) (you can estimate this amount)
- 1/3 cup parmesan cheese grated (i prefer the bagged)
- 1 each egg
- 2 packages mozzarella cheese (sliced)
- 1 tablespoon oregano (dried)
- 1 package provolone cheese (optional)
- Carbohydrate 30.747065000299 g
- Cholesterol 111.410951355335 mg
- Fat 21.8885540629187 g
- Fiber 0.567089599523837 g
- Protein 21.2334796895523 g
- Saturated Fat 9.54505005436892 g
- Serving Size 1 1 Serving (207g)
- Sodium 276.835798507851 mg
- Sugar 30.1799754007751 g
- Trans Fat 4.37265785032147 g
- Calories 407 calories
Step-by-step
- Add diced onion and garlic to ground beef.
- Stir in pan until the meat is browned thoroughly.
- Add 2 cans of tomato sauce, 1 can mushrooms (including liquid), salt, and oregano.
- Heat to bubble.
- While sauce is heating, mix in a small bowl the cottage cheese, Parmesan cheese, and egg.
- Now comes time to layer everything in the lasagna pan.
- Don't be afraid to break noodles to fit.
- Spread everything as evenly as possible:
- 1/3 of sauce
- layer of noodles
- 1/3 of sauce
- noodles.
- all of the cottage cheese mixture
- noodles.
- Remaining sauce.
- Sliced cheese(s) When I use provolone, I put one thickness of it and 2 of the mozzarella.
- Cover with foil and bake at 375 degrees for 45 minutes.
- Remove the foil and bake another 10-20 minutes or until the mozzarella browns slightly.
- Remove from oven and let stand for 5-10 minutes before serving.
- This will allow the lasagna to set for easier cutting and serving.
- The longer is stands, the more tender the noodles will become as well.
Adapting for Dietary Needs
Swapping standard wheat noodles for gluten-free varieties requires careful attention to moisture levels, as alternative grains absorb considerably more liquid during baking. Utilizing cottage cheese instead of ricotta introduces a higher moisture content, meaning you should drain the curd through a fine-mesh sieve if your tomato base is particularly runny. Plant-based ground alternatives can easily replace beef, provided you add two tablespoons of olive oil to compensate for lower natural fat content.
Scaling and Pan Management
Doubling this formulation for larger gatherings necessitates moving from a standard 9x13-inch pan to a deep roasting dish while increasing the bake time by fifteen minutes. Conversely, halving the quantities fits neatly into an 8x8-inch square dish, though you must reduce the foil-covered baking time to 35 minutes to prevent overcooking the edges.
