Who’s in the mood for some Classic Meat Lasagna ? I love that emotional satisfaction from each bite. Everyone needs to feel the love and warm hugs from an Italian nonna whose job it is to ensure your satiation with wonders from her cucina!
Roll 8 basil leaves up together like a cigar and thinly slice to obtain your chiffonade. Add it to the ricotta along with the parmesan cheese, salt and the eggs. Mix well until blended thoroughly.
Cook your sweet Italian sausage until it is no longer pink and is crumbled. To drain, I placed the paper towels inside the pan I was using for the lasagna. Dab the top with more paper towels to absorb excess grease. When you remove the paper towels, your pan is already prepped with a bit of the sausage grease. Wipe out any excess, but leave enough to prevent sticking.. Mix the sausage with 4 cups of marinara sauce. You can use your favorite jarred variety or make a double batch of your own Classic Marinara Sauce ahead of time. Save or freeze any extra for another day. ( I used my homemade recipe for this lasagna and blended it smooth.)
Pour 1 cup of the extra Marinara sauce in the bottom of the pan.
The lasagna noodles were cooked about 6 minutes, 2 minutes less than the recommended al dente time. They tend to not stick together when cooked for a shorter period of time. Lay 3 noodles across the sauce in the pan. Then, spread 1/3 of the ricotta mixture, about a cup, gently across the noodles, followed by 1 cup of the shredded mozzarella cheese.. Next, pour about a 1 1/2 cups of the marinara sauce/sausage mixture. and spread evenly as shown. Repeat this process two more times.
Place one more layer of noodles on top. Over them, spread the remaining meat sauce and mozzarella cheese. Cover the pan with foil, creasing around the edges of the pan to help prevent any leakage. Place pan on a rimmed baking sheet to catch any sauce which may ooze out of dish while cooking. .
Bake at 350 for 45 minutes. Remove the foil and increase heat to 400 degrees. Bake for 15 more minutes. Let it rest for 10-15 minutes before serving. Slice horizontally between the lasagna noodles. Then slice vertically into desired serving sizes.
Classic Meat Lasagna
Ingredients
- 1 pound lasagna noodles
- 1 pound sweet Italian sausage(or sweet Italian turkey sausage)
- 2 c ricotta cheese(!6 oz container)
- 2 large eggs
- 8 basil leaves, chiffonaded
- 1 c grated Parmesan cheese
- 4 c shredded Mozzarella cheese
- 1 t sea salt
- 5-6 c Marinara sauce-jarred or homemade
Instructions
- Cook and crumble the sweet Italian sausage until no loner pink. Drain on paper towels and dab the top of excess grease. Mix it with 4 cups of sauce(reserve the rest) and set aside.
- In a separate bowl, blend the ricotta cheese, eggs, basil chiffonade, Parmesan cheese and salt.
- Cook the lasagne noodle 2 minutes less than time specified, about 6 minutes.. Drain and separate.
- In the bottom of a prepared 13 x 9 x 2 pan, spread 1 cup of Marinara sauce..
- Repeat the following layers 3 times:3 lasagna noodles 1/3 of ricotta mixture, about 1 cup4 oz shredded Mozzarella cheeseMarinara Meat sauce about 1 1/2 cups
- Top with 3 more lasagna noodles, the remaining sauce and Mozzarella cheese.
- Cover and seal with foil to prevent leakage while baking. Place on a rimmed baking sheet.
- Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes. Remove the foil and increase the heat to 400 degrees. Bake an additional 15 minutes. Let it stand about 10-15 minutes before cutting to serve.
- Slice horizontally between the noodles. Then slice vertically for desired serving sizes.
- Refrigerate any leftovers.
Cok
