Lasagna Surprise Recipes

TRADITIONAL LASAGNA

Steps:

• In a large skillet over medium heat, cook and crumble beef and sausage until no longer pink; drain. Add next 7 ingredients. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, 1 hour, stirring occasionally. Adjust seasoning with additional salt and pepper, if desired., Meanwhile, in a large bowl, lightly beat eggs. Add parsley; stir in cottage cheese, ricotta and Parmesan cheese. , Preheat oven to 375°. Spread 1 cup meat sauce in an ungreased 13x9-in. baking dish. Layer with 3 noodles, provolone cheese, 2 cups cottage cheese mixture, 1 cup mozzarella, 3 noodles, 2 cups meat sauce, remaining cottage cheese mixture and 1 cup mozzarella. Top with remaining noodles, meat sauce and mozzarella (dish will be full)., Cover; bake 50 minutes. Uncover; bake until heated through, about 20 minutes. Let stand 15 minutes before cutting.

WORLD'S BEST LASAGNA

Steps:

• In a Dutch oven, cook sausage, ground beef, onion, and garlic over medium heat until well browned. Stir in crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, tomato sauce, and water. Season with sugar, basil, fennel seeds, Italian seasoning, 1 teaspoon salt, pepper, and 2 tablespoons parsley. Simmer, covered, for about 1 1/2 hours, stirring occasionally.
• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook lasagna noodles in boiling water for 8 to 10 minutes. Drain noodles, and rinse with cold water. In a mixing bowl, combine ricotta cheese with egg, remaining parsley, and 1/2 teaspoon salt.
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
• To assemble, spread 1 1/2 cups of meat sauce in the bottom of a 9x13-inch baking dish. Arrange 6 noodles lengthwise over meat sauce. Spread with one half of the ricotta cheese mixture. Top with a third of mozzarella cheese slices. Spoon 1 1/2 cups meat sauce over mozzarella, and sprinkle with 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese. Repeat layers, and top with remaining mozzarella and Parmesan cheese. Cover with foil: to prevent sticking, either spray foil with cooking spray, or make sure the foil does not touch the cheese.
• Bake in preheated oven for 25 minutes. Remove foil, and bake an additional 25 minutes. Cool for 15 minutes before serving.

BEST LASAGNA

Steps:

• Cook noodles according to package directions; drain. Meanwhile, in a Dutch oven, cook sausage, beef and onion over medium heat 8-10 minutes or until meat is no longer pink, breaking up meat into crumbles. Add garlic; cook 1 minute. Drain., Stir in tomatoes, tomato paste, water, sugar, 3 tablespoons parsley, basil, fennel, 1/2 teaspoon salt and pepper; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, 30 minutes, stirring occasionally., In a small bowl, mix egg, ricotta cheese and remaining parsley and salt., Preheat oven to 375°. Spread 2 cups meat sauce into an ungreased 13x9-in. baking dish. Layer with 3 noodles and a third of the ricotta mixture. Sprinkle with 1 cup mozzarella cheese and 2 tablespoons Parmesan cheese. Repeat layers twice. Top with remaining meat sauce and cheeses (dish will be full)., Bake, covered, 25 minutes. Bake, uncovered, 25 minutes longer or until bubbly. Let stand 15 minutes before serving.

LASAGNA SURPRISE

Steps:

• In a large pan, cook ground beef/sausage, onion& garlic in oil. Add spaghetti sauce and simmer 15 minutes.
• In bowl, mix ricotta, spinach and 1 cup mozarella, all of parmesan and eggs.
• In 9x13 baking dish (or smaller dishes as needed), layer 2 cups sauce, half of noodles, half of remaining sauce, all of spinach mixture, half the mozzarella, remaining noodles& sauce.
• Cover with foil sprayed with cooking spray and bake at 350 F for 45 minutes or until hot.
• Uncover, top with remaining mozzarella.
• Bake 15 minutes.
• Let stand 15 minutes before serving.
• **To freeze: Bake, cool, wrap well, and label. freeze up to 2 months. *Note: You can assemble and freeze without cooking and cook on the day to be eaten!
• To serve, defrost overnight and then bake at 350F until warmed through, or bake from frozen for 1 hour and a half.
• Note: you can also microwave individual servings!

LASAGNA

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of well-salted water to a boil. Working batches, cook the lasagna noodles until they are soft and pliable but not limp, 6 to 7 minutes. Remove the pasta from the boiling water and lay flat on a sheet tray to cool. Reserve.
• Coat a large saute pan with olive oil and bring to medium-high heat. Add the sausage and cook until brown and crumbly. Remove from pan and reserve on paper towels.
• Ditch the fat from the pan and add new olive oil along with 2 cloves of garlic and a pinch of crushed red pepper. Bring the pan to medium-high heat. When the garlic becomes golden and very aromatic, remove it from the heat and discard. Toss in the mushrooms and season them with salt. Cook the mushrooms until they are soft and wilted and dark brown, 4 to 5 minutes. Remove from pan and reserve. Repeat this process with the remaining garlic and the zucchini.
• In a small bowl, combine the ricotta, 1/2 the Parmigiano-Reggiano, the eggs, and the basil. Mix to combine well and season with salt.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• In the bottom of a 9 by 13-inch deep-dish baking dish, add a couple ladlefuls of sauce and spread out in an even layer. Arrange a layer of the lasagna noodles to completely cover the sauce. Spread 1/3 of the ricotta mixture over the pasta. Place a layer of pasta going in the other direction as the first layer (this will give a little more stability). Spread a light layer of sauce on the pasta and sprinkle 1/3 of the sausage over the sauce, repeat this process with 1/3 of the mushrooms and zucchini. Sprinkle a layer of mozzarella and some of the remaining Parmigiano-Reggiano over the veggies. Repeat these layers until all the ingredients have been used up or the pan is full. Be sure that there is a layer of pasta on top covered with sauce and sprinkled with mozzarella and Parmigiano. Cover with foil.
• Place the lasagna on a baking sheet and bake in the oven until the lasagna is hot and bubbly, about 1 hour 15 minutes, removing the foil for the last 15 minutes of cooking. Let cool for 20 minutes before slicing.
• Note: For optimal slicing, make and bake the lasagna the day before. Heat it up again before slicing.
• Coat a large saucepot with olive oil and add the pancetta. Bring the pot to medium-high heat and cook the pancetta for 4 to 5 minutes. Add the onions, season generously with salt, and stir to coat with the olive oil. Cook the onions for 6 to 7 minutes, stirring frequently; the onions should become very soft and aromatic but have no color. Add the garlic and cook for another 2 to 3 minutes, stirring frequently.
• Pass the tomatoes through a food mill. Be sure to pass all of the pulp through the holes leaving only the stems and the seeds, and be sure to scrape the pulp off of the bottom of the food mill. That's all of the big money stuff! Add the tomatoes to the pot and rinse out one of the empty tomato cans with water and add that water to the pot (about 2 to 3 cups). Season generously with salt and taste it; tomatoes take a lot of salt. Season in baby steps and taste every step of the way. Cook the sauce for 2 to 3 hours, stirring occasionally and tasting frequently.
• Use the sauce right away on pasta or for any other tomato sauce need. This sauce can also be cooled and stored in the fridge for a few days or it freezes really well.

GRANDMA GUARNASCHELLI'S LASAGNA APPETIZER

Steps:

• For the tomato sauce: Heat the olive oil in a medium pot, then add the onions, garlic and red pepper flakes and season with salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until golden. Add the tomatoes and bay leaf, bring to a simmer and simmer for 20 to 25 minutes. Season to taste, then discard the bay leaf.
• For the pasta: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Bring a large pot of water to a rolling boil. Stir in a generous handful of salt and add the lasagna sheets. Cook, stirring so they don't stick together, until still very firm to the touch, about 4 minutes, then drain and rinse under cold water. Separate the sheets carefully so they don't stick together.
• Spoon a thin layer of the sauce in the bottom of an 8-inch square baking pan. Arrange a layer of the pasta sheets over the sauce. Sprinkle some of the mozzarella, Parmesan and basil leaves over the pasta, then add another layer of sauce. Repeat the layering process 2 more times, ending with pasta and cheese.
• Cover the baking pan tightly with aluminum foil and place in the center of the oven. Bake for 45 minutes, then raise the temperature of the oven to 450 degrees F and remove the aluminum foil. Bake until the top browns slightly, an additional 10 to 15 minutes. Let cool slightly, about 10 minutes, then cut into squares. Drizzle with the balsamic and top with chopped parsley.