I love Italian food – especially pasta. And my favorite pasta dish is lasagna. I first started making lasagna shortly after we were married. I cannot remember where the recipe I used came from but it was written on a small piece of paper which I kept safely in my recipe box for years and years and years. Seriously.
I went through the recipes in my box before Christmas ready to make lasagna and that small piece of paper was gone. After the panic receded, I searched on the internet for a similar recipe and made a double batch. It was sub-par at best and a huge disappointment.
I wanted to try again and even offered to take it to friends before I had tasted it myself. So, I again searched the internet and found another recipe.
I made it. I cooked it. I shared it. It was heaven!
It’s by far the best lasagna I’ve ever eaten and I know what’s good lasagna. So, in an effort to save you from the sub-par lasagna dishes on line, I’m sharing my best ever lasagna recipe. It makes a 9×13 dish of lasagna that gives 12 servings.
Serve with a tossed salad and garlic butter bread and you’ve got the perfect meal. Enjoy!
Best sausage lasagna recipe (found at tasteofhome.com)
Ingredients
- 1 pound bulk Italian sausage
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 can (6 ounces) tomato paste
- 1 can (28 ounces) crushed tomatoes
- 1 can (8 ounces) tomato sauce
- 3 teaspoons dried basil (I substituted oregano because I didn’t have basil)
- 3/4 teaspoon pepper, divided
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 large egg, lightly beaten
- 1 carton (15 ounces) whole-milk ricotta cheese
- 1-1/2 cups grated Parmesan cheese, divided
- 12 lasagna noodles (prepared by package directions)
- 4 cups shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 400°. In a large skillet, cook and crumble sausage with onion over medium heat until no longer pink, 5-7 minutes; drain. Add garlic and tomato paste; cook and stir 1 minute.
- Stir in tomatoes, tomato sauce, basil, 1/2 teaspoon pepper and salt; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, until slightly thickened, 10-15 minutes.
- In a bowl, mix egg, ricotta cheese, 1-1/4 cups Parmesan cheese and the remaining pepper. Spread 1-1/2 cups meat sauce into a greased 13×9-in. baking dish. Layer with 4 noodles, 1-1/2 cups ricotta cheese mixture, 1-1/2 cups mozzarella cheese and 1-1/2 cups sauce. Repeat layers. Top with the remaining noodles, sauce and mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses.
- Cover with greased foil; bake 30 minutes. Uncover; bake until lightly browned and heated through, 5-10 minutes. Let stand 15 minutes before serving.
