This isn’t an authentic Italian recipe, it’s just the way I make it. … But, come to think of it, my great-grandparents were Italian immigrants, so maybe it’s more authentic than I realize. Anyway, we like it. It’s always better a day or two after I make it, so if I’m cooking it for a special occasion, I’ll assemble it a couple of days ahead. That gives the flavors a chance to blend, and it makes my job way easy on the big day ~ just bake and serve!
Here you go.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Add 12 lasagna noodles to 4-6 quarts of boiling, salted water. Boil for 8 to 10 minutes.
Drain for a few minutes …
… then quickly lay them out on waxed paper to prevent them from sticking together. Be careful as they will be hot!
Grease a lasagna pan (15 x 10 x 2.5 inches) and spread about 2/3 cup of the sauce in the bottom.
In a large skillet, saute the onion in the olive oil for a few minutes.
Add the ground beef, Italian sausage, and garlic.
Cook, stirring constantly, until the meat is completely browned. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
Drain the fat.
Add the rest of the sauce
Stir in the brown sugar.
Allow it to simmer, uncovered, for 15 minutes. Stir occasionally.
Lay four noodles on top of the sauce, in the bottom of the pan
Cover the noodles with approximately 1/2 of the meat sauce.
Sprinkle with mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses.
Add another layer of noodles.
Spread all of the ricotta on top of the noodles, and sprinkle with mozzarella and Parmesan.
Add the last layer of noodles.
Top with all but 1 cup of the remaining meat sauce.
Cover with remaining mozzarella and parmesan cheeses.
Spoon the remaining cup of sauce on top of the cheese. This will prevent the foil from sticking to the cheese.
Cover tightly with foil, and bake at 350 degrees for 50 minutes.
Remove foil and continue baking for 10 minutes more.
Remove from oven, and let stand for 15 minutes before serving.
- 12 lasagna noodles
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 pound mild Italian sausage
- 3 cups mozzarella cheese
- 16 ounces ricotta cheese
- 1 cup parmesan cheese
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 onion - chopped
- 3 cloves garlic – minced
- 50 ounces spaghetti sauce
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- Salt and pepper to taste.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- In a large pot bring 4-6 quarts of water and 1 teaspoon of salt to a boil.
- Add noodles to boiling water and boil UNCOVERED for 8 minutes.
- Drain, and lay out noodles on waxed paper.
- Grease lasagna pan, and pour about 2/3 cup of the sauce into the bottom of the pan.
- Chop onion and sauté in olive oil.
- Add ground beef, Italian sausage, and garlic to the onions, and brown.
- Drain the fat, then stir in spaghetti sauce.
- Cover and simmer for 15 minutes. Stir occasionally.
- Lay 3-4 noodles in the bottom of the pan.
- Cover with about half of the meat sauce.
- Sprinkle with 1 cup mozzarella and 1/3 cup parmesan cheeses.
- Add another layer of noodles.
- Top with all the ricotta, and sprinkle with another cup of mozzarella and another 1/3 cup parmesan.
- Add another layer of noodles.
- Top with all but about 1 cup of the remaining meat sauce.
- Sprinkle with the rest of the mozzarella and parmesan.
- Spread the last cup of sauce on top of the cheeses. This prevents the foil from sticking to the cheese.
- Cover tightly with foil.
- Bake at 350 degrees for 50 minutes. Remove foil, and bake for another 10 minutes.
- Remove from oven and let rest 10-15 minutes before cutting.
