If you are in the mood for Italian but don’t want to go out and spend an excessive amount at a fancy Italian restaurant, you have come to the right recipe!
In this recipe, I will be showing you how to make the perfect ricotta lasagna with a delicious meat sauce. If you are a fan of lasagna then I hope you make this recipe because you will fall in love with it after one bite!
If the kiddos aren’t typically fond of lasagna and you want to share this meal together, make extra meat sauce and boil some spaghetti noodles along with it. That way, you won’t be going out of the way too much and they will be satisfied! You can double your meat sauce if choosing to do this.
You can also add a salad on the side for some veggie intake. Adding a salad to any pasta dish you make is a great way to stay healthy while eating yummy food! Some of my favorite side salads are:
Cherry Pie Filling Fruit Salad – This one is delicious by itself too!
This lasagna serves 8.
TIP: This recipe uses uncooked, regular lasagna noodle but requires refrigeration overnight. If baking immediately, lasagna noodles should be cooked according to package directions, prior to assembling the lasagna.
Start by spraying a 9×13 baking dish with non-stick cooking spray. Using a ceramic cooking dish works excellent!
Then, in a large skillet, combine pasta sauce and browned ground chuck. Bring to a simmer and heat through. Add additional oil to the pan if the meat begins to stick. In a medium bowl, combine ricotta cheese, egg, garlic powder, Italian seasoning, and parmesan cheese. Stir together well.
Pour approximately 1 cup of meat sauce into the baking dish. Add water and combine with a spoon or fork. Add a layer of lasagna noodles. Do not overlap the noodles as they will expand overnight. Add rounded spoonfuls of the ricotta mixture over the noodles and spread out evenly throughout the dish. Add about 3⁄4 cup of mozzarella cheese over ricotta. Top with about 1 cup of meat sauce.
Begin a new layer of noodles and repeat as above, ending with remaining meat sauce. Save any remaining mozzarella cheese in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Cover with aluminum foil and refrigerate overnight.
Once it has rested overnight, place the covered casserole in a cold oven. Set the oven to 350 degrees F. Bake for 45 minutes. Remove aluminum foil and top with remaining mozzarella cheese. Return the dish to the oven and bake uncovered for an additional 15 to 25 minutes or until the cheese has melted completely and the edges are bubbly.
For best results when slicing the lasagna, allow the casserole to rest and cool prior to cutting and serving.
Classic Meat Sauce and Ricotta Lasagna
This lasagna serves 8.
INGREDIENTS
- 1 (16 ounce) package uncooked lasagna noodles
- 2 pounds ground chuck, browned and drained
- 2 (24 ounce) cans prepared pasta sauce or 6 cups homemade pasta sauce
- 1 (15 ounce) container ricotta cheese
- 1 egg, slightly beaten
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning (or an equal blend of dried basil, dried oregano, and thyme leaves)
- 1 cup grated parmesan cheese
- 4 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
- 1 cup water
DIRECTIONS
- Spray a 9×13 baking dish with non-stick cooking spray.
- In a large skillet, combine pasta sauce and browned ground chuck. Bring to a simmer and heat through.
- In a medium bowl, combine ricotta cheese, egg, garlic powder, Italian seasoning, and parmesan cheese. Stir together well.
- Pour approximately 1 cup of meat sauce into baking dish. Add water and combine with a spoon or fork. Add a layer of lasagna noodles. Do not overlap as the noodles will expand overnight.
- Add rounded spoonfuls of the ricotta mixture over the noodles and spread evenly. Add about ¾ cup of mozzarella cheese over ricotta. Top with about 1 cup of meat sauce. Begin a new layer of noodles and repeat as above, ending with remaining meat sauce. Save any remaining mozzarella cheese in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
- Cover with aluminum foil and refrigerate overnight.
- Place the covered casserole in a cold oven. Set oven to 350 degrees. Bake for 45 minutes. Remove aluminum foil and top with remaining cheese. Return to oven and bake uncovered for an additional 15 to 25 minutes or until the cheese has melted and the edges are bubbly.
- For best results when slicing the lasagna, allow the casserole to rest prior to cutting and serving.
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