Lasagna

Mon, Jan 25, 2010

Around the World, Chicken & Turkey, Europe, Italy, Main Dishes, Search by Course, Steak & Beef

(No Ratings Yet)

Print This Recipe

Ever since I can remember my family has had my Grandma’s lasagna for our Christmas Eve dinner. My Grandma used to make it and my mom has continued the tradition. It is a cheesy, hearty meal that is the perfect comfort food for a special occasion.

I have made a few slight changes to my Grandma’s recipe to make it lighter but it has the same hearty, comforting flavors. I use chicken sausage instead of ground beef, whole wheat noodles and minimal ricotta cheese. I also blend the tomatoes, onion and garlic to make a smooth sauce that is more appealing to my kiddos.

If I’m just cooking for my immediate family I use the following recipe {which is half of my Grandma’s recipe} to make one 9 x 13-inch pan of lasagna. If I’m cooking for a larger group or would like to freeze the leftover pan of lasagna, I double the following recipe.

Lasagna

Recipe Type: Main Course

Author: Itsy Bitsy Foodies

Prep time: 30 mins

Cook time: 3 hours

Total time: 3 hours 30 mins

Serves: 4+

Ever since I can remember my family has had my Grandma’s lasagna for our Christmas Eve dinner. I have made a few slight changes to my Grandma’s recipe to make it lighter but it has the same hearty, comforting flavors.

Ingredients

1 large can of tomatoes
1 12-ounce can of tomato paste
1 tsp salt, to taste
2 tsp oregano
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 yellow onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 pound ground beef or chicken sausage
1/2 pound whole wheat lasagna noodles
3/4 pound {or less} ricotta cheese
1/2 pound mozzarella cheese, grated
1/2 cup grated or powdered parmesan cheese

Instructions

Sauté the onions and the garlic in a little bit of oil.
Remove the onion and garlic from the pan and add the ground beef or chicken sausage to the pan.
Brown the meat over mediume heat until it is fully cooked.
Combine the canned tomatoes, cooked onion and cooked garlic in a blender and blend until the sauce is smooth.
Pour the blended sauce into a large sauce pan and add the tomato paste, 1/4 cup parmesan cheese and the seasonings.
Simmer the sauce uncovered for 5-10 minutes.
Then add the browned meat and let the sauce simmer for 2 1/2 hours.
Cook the lasagna noodles and drain them in a colander.
In a 9×13 pan, layer the ingredients as follows:
About 1/3 of the sauce
About 1/2 of the cooked noodles, to cover the area of the pan in one layer
Half of the ricotta cheese or just spread a little bit of ricotta over the noodles
Roughly 1/3 of the mozzarella cheese or enough to generously cover the ricotta
Roughly 1 Tbsp of parmesan cheese or enough sprinkled to cover the mozzarella
Repeat the layers ending with the sauce.
Top the sauce with 1/3 of the mozzarella cheese and the remaining parmesan cheese.
Cover the lasagne with foil and bake it at 350 degrees for 20-30 minutes or until it is bubbly and lightly browned.