Melissas Lasagna Recipes

MELISSA'S EASY LASAGNA

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375°F
• Cook noodles according to directions on package.
• In small bowl, combine beaten eggs and cottage cheese.
• Add 1 1/2 jars of sauce to cooked ground beef.
• Add garlic salt.
• Stir and simmer 5 minutes.
• Set aside.
• Spread 3/4 cup sauce on bottom of baking dish.
• Place 3-4 noodles over the bottom, slightly overlapping.
• Spread 1 tablespoon of the egg/cottage cheese mixture over each noodle.
• Add 1 tablespoon meat/sauce mixture over each noodle.
• Sprinkle Parmesan cheese and then mozzarella.
• Repeat layers.
• Cover last layer with remaining noodles and sauce.
• Sprinkle with remaining mozzarella cheese.
• Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes.
• Remove foil and bake an additional 10 minutes.
• Let cool 10 minutes before serving.

EASY CHEESY LASAGNA

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375°F. Spray a 13 x 9 inch baking dish with cooking spray.
• To make the sauce: On the stove top in a deep pot over medium-high heat cook beef, sausage and onion in a couple of drizzles of olive oil until no pink remains Season with salt and 1 tsp black pepper.. Drain excess fat from pot.
• To the pot add garlic, 1 Tbsp Italian seasoning and bay leaf. Cook for 1 minute.
• Add pasta sauce, tomato sauce and basil. Simmer for 15 minutes then remove from the heat. Remove bay leaf from the sauce.
• Meanwhile, in a small mixing bowl mix together ricotta, eggs, 1/3 cup shredded Parmesan, and remaining 1 tsp dry Italian seasoning. Add 1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper.
• To assemble: Ladle 1/2 cup sauce into the bottom of the prepared dish. Arrange one layer of lasagna noodles over sauce.
• Spread noodles with 1/3 of the ricotta. Cover with 1/3 meat sauce then sprinkle with 1 cup mozzarella cheese.
• Repeat layers, ending with noodles, meat sauce and 1 1/2 cups mozzarella cheese. Sprinkle the remaining Parmesan on top.
• Cover with aluminum foil spritzed with cooking spray. Bake covered for 1 hour.
• Uncover, and bake for an additional 15 minutes or until the noodles are fork tender.
• Let stand on counter for 10 minutes then cut and serving.

BEEF AND BECHAMEL LASAGNA

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• For the meat sauce: In a large saucepan or small Dutch oven, cook the bacon over medium-high heat until nearly crisp, about 5 minutes. Add the onions and carrots, season with salt and pepper, and cook until softened, another 3 minutes. Add the garlic and cook another minute. Add the ground beef and cook until the beef is no longer pink, 6 to 7 minutes. Deglaze the pan with the wine and add the marinara sauce and cinnamon. Fill the jar one-quarter full with water, swish it around to pick up any sauce left behind, and add it to the pot. Remove from the heat and set aside.
• For the bechamel sauce: Heat the milk in the microwave for 2 minutes. In a large saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter, and then whisk in the flour. Cook, whisking constantly, for 2 minutes. Whisk in the warm milk and cook until thickened, whisking frequently, about 10 minutes. Add the nutmeg, garlic, salt, and pepper and set aside.
• For the cottage cheese layer: In a blender or food processor, add the cottage cheese, egg, and Parmesan, and pulse until the cottage cheese curds are small (the mixture will resemble ricotta). Season with salt and pepper and set aside.
• To assemble: Spray a 9 by 13-inch baking dish with cooking spray. Spread 1/4 cup water plus 1/4 cup meat sauce in the bottom of the pan. Lay 3 noodles crossways in the pan. Divide the cottage cheese mixture in half. Divide the remaining meat sauce in thirds. Divide the grated cheese into fourths. Divide the bechamel into thirds. Add the layers in the following order: cottage cheese, meat sauce, grated cheese, and bechamel. Then, add another layer of noodles, cottage cheese, meat sauce, grated cheese, and bechamel. Finally, add the remaining 3 noodles, meat sauce, grated cheese, and bechamel. Spray a large piece of foil with cooking spray and cover the lasagna tightly. Bake for 50 minutes. Remove the foil and top with the remaining grated cheese and cook an additional 10 minutes, or until the lasagna is bubbling. Allow the lasagna to rest 15 minutes before cutting into squares and serving.

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.

THE BIG LASAGNA

Steps:

• Prepare the ricotta filling: If using fresh spinach, set a large skillet over high heat. (If using thawed frozen spinach, skip to Step 2.) When hot, add 2 tablespoons oil and half the fresh spinach. Season with a pinch of salt and sauté to wilt. Cook until stems are tender, about 3 minutes. Transfer to a baking sheet and allow to cool in a single layer. Repeat with remaining spinach.
• While spinach cools, combine ricotta, mozzarella, Parmesan, basil and a generous pinch of salt in a large bowl.
• Taking handfuls of the cooled or thawed spinach, squeeze out as much water as possible, then chop finely and add to cheese mixture. Mix thoroughly, then taste and adjust seasoning for salt. (Filling makes about 6 cups.) Cover and set aside until ready to assemble lasagna. (Ricotta filling can be made 1 day in advance and refrigerated. Bring to room temperature before assembling lasagna.)
• Prepare the béchamel: Set a large, heavy-bottomed pot or Dutch oven over medium heat and add butter. Once butter has melted, whisk in flour, reduce heat to very low and cook for about 15 minutes, stirring regularly to prevent browning. After the mixture foams a bit, it will visibly transform - the butter will separate, the bubbles will reduce in size, and the mixture will look like freshly wet fine sand. Whisking vigorously, slowly pour in milk. Increase heat to medium and whisk until the mixture thickens, about 2 minutes. Add salt, pepper and nutmeg (if using) to taste.
• Return heat to low. Continue cooking, whisking regularly, for 10 to 15 minutes until the sauce is thick and smooth, with no raw flour flavor. Taste and adjust seasoning with salt. If béchamel is lumpy, strain through a fine sieve or purée with an immersion blender. (You'll have about 3 1/2 cups.) Press a piece of parchment or plastic against the surface of the sauce to prevent a skin from forming and set aside until ready to assemble lasagna. (Béchamel can be made up to 1 day in advance, covered directly and refrigerated. Return to room temperature before using.)
• Prepare the lasagna: Position the highest rack in the oven so that it sits about 6 inches below the top. Heat oven to 400 degrees.
• If tomato sauce, béchamel and ricotta filling are cold, bring to room temperature or warm them as needed.
• Set a large pot of water over high heat. Cover and bring to a boil. Set a large colander in a baking dish and place near stove.
• Season the boiling water generously with salt until it tastes like sea water. Carefully lay one sheet of pasta on the water's surface. Let it be completely immersed in the boiling water, using a slotted spoon to gently it push down if needed, before adding the next sheet. Add two more pasta sheets in this way and cook for about 2 minutes, or until light in color, floppy in texture and completely cooked through. If pasta bubbles above the water's surface, use a slotted spoon to encourage it back in. Use a sieve to gently remove pasta from the water and into the prepared colander. Rinse under cold water until cool enough to handle, then begin assembly. Continue cooking, draining and rinsing pasta two or three sheets at a time as you assemble lasagna.
• Spoon about 3/4 cup béchamel into a 9-by-13-inch metal, glass or ceramic baking pan, and use a rubber spatula or your hands to generously coat bottom and sides of pan with sauce.
• Gently squeezing any remaining water from the pasta, use two or three sheets to entirely cover the bottom of the pan with minimal overlap, and leave ends hanging over sides. (They'll be helpful for sealing the top.) All four sides need not have overhang; two is plenty.
• Crumble about 1/3 of the ricotta mixture evenly over pasta to create foundation, then layer with sheets of pasta from edge to edge of pan. Use kitchen shears to help trim pasta to appropriate size and avoid overlap.
• Spread about 1/3 of the tomato sauce over next layer and cover with pasta.
• Spread about 1 cup béchamel evenly over next layer, sprinkle with 1/4 cup grated Parmesan, and cover with pasta.
• Repeat with remaining layers: ricotta, tomato sauce, béchamel and Parmesan, ricotta, tomato sauce, béchamel and Parmesan, following each with a layer of pasta. (If using thicker noodles, you might not be able to fit 8 layers of noodles in the pan. If using store-bought or dried pasta, you can skip the noodle layer between the ricotta and tomato sauce as needed to prevent the lasagna from stretching higher than the top of the pan.)
• For the top, fold overhanging pasta over a whole sheet to create a sealed pasta layer, then spread with remaining béchamel. Gently cover lasagna with a piece of parchment and wrap tightly with foil. Place onto a baking sheet to catch any overflow and bake on prepared rack.
• After 40 minutes, pull lasagna from oven and carefully remove foil and parchment. Sprinkle with grated mozzarella and return to oven until golden brown and bubbling on surface, about 20 minutes.
• Allow to cool for at least 15 minutes before slicing and serving. Leftover lasagna can be wrapped and refrigerated for up to 4 days. To freeze, bake 30 minutes but do not brown, then cool, and freeze for up to 4 weeks. Defrost, then sprinkle with mozzarella and bake uncovered at 400 degrees for 25 to 30 minutes until golden brown and bubbling on surface.

DECONSTRUCTED LASAGNA

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the lasagna noodles and cook according to the package instructions until al dente. Drain in a colander and set aside.
• To a large, deep skillet or pot set over medium heat add the olive oil, onion, garlic, 1 teaspoon of the salt, and the black pepper, and cook until the onion is soft and sticky, -stirring often, for 6 to 7 minutes. Stir in the marjoram and red pepper flakes, and once they are fragrant, after 30 seconds, stir in the beef, using a wooden spoon to break it into small pieces. Cook, stirring often, until the beef is no longer pink, about 5 minutes.
• Add the chopped tomatoes and remaining 1 teaspoon salt, reduce the heat to medium-low, and simmer the sauce until it reduces slightly, about 10 minutes.
• Divide half of the cooked lasagna noodles among 4 bowls. Top each with some mozzarella and sauce, then divide the remaining noodles over the top. Add some more mozzarella and sauce, and serve sprinkled with Parmesan cheese.
• Per serving: Calories 567; Total Fat 18g; Protein 31g; Dietary Fiber 5g; Sugars 8g