Lasagna

Ingredients

Cheese Filling

• 15oz ricotta cheese (~2 cups)
• 1 large egg
• 2 cups mozzarella cheese, grated
• 3/4 cups Parmesan cheese, grated
• 2 tsp italian seasoning
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp pepper

Meat Sauce

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 yellow onion, finely diced
• 3/4 lbs ground beef
• 3/4 lbs ground italian sausage
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 cup chicken broth
• 40oz marinara sauce
• 1 tbsp tomato paste

Noodles / topping

• 12 lasagna noodles, plus extra for breakage
• 2.5 cups mozzarella cheese

Directions

1. Prep cheese filling
   1. Combine cheese filling ingredients in a medium bowl and set aside
2. Prep meat sauce
   1. Heat olive oil over medium heat and add the diced onions. Cook about 10 minutes until softened
   2. Add ground beef & sausage, break up into tiny bits to cook through. Add garlic for the last minute of cooking. Drain excess grease
   3. Add chicken broth to deglaze the pot.
   4. Add marinara sauce & tomato paste. Bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer.
   5. Cover partially and let simmer ~8 minutes
3. Prep noodles
   1. boil a large pot of salted water
   2. once a rapid boil is reached cook the noodles to al-dente (follow package instructions)
   3. gently stir while cooking to prevent sticking but do not break them
   4. Drain and rinse with cold water until completely cooled
   5. lay noodles flat on wax or parchment paper
4. Assemble
   1. Spread 1 cup of meat sauce on the bottom of a 9 x 13-inch casserole dish. Next, add 4 lasagna noodles, overlapping them if needed.
   2. Spread 1/3 of the ricotta cheese mixture over the noodles, followed by about 1 ½ cups of meat sauce.
   3. Top with 4 more lasagna noodles, 1/3 of the ricotta cheese mixture, 1 ½ cups meat sauce.
   4. Finish with 4 more lasagna noodles, the rest of the ricotta mixture, and the rest of the meat sauce.
   5. Top with 2 ½ cups of Mozzarella cheese.
   6. Spray foil with nonstick cooking spray and place it spray-side-down on top of the baking dish to prevent the cheese from sticking to it.
5. Finish
   1. If finishing immediately: Bake at 375F for 35 minutes covered. Then remove foil, and bake another 10 minutes uncovered
   2. If finishing later: Cover and refrigerate. When ready - Bake at 375F for 45 minutes covered. Then remove foil, and bake another 10 minutes uncovered (the extra time is because its cold)