Lasagna is one of Boyfriend's favorite dinners. I love that it's relatively easy, and that it gives us plenty of leftovers for the week. I usually make extra sauce, so I can freeze it for another meal.
Today, I used:
-Extra Virgin Olive Oil – as needed
-1 tbsp butter (optional)
-1 ½ - 2 lbs sausages, casings removed (I used a combo of Sweet Italian chicken sausage and Spicy Italian chicken sausage from Whole Foods, but any combo of sausages will be yummy!)
-1 large or 2 small onions, small dice
-2 cloves garlic, minced
-2 26 oz boxes tomatoes (I love the Pomi tomatoes in a box - the ingredients list is just tomatoes, no salt, citric acid or other preservatives. But any boxed or canned tomatoes will be fine.)
-salt and pepper, to taste
-1 15 oz tub of part-skim ricotta cheese
-Splash of milk
-1 ball fresh mozzarella (You could certainly use grated mozzarella, but I think the ball of fresh mozzarella makes a big difference in flavor and texture.)
-8 sheets no-boil lasagna noodles (or however many you need to cover your baking dish. I used a whole wheat variety, which I find really tasty.)
-parmigiano reggiano cheese, to taste (I get the imported kind at a local Italian market, and have them grate it. It keeps for weeks, and the flavor is so strong that a little goes a long way.)
-minced fresh herbs (optional)
-Wine (optional)
The Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 400° F. On stovetop, heat dutch oven, stock pot, or large saucepan over medium heat. Lightly coat bottom of pan with olive oil, and melt 1 tbsp unsalted butter, if desired. (I think the butter makes the sauce more rich and flavorful, but it will be great without, too) Add sausages and break apart with back of wooden spoon. Brown sausages, stirring frequently.
2. When sausages are almost fully cooked, add diced onions. Saute for 1-2 minutes, then add minced garlic. Stir to combine.
3. At this point, if you have wine (either white or red, but a good wine you would drink) deglaze the pan with about ¼ cup. Cook until wine is gone. (The wine isn't necessary, but will add another layer of flavor, so if you have some on hand, throw it in, But don't worry about buying wine just for this.)
4. Add tomatoes, and stir to combine. Taste and season with salt and pepper as needed. Cover, reduce heat to low, and simmer 10-15 minutes. Taste and season again as needed. (I added 3 large pinches of salt total, and no pepper, but do what tastes good to you.)
5. While sauce is simmering, pour ricotta into small bowl. Add splash of milk and stir until smooth. Season with salt and pepper. (If you have fresh herbs, stir in a few tbsp of minced herbs to the ricotta. Parsley, basil, chives, oregano would all be good in this. I had parsley, so I added a bit, but it's just as good if you don't have the herbs.) Slice mozzarella as thinly as possible.
6. When sauce has simmered, place baking dish on foil-lined baking sheet. Spoon small layer of sauce on bottom of pan. Place 2 noodle sheets side by side on sauce (or however many it takes to cover the bottom of the dish). Spoon 1/3 of ricotta mixture on noodles. Cover with more sauce. Place ¼ of mozzarella on sauce. Repeat layering noodles, cheeses and sauce 2 more times, rotating direction of noodles with each layer. Top with 1 final layer of noodles, cover completely with sauce, then a layer of mozzarella, then top with grated parmigiano reggiano.
7. Cover baking dish with foil and cook at 400°F for 45 minutes. Uncover, and broil until cheese is brown and bubbly, about 2 minutes. Remove from oven and let rest 5 minutes. Cut and serve!
It was delicious! I used 3 sweet sausages and 2 spicy, and there was a perfect balance of heat. It was gooey and cheesey, and the whole wheat noodles have a great texture. We both had seconds, and I have enough left over for 2 weekday lunches! And I have 2 quart bags of sauce left to freeze for other meals. The photos didn't come out as well as I hoped, but I'll work on that next weekend.
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