Sunday, June 22, 2014

LAYER IT UP LASAGNA


I have finally attempted (quite successfully, I might say!)to make one of my favorite dishes of all time.  Lasagna.  This has been a dish that I have wanted to make since I was 4 years old.  That's as far back as I can remember! :)  I've always loved it and always thought it looked so fun to construct.  The first time I have ever took a bite of homemade lasagna I was in love.  Making my very own homemade lasagna has been a goal of mine for a long, long time.  When I received a lasagna pan as a wedding gift I got so excited I could hardly stand it!  

I was pretty terrified of cooking the noodles.  No joke.  I was worried I'd make a mess of it and break most of them.  Although it was rather interesting trying to get them out of the pan of boiling water in one piece, I did succeed!  This was a big step for me in my little culinary world. :)  As you can see, they turned out pretty good! 


While the noodles are cooking, you can go ahead and brown a mixture of ground beef and Italian sausage.  I like a meaty lasagna, so I put a pound of beef and a pound and a half of Italian sausage. 


Whip together Ricotta cheese and an egg in a bowl.  The egg added to the cheese makes the cheese more fluffy and bubbly once it's cooked.  In other words, gives it taste bud tingling visual appeal. :)


Now that everything is all prepped and ready to go - start layering up!

Sauce...


Noodles...


Ricotta/egg mixture...


Parmesan and Mozzarella cheese...


Meats and sauce...


And repeat until you fill the pan up. :)


And voila!  A few sprigs of parsley and it's all ready to go in the oven.  :)


Mmmmm....


Turned out pretty good for the first time! 
(My apologies for the awful photo quality.  My camera died right before so these were taken with my phone.)






Layer It Up Lasagna

1 1/2 lbs. sweet Italian sausage
1 lb. ground beef
2 big jars of spaghetti/marinara sauce
16 oz. Ricotta cheese
1 egg
5 cups freshly shredded mozzarella cheese
2 cups Parmesan cheese
1 box of lasagna noodles
Parsley
Garlic powder

(1) Boil the noodles.  While noodles are boiling, brown beef and sausage.  Drain a portion of the grease from the browned meat.  Leaving some grease adds great flavor to the sauce! 

(2) Whip Ricotta cheese and egg in a bowl and set aside.  Shred mozzarella and Parmesan cheese.  (Or used the bagged kind, but it tastes WAY better freshly shredded.)

(3) Preheat the oven to 350.  Begin layering ingredients in a lasagna pan.  I usually layer in this order - sauce, noodles, Ricotta cheese, mozzarella & Parmesan cheese, meats.  Repeat until the pan is full.  Top with remaining shredded cheeses and then sprinkle with garlic powder.  Garnish with parsley.  

(4)  Bake the lasagna covered for 30 minutes.  Uncover and bake an additional 15 minutes until the cheese is bubbly and the top is lightly browned.  

(5)  Allow the lasagna to cool for 10-15 minutes before cutting it.  Enjoy! 

*A salad and a bread of your preference make a complete delicious meal.  This is great to serve when company is over since it's such a large dish and can be made ahead of time for minimal clean up.*















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