World's Best Lasagna

🧂 Ingredients

• 19 oz. pkg. sweet Italian sausage

  1 lb. 3 oz.
• 2 1/4 lbs. lean ground beef
• 1 medium onion

  minced
• 2 cloves garlic

  very finely minced
• 28 oz. can crushed tomatoes

  undrained
• 12 oz. can tomato paste
• 2 8-oz. cans tomato sauce
• 1/2 cup water
• 2 tbsp. granulated sugar
• 1 1/2 tsp. dried basil
• 1/2 tsp. fennel seeds
• 1 tsp. Italian seasoning
• 1 1/2 tsp. sea salt

  divided use, or to taste
• 1/4 tsp. ground black pepper
• 4 tbsp. fresh parsley

  chopped, divided use
• 20 lasagna noodles

  1 lb. box
• 16 oz. ctn. ricotta cheese
• 1 large egg
• 1 lb. Mozzarella cheese

  shredded (plus one additional cup for the top)
• 1 1/4 cups Parmesan cheese

  grated

Instructions

• 1 Over medium heat in a Dutch oven, cook sausage, ground beef, onion and garlic
  until cooked through and meat is no longer pink.
• 2 Chop the meat down with a hamburger chopper to break the meat up in tiny pieces
  while frying.
• 3 Stir in crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, tomato sauce and water.
• 4 Add granulated sugar, basil, fennel, Italian seasoning, one teaspoon salt,
  pepper and two tablespoons parsley.
• 5 Cover with lid and simmer ingredients for approximately 1 ½ hours on low.
• 6 In another stock pot, cook lasagna in salted, boiling water for 8-10 minutes.
• 7 (I cooked about 12 minutes).
• 8 Drain in colander and rinse noodles with water; lay out lasagna noodles
  individually on waxed paper.
• 9 In a medium-sized mixing bowl, combine Ricotta cheese, egg, remaining 2
  tablespoons parsley and remaining ½ teaspoon sea salt.
• 10 Preheat oven to 375°.
• 11 To assemble casserole: spread 1 ½ cups meat sauce on the bottom of a deep-dish
  9x13” glass baking dish.
• 12 Arrange 6 noodles lengthwise over top of the sauce.
• 13 Spread one-third of the Ricotta cheese mixture over top of the noodles.
• 14 Top with 1/3 of the shredded Mozzarella cheese.
• 15 Spread 2 cups meat sauce over top of the Mozzarella cheese.
• 16 Layer with six noodles.
• 17 Spread one-third Ricotta cheese over top of the noodles.
• 18 Then spread 1/3 of the Mozzarella cheese over top.
• 19 Sprinkle with ½ cup Parmesan cheese.
• 20 Spread 2 ½ cups sauce over that layer.
• 21 Cover with 6 noodles.
• 22 Spread remaining 1/3 Ricotta cheese mixture.
• 23 Add remaining 2 noodles (if using).
• 24 Add remaining sauce and spread over top.
• 25 Spread remaining 1/3 Mozzarella cheese over top of the sauce.
• 26 (I added an additional cup of Mozzarella cheese as well.)
• 27 Then sprinkle with remaining Parmesan cheese.
• 28 Cover with foil that has been sprayed with cooking spray so the cheese doesn’t
  stick to the foil.
• 29 (Or you can tent the foil over top of the casserole so that the cheese does not
  touch the foil and stick).
• 30 Bake at 375° for 25 minutes.
• 31 Remove foil and bake an additional 25 minutes.
• 32 Allow casserole to set up about 20-30 minutes before serving.

Nutrition Info