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Classic Lasagna Recipe

Classic Lasagna Recipe

2019-12-09
4 Stars (31 Voters)
...
This classic lasagna recipe is the best recipe I’ve tried. This homemade Italian lasagna made with layers of rich meat mixture cooked in tomato sauce (Ragù/Bolognese sauce), layers of creamy béchamel sauce (also known as white sauce), and in between & on top a touch mozzarella cheese. If you want to learn how to make the best lasagna for Christmas or holiday time you should try this easy and delicious recipe.
DIFFICULTY
Medium
YIELDS
8
PREP TIME
2¼ Hours
WORK TIME
30 Minutes
RECIPE CUISINE
Italian
INGREDIENTS FOR YIELDS

    For the meat sauce:

    • 2 pounds (900g) Ground beef or combination of ground beef and Italian sausage
    • 1 large onion, chopped
    • 3-4 garlic cloves, crushed
    • 36oz (1000g) Tomato sauce
    • 4 tablespoons (60g) Tomato paste
    • 1 cup (240ml) water or stalk 
    • 1 teaspoon salt
    • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
    • 1 teaspoon oregano
    • 1 teaspoon paprika
    • 2 bay leaves
    • 3 tablespoons olive oil

    For the béchamel sauce:

    • 6 tablespoons (90g) Butter
    • 2/3 cup (85g) Flour
    • 3 cups (720ml) Milk, warm
    • 2oz (60g) Parmesan cheese
    • 1/4 teaspoon Salt
    • 1/4 teaspoon Pepper
    • 1/4 teaspoon Nutmeg 

    More:

    • Mozzarella, shredded
    • No-boil lasagna noodles
    DIRECTIONS

    1. In a large pan or pot over medium heat, add olive oil and heat, add ground beef. Cook, breaking it apart with a wooden spoon. Add the onion and garlic. Season with salt, pepper and oregano. Cook until meat is browned. Add tomato sauce and tomato paste. Add bay leaves, Stir and bring to a boil, reduce the heat to low and simmer for 40-60 minutes.  and set aside.

    2. Meanwhile béchamel sauce: In a medium saucepan over low heat melt butter, when the butter is melted, add flour and whisk continuously, until smooth paste forms. Gradually add the warm milk while continually whisking to prevent lumps. Whisk until the sauce is smooth and thick. Remove from heat and add pinch salt, black pepper, nutmeg and parmesan. Whisk until smooth.

    3. Preheat oven to 350F (180C).

    4. Assembly: spread a thin layer of the meat mixture in the bottom of 13X9” (32X22cm) baking dish, layer pasta sheets, spread 1/3 of the meat mixture, then spread 1/4 of the béchamel sauce, on the top of the sauce sprinkle some mozzarella cheese. Repeat layering two more times (3 layers in total). Finish with béchamel sauce on top and sprinkle mozzarella and parmesan on top. Spry the bottom of an aluminum foil with cooking spray (to prevent from cheese to sticking) and cover the pan.

    5. Bake, covered for 40 minutes, remove the foil and bake another 15-20 minutes.

    6. Let cool 15-20 minutes before serving.

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    COMMENTS (3)
    • M
      Melody Mitchell
      1/23/2020

      This looks SO good! Just have a couple of questions. Do we need to add a cup of water to the meat sauce? It is in the list but not in directions. (same with the paprika) As far as the bay leaves, we should remove them from the sauce before layering, right? Thank you!

      Reply
    • N
      Nilanjana
      4/19/2021

      Want to try this recipe at the earliest. But before that, I would request for a fair understanding between the "no boil" and "boiled" lasagne sheets in the recipe. What I want to understand is...if we put boiled lasagne sheets, what difference will it make to the dish?

      Reply
    • A
      Arantxa RT
      12/24/2021

      My husband and I tried this recipe and its just delicious!! We just followed the instructions and the result was amazing!! Even more delicious than the ones we've tried in restaurants. I've tried several recipes from this website and all of them have been beyond delicious. Thank you!!

      Reply
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