Do I dare to say we all love Homemade Lasagna? I’m going to say YES. This recipe will utilize my leftover tomato sauce from another recipe.

I don’t know about you, but whenever I make a pot of meat-filled tomato sauce, I always make too much. You know the longer a sauce sits,s the better it gets. My Baked Cavatappi’s meat-filled tomato sauce was delicious; using it in my Homemade Lasagna will add so much flavor and texture to this dish.

So often, life can get really busy and time gets away from us. Making two meals from the same tomato sauce does take some planning, but having the tomato sauce ready makes pulling together a Homemade Lasagna much easier.

There are quite a few components needed to make a great lasagna. If you can eliminate having to make one of the ingredients makes the dish that much easier. The extra meat-filled tomato sauce from my Baked Cavatappi sure came in handy. Wait for the next shortcut for this dish.

If you’d like to use the recipe for my meat-filled tomato sauce, click the link at the bottom of this post.

I’m using Grana Padano cheese for this recipe. It’s very similar to Parmigiano-Reggiano in flavor and texture but not quite as expensive. The cheeses come from two different regions of Italy,y which, without getting down into the weeds, basically means there’s a difference in the grass the cows eat. There’s a great piece called Grana Padano vs. Parmigiano-Reggiano, at http://www.talkoftomatoes.com that helped me understand how and when I could substitute one cheese for the other.

This style of lasagna sheet is my favorite. I like the flat, thin pasta style for my lasagna. They’re much lighter in texture than the traditional lasagna sheets,s and they’re oven-ready. This is awesome;e, I’ve eliminated two steps while making this dish.

Prep Time: 35 minutes
Cook Time: 55 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
Yields: 12 servings
Equipment: 1 (12-inch) sauté pan, 1 (9 x 13 x 3-inch) baking dish, 1 (6-quart) Dutch oven, 1 (6-quart) saucepot, 2 large mixing bowls, ladle, rubber spatula, chef’s knife, cutting board

Ingredients for the Lasagna:
2 boxes of Barilla oven-ready lasagna sheets (safe not to run out of sheets)
10 cups of my meat-filled tomato sauce (recipe for my meat-filled tomato sauce; click the link below, Baked Cavatappi)
1 1/2 sticks (12 tablespoons) of butter, unsalted (2 tablespoons for the mushrooms, 4 tablespoons for the *roux, 2 tablespoons to *dot the top of the lasagna, and 2 tablespoons to grease the baking dish)
1 tablespoon olive oil
3 large Portobello mushrooms, sliced
1 tablespoon dried thyme
1 tablespoon kosher salt plus 1 teaspoon
1 1/2 teaspoons black pepper, freshly ground
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg, freshly grated
2 quarts whole milk, heated
1 1/4 cups of Kraft shredded Mozzarella, reserve 1/4 cup for Bechamel sauce
1/2 cup of Grana Padano cheese, freshly grated (reserve 1/4 for the top)

Ingredients for the Ricotta Filling:
1 (15-ounce) container whole-milk ricotta
1 large egg, beaten
4 tablespoons of Italian flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped; reserve 2 tablespoons for the top
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper, freshly ground

Instructions:
Part 1. My leftover tomato Sauce.
Click the link below for Baked Cavatappi to get my recipe for meat-filled tomato sauce. Start by bringing my leftover meat-filled tomato sauce to room temperature before assembling the lasagna.

Part 2. The Sautéed Portobello Mushrooms.
In a large sautépan over medium-high heat, melt unsalted butter with olive oil. Add the sliced Portobello mushrooms and dried thyme, stir, and cook for 10-12 minutes until brown. Once the mushrooms have browned and released their water, add 1 teaspoon kosher salt and 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, and stir to combine. Transfer the sautéed mushrooms to a bowl, then set aside. Move on to the next step.

Part 3. The Béchamel Sauce.
To make the béchamel sauce, start with a large saucepan over medium heat. Heat the milk just before the boiling point. In a Dutch oven or heavy-bottomed pot, melt butter. Add all-purpose flour, whisking until the flour and butter become smooth, blonde in color, and paste-like (this is known as a *roux), for 2 minutes.

Add freshly grated nutmeg and continuously whisk; slowly add the heated milk. Add 1 tablespoon of kosher salt and 1 teaspoon of freshly ground black pepper.

Switch to a wooden spoon and continue to stir until the sauce thickens and coats the back of a spoon. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and cook for 2-3 minutes more. Then, off the heat, add the shredded Mozzarella, grated Grana Padano, and 2 tablespoons freshly chopped flat-leaf Italian parsley; stir to combine, and set aside.

Part 4. The Ricotta Filling.
In a large mixing bowl, add whole milk ricotta cheese, 1 beaten large egg, 1 tablespoon of fresh finely chopped Italian parsley, 1 teaspoon kosher salt, and 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper. Mix until combined. Set aside.

Note: Butter the bottom and sides of a 9 x 13 x 3-inch baking dish.
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Part 5. Assemble the Lasagna.
Start with 2 ladles of meat-filled tomato sauce at the bottom of the baking dish. Spread the sauce evenly to cover the bottom. Place the lasagna sheets down over the sauce for the next layer. If the sheets don’t fit perfectly, slightly overlap them so they fit the baking dish. Refer to the pictures above.

Next, ladle the béchamel cheese sauce. Using a rubber spatula, evenly spread the cheese sauce over the lasagna sheets. Add the sliced sautéed Portobello mushrooms on top, evenly set throughout the layer. Lay another layer of lasagna sheets, then ladle the ricotta mixture on top. Use a rubber spatula to spread the ricotta mixture over the lasagna sheets. On the ricotta layer, add 1/2 cup of Mozzarella cheese. Lay on the final layer of lasagna sheets. Ladle the remaining meat-filled tomato sauce evenly all over the top. Sprinkle the remaining shredded Mozzarella and remaining freshly grated Grana Padano cheese over the top. Dice the remaining butter into tiny pieces and *dot the top of the lasagna.

Tip: Spray the dull side of the aluminum foil with non-stick cooking spray. This will prevent the cheese from sticking to the foil.

Part 6. Baking the Lasagna
Bake covered for 45-50 minutes. Uncover and continue cooking until the cheese is melted, golden brown, and bubbly, 5-7 minutes. Garnish the top with the remaining chopped parsley.

Let rest for at least 20 minutes before slicing. This way, it will have set.

There you have it, my Homemade Lasagna.

Notes:
1)*Roux: A roux is a flour and fat (butter) cooked together and used to thicken sauces.

2) *Dot: To scatter butter, in bits, over food.

3) You mustn’t plan on freezing lasagna made with ingredients, including the meat, that have been previously frozen. Food that’s frozen more than once also suffers in flavor and texture.

4) Instructions for how to freeze an uncooked Lasagna:
Once you make the lasagna, you can freeze single-serving portions in a freezer-safe storage container or freeze the entire pan. If you decide to freeze your lasagna, cover the entire lasagna, the baking dish included (most ceramic dishes are freezer- and baking-safe), tightly with several layers of plastic wrap, making sure there are no gaps where air could get in and cause freezer burn, and keep it as fresh as possible until you’re ready to bake.

5) Instructions for baking the Lasagna: Once it’s been frozen:
Preheat oven to 375°F.
When you’re ready to bake the lasagna, defrost it overnight in the refrigerator. If it’s still not thawed, take it out of the fridge and remove the plastic wrap. Allow the lasagna to sit at room temperature for 30 minutes before baking. Bake for 40-45 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for another 10-15 minutes until heated through and bubbly around the edges.

6) Linda Lou Hamel is not a nutritionist or dietitian, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and nutritional value matter to you, I recommend running the ingredients through your preferred online nutritional calculator. Calories and values can vary, depending on the brands you choose.

https://lindalouhamel.com/2019/07/10/summer-time-flowers-and-herbs/

https://lindalouhamel.com/2014/07/01/my-recipe-for-baked-cavatappi/