Best Lasagna Recipes

The word 'lasagna' has an interesting etymology. According to some, it comes from the Greek word lasanon, which means chamber pot. The Romans then borrowed it, making it lasanum as a humorous reference to a cooking pot.

• 1 lb ground beef
• 1 box (16 oz.) lasagna
• 1 medium-sized onion (diced)
• 2 celery stalks (diced)
• 1 carrot (diced)
• ¼ cup Italian parsley (finely chopped)
• 3 tbsp. olive oil

• 2 cans (28 oz.) tomatoes (whole; peeled)
• ½ stick butter
• ¼ cup red wine
• 2¼ cups milk
• 3½ tbsp. flour
• Salt and pepper
• ½ cup Parmesan cheese (freshly grated)

To make the Bolognese tomato sauce:
Heat the olive oil in a saucepan. Add in the onion, parsley, celery, and carrot and stir-fry them over medium heat for about 5 minutes. Heat a frypan until it gets quite hot, put in the ground beef, and allow it to brown for around 3 minutes, making sure to stir it frequently.

Then, pour the wine over it and turn up the heat, allowing the wine to evaporate. Next, add the meat along with the tomatoes to the stir-fried vegetables, and season the mixture with pepper and salt. Cover this and allow to cook on low heat for about an hour.

To make the Béchamel sauce:
Melt the butter in a saucepan over a low flame. Add the flour to the pan gradually, mixing continuously so that there are no lumps. Then, add in the cold milk while stirring. Allow this to come to a boil over a medium-low heat, and let it cook for about 20 minutes, while stirring continuously. If the consistency of the sauce ends up being too thick, add some more milk to it. If it is too thin, add some more of the flour and butter mixture, prepared separately.

To make the pasta:
Cook the lasagna noodles in boiling water until tender, yet firm, and then drain the water. Place them on a sheet of wax paper so that they do not stick together.

Assembling and cooking the lasagna dish:
Begin by preheating the oven to 375 °F. Then, in a greased baking pan, spread a lasagna layer at the bottom. Spread some Bolognese sauce over that, then on top of that, spread some Béchamel sauce. Repeat this layering process until you come to the last 2 layers, where you need to reverse it so that the tomato sauce is the last layer. Sprinkle the Parmesan cheese over the last layer and bake for about half an hour.

• 6 lasagna noodles (dried)
• 12 oz. ground beef
• 1 cup onion (chopped)
• 2 garlic cloves (minced)
• 1 can (14½ oz.) tomatoes (diced; not drained)

• 1 can (8 oz.) tomato sauce
• 1 tbsp. Italian seasoning, (dried; crushed)
• 1 tsp. fennel seeds (crushed)
• ¼ tsp. black pepper
• 1 egg (beaten)
• 1 container (15 oz.) ricotta cheese
• ¼ cup Parmesan cheese (grated)
• 6 oz. mozzarella cheese (shredded)
• Additional Parmesan cheese (grated)

To make the sauce, cook the onion, garlic, and the meat in a large saucepan until the meat turns brown. Drain the excess fluid. Add the pepper, fennel seeds, Italian seasoning, tomato sauce, and the diced tomatoes to the meat, and bring the mixture to a boil. Then, reduce the heat, cover the saucepan, and let it simmer for about 15 minutes.

Stir occasionally. In the meantime, cook the noodles for about 10-12 minutes until they turn al dente. Then, drain the noodles, rinse it in cold water, and keep aside. For the filling, combine the Parmesan cheese, ricotta cheese, and the egg, and keep aside.

Take a 2-quart, rectangular baking dish, and spread about half a cup of tomato sauce at the bottom of it. Spread some noodles on top of that. Top this with half of the filling. And on top of this, add a layer of the mozzarella cheese and the meat sauce. Repeat this layering process, finally topping with the Parmesan cheese. Place the baking dish into the oven, and bake at 375 °F for about 30-35 minutes.

• 8 oz. lasagna noodles (dried)
• 2 eggs (beaten)
• 2 cups cream-style cottage cheese
• 1 carton (15 oz.) ricotta cheese
• 2 tsp. Italian seasoning (dried; crushed)

• 2 cups fresh mushrooms (sliced)
• 1 cup onion (chopped)
• 4 garlic cloves (minced)
• 2 tbsp. olive oil
• 2 tbsp. all-purpose flour
• ½-1 tsp. black pepper
• 1-¼ cups milk
• 1 package (10 oz.) frozen spinach (thawed; thoroughly drained; chopped)

• 1 package (10 oz.) frozen broccoli (thawed; drained; chopped)
• 1 cup carrot (shredded)
• ¾ cup Parmesan cheese (shredded)
• 1 package (8 oz.) mozzarella cheese (shredded)

Let the noodles cook for about 10 minutes until tender, yet firm; drain them and set aside. In a medium-sized bowl, combine the Italian seasoning, ricotta, cottage cheese, and the eggs together, and keep aside.

Heat the oil in a skillet and let the onion, garlic, and mushrooms cook in it until they turn tender. Add in the pepper and flour, and then the milk. Allow the mixture to cook and stir until it turns slightly thick and bubbly. Remove the pan from the heat, and add half a cup of Parmesan cheese, carrot, broccoli, and spinach to the mixture.

Grease a 3 quart rectangular, baking dish. Layer the bottom with ⅓ of the noodles. Next, spread a layer of ⅓ of the previously prepared cottage cheese mix, and on top of that, a layer of ⅓ of the vegetable mixture. Top this with a layer of ⅓ of the mozzarella cheese. Repeat this process twice, and place a layer of Parmesan cheese as the final topping. Bake this in a 350 °F preheated oven for about 35 minutes.