Aunt Marys Lasagna Recipes

Steps:

• In a large saucepan, cook beef and onion over medium heat until meat is no longer pink. Add garlic; cook 1 minute longer; drain. Stir in tomatoes, tomato paste, basil, oregano, pepper and bay leaf. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer 40-50 minutes or until thickened., Meanwhile, preheat oven to 350°. cook noodles according to package directions; drain. Discard bay leaf from meat sauce. Stir in olives., Spread a fourth of the sauce in a greased 13x9-in. baking dish. Top with three noodles and a third of the mozzarella and Parmesan cheese. Repeat layers. Top with remaining noodles, sauce and cheese. , Bake, uncovered, 35-40 minutes or until bubbly. Let stand 15 minutes before cutting.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
• Bechamel sauce:
• In a 2-quart pot, melt 5 tablespoons of butter over medium heat. When butter has completely melted, add the flour and whisk until smooth, about 2 minutes. Gradually add the milk, whisking constantly to prevent any lumps from forming. Continue to simmer and whisk over medium heat until the sauce is thick, smooth and creamy, about 10 minutes. The sauce should be thick enough to coat the back of wooden spoon. Remove from heat and add the nutmeg and tomato sauce. Stir until well combined and check for seasoning. Set aside and allow to cool completely.
• In a saute pan, heat extra-virgin olive oil. When almost smoking, add the ground beef and season with salt and pepper. Brown meat, breaking any large lumps, until it is no longer pink. Remove from heat and drain any excess fat. Set aside and allow to cool completely.
• In a medium sized bowl, thoroughly mix the ricotta and eggs. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside.
• Into the bottom of a 13 by 9-inch baking dish, spread 1/3 of the bechamel sauce. Arrange the pasta sheets side by side, covering the bottom of the baking dish. Evenly spread a layer of all the ricotta mixture and then a layer of all the spinach. Arrange another layer of pasta sheets and spread all the ground beef on top. Sprinkle 1/2 the mozzarella cheese on top of the beef. Spread another 1/3 of the bechamel sauce. Arrange the final layer of pasta sheets and top with remaining bechamel, mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses. Cut the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter into 1/4-inch cubes and top lasagna.
• Line a large baking sheet with aluminum foil. Place lasagna dish on top, cover and put on the middle rack of the oven and bake until top is bubbling, about 30 minutes. Remove cover and continue to bake for about 15 minutes.
• In a large casserole pot or Dutch over, heat oil over medium high heat. Add onion and garlic and saute until soft and translucent, about 5 to 10 minutes. Add celery and carrots and season with salt and pepper. Saute until all the vegetables are soft, about 5 to 10 minutes. Add tomatoes and bay leaves and simmer uncovered on low heat for 1 hour or until thick. Remove bay leaves and check for seasoning. If sauce still tastes acidic, add unsalted butter, 1 tablespoon at a time to round out the flavors.
• Add 1/2 the tomato sauce into the bowl of a food processor. Process until smooth. Continue with remaining tomato sauce.
• If not using all the sauce, allow it to cool completely and pour 1 to 2 cup portions into freezer plastic bags. This will freeze up to 6 months.

Steps:

• Heat the oil and butter in a large flame-proof pan over medium heat. Add the onions and cook until softened, about 10 minutes. Add the garlic, celery, carrots and bay leaves and cook, stirring frequently, until soft, about 10 minutes.
• Turn the heat up to medium-high. Add the plant-based ground beef alternative and break up with a fork if necessary. Add the tomato paste and marinara sauce and cook until bubbly, about 2 minutes.
• Splash in the red wine and cook until it has evaporated. Remove the bay leaves, then pour in the broth and add the nutmeg, 3 pinches of salt and a sprinkle of pepper.
• Simmer uncovered, stirring occasionally and adding a splash of water if dry, until the sauce has darkened and thickened and all the flavors have infused, about 2 hours.
• Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C) with a rack in the center. Grease an 8-by-12-inch broiler-safe baking dish or lasagna pan with butter.
• Spoon a thin layer of sauce into the bottom of the pan. Top with a layer of 3 pasta sheets, followed by a third of the remaining sauce and a third of the mozzarella and Parmesan. Repeat the layers with the pasta, sauce and cheeses twice more until you have 3 layers in total.
• Cover the dish with aluminum foil and bake until the lasagna is bubbling and the cheese is melted, about 25 minutes.
• Remove the foil and turn the oven to broil, keeping the lasagna on the center rack. Cook to crisp the top, being careful not to let it burn, 10 to 15 minutes more.
• Let cool for 15 minutes. Then it's ready to eat.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Lightly oil the bottom of a 13 by 9 by 2-inch baking dish.
• In a large saute pan, over medium-high heat, add 1 tablespoon oil and saute meat, onion, and garlic until meat is browned, breaking up meat with a wooden spoon. Drain pan of fat and add stewed tomatoes, tomato sauce, and tomato paste. Cover and simmer for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
• In a large bowl, whisk together eggs, then mix in cottage cheese, 1/2 cup Parmesan, parsley, salt, pepper, and seasoning salt.
• Spread a little of the meat sauce in the bottom of the prepared pan. Lay half the noodles in the bottom of the baking dish, overlapping by 1/2-inch. Spread half the egg and cottage cheese mixture evenly on top. Sprinkle half the mozzarella and Cheddar evenly over the cottage cheese mixture. Pour half the meat sauce on top. Repeat layering in same order. Sprinkle remaining 1/4 cup Parmesan on top. Bake in center of oven 30 to 35 minutes until sauce is bubbling around the edges. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

Steps:

• For the Meatball Mix: Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
• In a mixing bowl, combine all ingredients. Roll meatballs into desired size and bake in preheated oven for about 15 minutes or until golden brown. For the lasagna, instead of rolling into desired size, spread mix out evenly on a sheet pan and bake. Break up the meat for lasagna.
• For the Meat Sauce: In a stock pot (or large cooking vessel) brown the ground beef. Add the celery/carrot/onion mix and cook for about 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes and the seasonings. Let simmer for 2 hours.
• For Aunt Angie's Lasagna: Using a 1/2 hotel pan or medium to large baking dish, coat the bottom with a thin layer of meat sauce. Lay out 4 pieces of lasagna so they go up the side of the pan with an additional 3 to 4 inches hanging over the edge. Do the same in the other direction of the pan using pieces of pasta. Add another layer of meat sauce, followed by 1/2 of the meatball mix. Then top the meat with 1 pound of the ricotta cheese, 1 pound of mozzarella, and 1/4 cup of Romano. Add a layer of pasta and repeat to have 2 layers. Fold over the remaining pasta to cover the top. Top with meat sauce and place in preheated oven and bake until proper serving temperature is reached or top is golden brown.

Steps:

• In a large skillet brown ground beef, season to taste with salt, pepper and garlic powder.
• Add pasta sauce.
• In a large bowl soften cream cheese and mix with sour cream, cottage cheese, onion and bell pepper.
• Boil lasagna noodles according to package direction.
• Butter 13 X 9 baking dish.
• Layer noodles, cream cheese mixture, then pasta sauce mixture.
• Layer parmesan cheese then mozzarella cheese.
• Repeat layers ending with parmesan and mozzarella cheese.
• Bake 350 for 30-45 minutes until cheese is melted and bubbly.