Hearty Meat Lasagna Recipes

Steps:

• In a large skillet, cook beef, onion and garlic in oil until meat is browned and onion is tender; drain. Stir in tomatoes, tomato sauce, tomato paste, oregano, sugar, salt and pepper. Place carrots and celery in sauce. Simmer, uncovered, for 1-1/2 hours, stirring occasionally. , Meanwhile, cook lasagna noodles according to package directions. Drain; rinse in cold water. Remove and discard carrots and celery. , In a greased 13x9-in. baking dish, layer one-third of the noodles, one-third of the meat sauce, one-third of the ricotta, one-third of the mozzarella and one-third of the Parmesan. Repeat layers once. Top with remaining noodles and meat sauce. , Cut a heart out of aluminum foil and center on top of sauce. Dollop and spread remaining ricotta around heart. Sprinkle with remaining mozzarella and Parmesan. Bake, uncovered, at 350° for 45 minutes. Remove and discard foil heart. Let stand 10-15 minutes before cutting.

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C). Heat oil in a large saucepan or Dutch oven set over medium heat. Add onion, green pepper, garlic and dried herbs; cook for 5 to 10 minutes or until vegetables soften.
• Crumble in beef and pork and brown all over, about 5 minutes. Stir in tomato juice, chili sauce, tomato paste and Worcestershire Sauce; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for 10 minutes.
• Spread 1/4 of the sauce in to a 13- x 9-in (3 L) casserole dish. Top with 3 noodles. Layer with 1/4 more sauce and 1/3 of the cheese. Repeat layers twice, ending with cheese.
• Cover with foil and bake for 1 hour. Remove foil and bake for 15 minutes or until golden. Let stand for 10 minutes before serving.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Fill a large pot with lightly salted water and bring to a rolling boil over high heat. Once the water is boiling, add the lasagna noodles a few at a time, and return to a boil. Cook the pasta uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the pasta has cooked through, but is still firm to the bite, about 10 minutes. Remove the noodles to a plate.
• Place the ground beef into a skillet over medium heat, add the garlic, garlic powder, oregano, salt, and black pepper to the skillet. Cook the meat, chopping it into small chunks as it cooks, until no longer pink, about 10 minutes. Drain excess grease.
• In a bowl, mix the cottage cheese, eggs, and Parmesan cheese until thoroughly combined.
• Place 4 noodles side by side into the bottom of a 9x13-inch baking pan; top with a layer of the tomato-basil sauce, a layer of ground beef mixture, and a layer of the cottage cheese mixture. Repeat layers twice more, ending with a layer of sauce; sprinkle top with the mozzarella cheese. Cover the dish with aluminum foil.
• Bake in the preheated oven until the casserole is bubbling and the cheese has melted, about 30 minutes. Remove foil and bake until cheese has begun to brown, about 10 more minutes. Allow to stand at least 10 minutes before serving.

Steps:

• Cook and drain noodles as directed on package; rinse with hot water and drain.
• In a large skillet or Dutch oven, cook ground beef and Italian sausage until done; drain then add mushrooms, spaghetti sauce, and tomato sauce; simmer 10-15 minutes.
• In a small bowl, blend egg and ricotta.
• In the bottom of a 9x13" baking pan, spread layers of 1/3 of the sauce, then 1/3 of the lasagne noodles, then 1/3 of the ricotta mixture, and then 1/3 of the shredded cheese; repeat layers twice.
• Cover tightly with aluminum foil and bake at 375° for 20 minutes; uncover and bake another 20 minutes; remove from oven and let stand 5-10 minutes before cutting.
• NOTE: You can get by using 9 lasagne noodles, but I use 12 because I like to overlap them a bit ~ You also may vary the meats and use 1 pound sausage with 3/4 pound beef or whatever combination your family likes.

Steps:

• Adjust oven rack to middle position and pre-heat oven to 375 degrees.
• For the sauce: Pre-heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add onion. Cook until translucent. Add garlic, cook until fragrant, or about 30 seconds.
• Increase heat to medium high. Add meat, salt and pepper. Cook until meat is no longer a raw color, but not browned.
• Add the cream and simmer until the liquid is about halved.
• Add the pureed and diced tomatoes. Bring to a simmer until flavors are blended. About 20 minutes.
• For the Layers:.
• Mix the ricotta, 1 cup of the parmesan, the basil, egg, salt, pepper in a medium bowl and mix with a fork until creamy and well combined.
• Smear the entire bottom of a 13x9 inch baking dish with 1/4 cup of the sauce. Place 3 noodles on top of the sauce. Drop 3 T. onto each of the noodles and smear with the back of a spoon.
• Sprinkle 1 cup of the mozzarella cheese over the ricotta mixture. Spoon 1 1/2 cups of the meat sauce over the cheese mixture. Top with 3 more noodles. Continue this process 2 more times.
• Place the remaining 3 noodles on the sauce, spread with remaining sauce, sprinkle remaining cheese, and parmesan.
• Cover with foil and bake 15 minutes.
• Remove foil and bake 25 minutes.
• Remove from oven and let cool 10 minutes.

Steps:

• FOR THE SAUCE: Heat the oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat until shimmering. Add the onion and cook until softened but not browned, about 3 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in the meat loaf mix, 1 tsp salt and 1 tsp pepper and cook, breaking the meat into small pieces with a wooden spoon, until the meat loses its raw color but has not browned, about 4 minutes.
• Stir in the cream, bring to a simmer, and cook until the liquid evaporates and only the fat remains, about 5 minutes. Stir in the tomato puree and drained diced tomatoes, Bring to a simmer and cook until the flavors are blended, about 3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste; set aside.
• FOR THE RICOTTA FILLING: Stir all of the ingredients together until combined; set aside.
• TO ASSEMBLE THE LASAGNA: Spread 1 cup of the sauce over the bottom of a 13 by 9-inch baking dish (avoiding large chunks of meat). Place 3 of the noodles in a single layer in the baking dish. Spread 1/3 cup of the ricotta mixture over each noodle, then sprinkle the layer with 1 cup of the mozzarella. Spoon 1 cup of the sauce evenly over the cheeses. Repeat the layering of the noodles, ricotta, mozzerella, and sauce twice more. Place the remaining 3 noodles on top, cover with the remaining 1 cup mozzarella and the Parmesan.
• TO STORE: Wrap the dish tightly with plastic wrap and then foil and refrigerate for up to 2 days or freeze for up to 1 month. (If frozen, the casserole must be completely thawed in the refrigerator, about 24 hours.).
• TO SERVE: Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and heat the oven to 400 degrees. Unwrap the dish and cover tightly with foil that has been sprayed with vegetable oil spray (or use nonstick foil). Bake until the sauce bubbles lightly around the edges, 30 to 40 minutes. Remove the foil and continue to bake until hot throughout and the cheese is browned in spots, 25 to 30 minutes longer. Let cool for 10 minutes before serving.
• TO SERVE RIGHT AWAY: Bake as directed, reducing the covered baking time to 15 minutes.

Steps:

• Cook the lasagna noodles in a large pot of boiling water for 10 minutes, or until al dente. Rinse with cold water, and drain.
• In a large saucepan, cook and stir mushrooms, green peppers, onion, and garlic in oil. Stir in pasta sauce and basil; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer 15 minutes.
• Mix together ricotta, 2 cups mozzarella cheese, and eggs.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Spread 1 cup tomato sauce into the bottom of a greased 9x13 inch baking dish. Layer 1/2 each, lasagna noodles, ricotta mix, sauce, and Parmesan cheese. Repeat layering, and top with remaining 2 cups mozzarella cheese.
• Bake, uncovered, for 40 minutes. Let stand 15 minutes before serving.