Easy Lasagna Recipe
This Lasagna Recipe is easy to make with a creamy ricotta cheese mixture, savory meat sauce, and mozzarella cheese. BONUS: it’s make-ahead and freezer-friendly!
Be sure to try my Baked Ravioli Recipe recipe next!
Easy Lasagna Recipe
I suppose since I have recipes for Skillet Lasagna, Lasagna Soup, Lasagna Roll Ups, and Taco Lasagna, we are long overdue for me to share my easy, classic lasagna recipe.
This recipe has simple ingredients but tons of flavor with a creamy ricotta mixture, savory meat sauce, and lots of mozzarella cheese.
This is a great freezer meal, make-ahead recipe, and leftovers freeze and reheat super well.
How to Make It
See recipe card below this post for ingredient quantities and full instructions.
Spoon meat sauce on the bottom of a lightly greased casserole dish. Add 4 boiled lasagna noodles (or use no-boil or fresh noodles). Spread 1/3 of the ricotta cheese mixture on top. Add 1.5 cups of meat sauce.
Repeat the same layers two more times.
Top with mozzarella cheese. Cover and bake at 375° for 30 minutes. Remove cover and bake for 15 more minutes. Broil at the end if desired. Let it rest for 15 minutes prior to serving with Garlic Bread With Cheese.
How Many Layers Does Lasagna Have
- Lasagna needs to have at least 3 layers in order to constitute a true lasagna. Most recipes have 3 or 4 layers.
- I opted for 3 layers of 4 lasagna noodles as that is what will fit in a 9 x 13 inch casserole dish. Additional layers would require a deeper baking dish.
Make Ahead Method
- Assemble as outlined but do not bake. Cover and refrigerate for up to 2 days or freeze for up to 3 months.
- Thaw frozen lasagna completely before baking.
- Let chilled lasagna sit out at room temperature for 30 minutes prior to baking. Add an additional 10 minutes to covered baking time.
Reheating Lasagna
- To reheat leftover lasagna: Place it in a lightly greased, covered casserole dish. Bake at 350° for 25-30 minutes.
Pro Tips
- Flavor Enhancers: The hot sauce and Worcestershire sauce are flavor enhancers and can’t be tasted outright. The hot sauce won’t make it hot/spicy. I use Frank’s Hot Sauce.
- Marinara Sauce: I recommend using Rao’s marinara sauce for this recipe, it’s very high quality, lasagna is a labor of love that deserves quality ingredients.
- Cheese: Shred and grate the cheese from a block, avoid using packaged shredded/grated cheese for this recipe. Low moisture, whole milk mozzarella cheese melts the best. I use Dragone mozzarella, Belgioioso Parmesan, and Galbani Whole Milk Ricotta.
- Lasagna Noodles: No-boil lasagna noodles or fresh lasagna noodles can also be used for this recipe, neither of which need to be cooked first. Fresh lasagna noodles can be found in the deli section of the grocery store.
- Casserole Dish: If your lasagna is very close to the top of your casserole dish, place a baking sheet underneath the casserole dish to catch any splatters of sauce, as it gets hot and bubbly toward the end. A Deep Casserole Dish is helpful.
- 📘 Find this recipe on page 178 of my 2nd cookbook, Let’s Eat!
Storage
- Store in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months. Leftovers do freeze well.
Tools For This Recipe
(Amazon affiliate links)- Check out all of my kitchen essentials here.
- 8 Quart Pasta Pot: Make sure to use a large pot for boiling the lasagna noodles to ensure that they can all fit and are less likely to stick together. You also want to ensure that you don’t need to reduce the heat from overflowing boiling water, as this can cause the noodles to be mushy.
- Deep Casserole Dish: This one will fit this lasagna perfectly.
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Tried This Recipe?
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Easy Lasagna Recipe
Ingredients
Cheese Filling
- 15 oz. ricotta cheese, 2 cups
- 1 large egg
- 2 cups mozzarella cheese
- ¾ cup Parmesan cheese, freshly grated
- 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ tsp pepper
Meat Sauce
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 yellow onion, finely diced
- ¾ lb. ground beef
- ¾ lb. ground Italian sausage
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- ½ cup chicken broth
- 40 oz. marinara sauce, see notes
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 1 teaspoon hot sauce
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
Lasagna Noodles/ Cheese Topping
- 12 lasagna noodles, plus extra in case of breakage
- 2.5 cups mozzarella cheese
Equipment
Instructions
Prep Work
- Combine the cheese filling ingredients in a medium bowl and set aside. Measure out remaining ingredients.
Make the Meat Sauce
- Heat olive oil over medium heat and add the diced onions. Let them soften for 10 minutes. (This allows them to release a little sugar which is a nice offset to the acidity of the tomatoes.)
- Add the ground beef and sausage and increase heat to medium-high. Use a spatula to break up the meat so that it’s very fine and crumbled. Cook for 8-10 minutes, or until cooked through. Add garlic during the last minute. Drain excess grease.
- Add the chicken broth and use a silicone spatula to “clean” the bottom and sides of the pot. Add the marinara sauce, tomato paste, hot sauce, and Worcestershire sauce. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Cover partially and let the sauce simmer gently while you boil the pasta noodles.
Preheat Oven and Cook the Lasagna Noodles
- Preheat oven to 375°.
- Begin boiling a large pot of salted pasta water for the lasagna noodles. Once a rapid boil is reached, cook the noodles to al dente according to package instructions. (Set a timer to ensure you don’t overcook them.) Gently stir with a wooden spoon throughout cooking to prevent the noodles from sticking. Drain and rinse with cold water until noodles are completely cool.
- Lay the cooled noodles flat on wax or parchment paper while you begin assembling the lasagna.
Assemble
- Spread 1 heaping cup of meat sauce on the bottom of a 9 x 13-inch casserole dish. Next, add 4 lasagna noodles, overlapping them if needed.
- Spread 1/3 of the ricotta cheese mixture over the noodles, followed by about 1 ½ cups of meat sauce.
- Top with 4 more lasagna noodles, 1/3 of the ricotta cheese mixture, 1 ½ cups meat sauce.
- Finish with 4 more lasagna noodles, the rest of the ricotta mixture, and the rest of the meat sauce.
- Top with 2 ½ cups of Mozzarella cheese.
- Spray foil with nonstick cooking spray and place it spray-side-down on top of the baking dish to prevent the cheese from sticking to it.
Bake
- Bake for 35 minutes. Remove cover and bake for 10 more minutes.
- Remove and garnish with fresh parsley. Let it sit for 15 minutes prior to serving to allow the layers to set. Serve with garlic bread with cheese.
Notes
- Flavor Enhancers: The hot sauce and Worcestershire sauce are flavor enhancers and can’t be tasted outright. The hot sauce won’t make it hot/spicy. I use Frank's Hot Sauce.
- Marinara Sauce: I recommend using Rao’s marinara sauce for this recipe, it’s very high quality, lasagna is a labor of love that deserves quality ingredients.
- Cheese: Shred and grate the cheese from a block, avoid using packaged shredded/grated cheese for this recipe. Low moisture, whole milk mozzarella cheese melts the best. I use Dragone mozzarella, Belgioioso Parmesan, and Galbani Whole Milk Ricotta.
- Lasagna Noodles: No-boil lasagna noodles or fresh lasagna noodles can also be used for this recipe, neither of which need to be cooked first. Fresh lasagna noodles can be found in the deli section of the grocery store.
- Casserole Dish: If your lasagna is very close to the top of your casserole dish, place a baking sheet underneath the casserole dish to catch any splatters of sauce, as it gets hot and bubbly toward the end. A Deep Casserole Dish is helpful.
- 📘 Find this recipe on page 178 of my 2nd cookbook, Let's Eat!
Storage:
- Store in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months. Leftovers do freeze well.
Make-Ahead Method:
- Assemble as outlined but do not bake. Cover and refrigerate for up to 2 days or freeze for up to 3 months.
- Thaw frozen lasagna completely before baking.
- Let chilled lasagna sit out at room temperature for 30 minutes prior to baking. Add an additional 10 minutes to covered baking time.
Reheating Leftovers:
- To reheat leftover lasagna, place it in a lightly greased, covered casserole dish. Bake at 350° for 25-30 minutes.
- The Nutritional Info shared is an estimate and is per serving. There are 12 servings in this recipe.
Amazing! So delicious my family raved over how delicious it was!
Wahooo! I’m so happy it was such a success Roberta!🩷 Thanks so much for the review!
How many servings in this recipe?
Hi! It’s at the top of the recipe card in the middle, it makes 12 servings! ❤️
Sooo delicious!! I didn’t know how simple this recipe would be and how incredible the finished product would be! I added 1/4 tsp of nutmeg to the ricotta mixture and it was a great addition. I will definitely be making this lasagna again 🙂
I’m so happy you were pleasantly surprised Mary!!!💖 Thanks so much for taking the time to leave such great comments!
Second time in a month that I’m making this. Super easy, delicious. One taste thing on my end was that the first time I made it it was a bit salty. Omitted the salt to the ricotta mixture and it’s just perfect for our taste. Not a ding just a preference in case others are sensitive to salt. This is a fave!
I’m so thrilled to hear that Veronica! Excellent! I really appreciate you taking the time to leave a review, you’re the best!! 🙂 -Stephanie
I was doing this recipe for a school project but when I tried it at home IT WAS SOOO GOOOOOD thank you for recipe I’ll tell my mom to add it to my family dinner rotation
AAWWWWW this made my DAY Melvin!! I love that you were doing this for a school project AND that you’re asking for your family to add it to the rotation. Thank you so much for taking the time to leave this review, I appreciate it so much!!
This was my first time making homemade lasagna and it was DELICIOUS!!! My whole family loved it. Will definitely be adding this into our rotation. 🙂
Excellent! I am so thrilled that it’ll be your go-to lasagna Gracie!! Wahoo! Thank you so much for taking the time to leave a review, I really appreciate it! -Stephanie 🙂
I made this Lasagna recipe and I swear it is the best one I have ever made. Better than my Grandma’s recipe but I’ll never tell. Got so many compliments and definitely do the tip of using the Rao’s marinara and freshly grated cheese. I also opted to add a little red wine to the meat sauce – SO GOOD!!
I’m so happy to hear that Lisa! You’re secret is safe with me!😉 Thanks so much for the great review!❤️
Hello, when you say “2 cups of mozzarella” do you mean 16 oz? or do you mean I need to measure out two cups of shredded cheese? Thanks!
Hi Joyce, I mean to measure out 2 cups of shredded cheese! 🙂 1 cup of shredded cheese doesn’t equate to 8 ounces. (In liquid form 8 oz. = 1 cup, but not with shredded cheese.) Enjoy!!!
This lasagna recipe is fantastic! I tried it for dinner, and it turned out wonderfully. The step-by-step instructions made it so easy to follow, even for someone who doesn’t make lasagna often. The tips on using fresh herbs and layering the cheese made a noticeable difference in the flavor. My family loved it, and it’s definitely going to be a go-to recipe for cozy family dinners. Thank you for sharing such a delicious and approachable recipe!
I’m so happy to hear that it’s been a big hit for you Michael, thank you so much for taking the time to leave a review, I really appreciate it so much!! 🙂 -Stephanie
It’s still in the oven, so I can’t yet judge its success, but I had spinach on hand, so chopped it and put it in with the ricotta mixture. Feeling hopeful!
Nice touch Mary! I can’t wait for you to try it. Enjoy!💗