Lasagna assistance..please?

Question

Hi! I have made lasagna before but with jarred spagh. sauce ,,,I was wondering if anyone has a more flavorful way of making a lasagna? And must I use ricotta cheese as a binder or can I sub with something else? Thanks, have a great night!

Answer 1

I make lasagna every Christmas and I love it. I found the recipe in a taste of home magazine and have used it ever since..comes out wonderful every time. To me, the meat sauce makes the whole dish, so you can use the meat sauce and substitute whatever you want in your lasagna

1 lb ground beef
3/4 lb bulk pork sausage ( I omit the sausage but add another lb. of ground beef)
3 (8 ounce) cans tomato sauce
2 (6 ounce) cans tomato paste
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 teaspoons sugar
1 teaspoon italian seasoning
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
3 eggs
3 tablespoons minced fresh parsley
3 cups small curd cottage cheese
1 (8 ounce) carton ricotta cheese
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
9 lasagna noodles, cooked and drained
6 slices provolone cheese
3 cups shredded mozzarella cheese, divided (12 oz.)

In a skillet, cook beef and sausage over medium heat until no longer pink; drain.
Add the next seven ingredients.
Simmer, uncovered, for 1 hour, stirring occasionally.
In a bowl, combine the eggs, parsley, cottage cheese, ricotta and parmesan.
Spread 1 cup of meat sauce in an ungreased 13-in.x 9in.x 2-in. baking dish.
Layer with 3 noodles, provolone cheese, 2 cups of cottage cheese mixture, 1 cup of mozzerella, three noodles, 2 cups of meat sauce, remaining cottage cheese mixture and 1 cup of mozzerella.
Top with remaining noodles, meat sauce and mozzerella (dish will be full).
Cover and bake at 375 degrees for 50 minutes.
Uncover; bake 20 minutes longer.
Let stand 15 minutes before cutting.

Answer 2

Honestly making your own sauce is better. It doesn't take that long. If you really want a good jar sauce look for Rao's marinara sauce. If you can't find that go for Barilla's baking sauce. Those are the only 2 jar sauces I will put in my mouth. That other crap Ragu, Prego is AWFUL. You might as well use ketchup. I use ricotta even though I'm not a big fan of it. I don't like it all goopy. I just use a little bit. Using cottage cheese or sour cream just ruins lasagna. You'd be better off just going without ricotta. I also like to add some spinach in mine too. If you're making your lasagna with meat use a meatloaf/meatball mixture (ground beef, pork and veal). That also gives your lasagna extra flavor. Good luck!

Answer 3

Try this homemade sauce.... makes a lot but freezes very well.

And you can use cottage cheese, or even fat free ricotta. In a lasagna no one knows the differnence.

Dean’s Spaghetti Sauce

2 - 28 ounce cans tomato puree
2 - 18 ounce cans tomato paste
32 ounces water (approximately, add more or less to your thickness preference)
2 tbls minced garlic
2-3 bay leaves
1 tbls dried basil
1 tbls dried parsley
1 tbls dried oregano
¼ tsp dried thyme
¼ tsp dried sage

Mix all ingredients in a 5 quart Dutch oven; bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Reduce heat, cover and simmer over very low heat several hours for flavors to meld, stirring occasionally. Do not let it boil too rapidly. Since tomato products seem to vary in sweetness, a couple teaspoons of sugar can be added if a little extra sweetness is desired.

Answer 4

This is my favorite recipe best I've ever had! It tells you how to make your own sauce, I always use ricotta cheese though.

World's Best Lasagna

INGREDIENTS
1 pound sweet Italian sausage
3/4 pound lean ground beef
1/2 cup minced onion
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 (28 ounce) can crushed tomatoes
2 (6 ounce) cans tomato paste
2 (6.5 ounce) cans canned tomato sauce
1/2 cup water
2 tablespoons white sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons dried basil leaves
1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1 tablespoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
4 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
12 lasagna noodles
16 ounces ricotta cheese
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 pound mozzarella cheese, sliced
3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese


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DIRECTIONS
In a Dutch oven, cook sausage, ground beef, onion, and garlic over medium heat until well browned. Stir in crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, tomato sauce, and water. Season with sugar, basil, fennel seeds, Italian seasoning, 1 tablespoon salt, pepper, and 2 tablespoons parsley. Simmer, covered, for about 1 1/2 hours, stirring occasionally.
Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook lasagna noodles in boiling water for 8 to 10 minutes. Drain noodles, and rinse with cold water. In a mixing bowl, combine ricotta cheese with egg, remaining parsley, and 1/2 teaspoon salt.
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
To assemble, spread 1 1/2 cups of meat sauce in the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking dish. Arrange 6 noodles lengthwise over meat sauce. Spread with one half of the ricotta cheese mixture. Top with a third of mozzarella cheese slices. Spoon 1 1/2 cups meat sauce over mozzarella, and sprinkle with 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese. Repeat layers, and top with remaining mozzarella and Parmesan cheese. Cover with foil: to prevent sticking, either spray foil with cooking spray, or make sure the foil does not touch the cheese.
Bake in preheated oven for 25 minutes. Remove foil, and bake an additional 25 minutes. Cool for 15 minutes before serving.

Answer 5

I've always used jarred sauces but for the cheese part, you can use ricotta, cottage cheese, or even marscapone cheese. I've never had it with marscapone, but with the cottage cheese it's really good.

Answer 6

I like to use chunky garden ragu sauce. I never use ricotta cheese,instead I use sharp cheddar,mozzeralla,orange cheddar cheeses. if you want to make your own sauce I suggest tomato sauce with onions seasoning salt pepper& plenty of garlic.also add green peppers to your sauce if desired. good luck.

Answer 7

I'm not sure for the sauce.
but my mother-in-law subsitutes sour cream for the rocatta cheese in her lasagnas, yummy!