Three Cheese Lasagna with Italian Sausage

As I mentioned a couple posts ago this last weekend we went to Hood River, OR to visit my grandma, it was such a nice, sunny, and relaxing weekend out of town.  As a child my family and I visited Hood River, OR all the time during the summer so it is much like a home away from home.  I wanted to make sure my grandmother got plenty to eat and that there would be leftovers she could freeze for times when she doesn't want to cook, so we made this amazingly delicious lasagna from Bon Appetit.  I will say that if you like saucy lasagna definitely add more crushed tomatoes to this recipe, as the sauce was chunky and not very saucy.  This week entails cold temperatures and a slight slight chance of snow here in PDX...it's definitely early for snow, so we will just have to see.  I'm completely fine with getting some snow as long as we have power because I live in a house built in 1903 and it has very little insulation and I need to be cozy.  (Below is a picture of my adorable little grandma and me).  So put some meat on your bones and eat this cheese filled lasagna!

Serves 10


The Ingredients

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 cup chopped onion

3/4 cup finely chopped peeled carrots

2 tablespoons minced garlic

ounces lean ground beef

6 ounces spicy Italian sausages, casings removed

1 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes with added puree

1/4 cup tomato paste

1/4 cup chopped fresh basil

1 tablespoon golden brown sugar

1 tablespoon dried oregano

1 bay leaf

1/2 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper

LASAGNA:
15 lasagna noodles (about 12 ounces)

2 15-ounce containers part-skim ricotta cheese

1 cup grated Parmesan cheese (about 3 ounces)

1 10-ounce package frozen chopped spinach, thawed, drained, squeezed dry

2 large eggs

4 3/4 cups grated mozzarella cheese (about 1 1/4 pounds)


The Process

FOR SAUCE:
1.  Heat oil in heavy large saucepan over medium heat. Add onion, carrots and garlic; sauté until softened, about 12 minutes. Add beef and sausages to pan; sauté until cooked through, breaking up meat with back of spoon, about 5 minutes.

2.  Add remaining ingredients. Cover and simmer until flavors blend and sauce measures about 5 cups, stirring occasionally, about 15 minutes. Discard bay leaf. Cool.


FOR LASAGNA:
1.  Preheat oven to 350°F. Cook noodles in large pot of boiling salted water until almost tender, about 7 minutes. Drain; cover with cold water.

2.  Combine ricotta and 3/4 cup Parmesan cheese in medium bowl. Mix in spinach. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Mix in eggs.

3.  Drain pasta and pat dry. Spread 1/2 cup sauce over bottom of 13x9-inch glass baking dish. Place 5 noodles over sauce, overlapping to fit. Spread half of ricotta-spinach mixture evenly over noodles.

4.  Sprinkle 2 cups mozzarella cheese evenly over ricotta-spinach mixture. Spoon 1 1/2 cups sauce over cheese, spreading with spatula to cover (sauce will be thick). Repeat layering with 5 noodles, remaining ricotta-spinach mixture, 2 cups mozzarella and 1 1/2 cups sauce.

5.  Arrange remaining 5 noodles over sauce. Spread remaining sauce over noodles. Sprinkle remaining 3/4 cup mozzarella cheese and 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese evenly over lasagna. (Can be prepared up to 1 day ahead. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate.) Cover baking dish with aluminum foil. Bake lasagna 40 minutes; uncover and bake until hot and bubbly, about 40 minutes. Let lasagna stand 15 minutes before serving.