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Beef and Sausage Lasagna

World's Best Lasagna

This lasagna recipe takes a little work, but it is so satisfying and filling that it's worth it!

Prep Time:     Cook Time:          Additional Time:     Total Time:           Servings:
30 mins          2 hrs 30 mins      15 mins                   3 hrs 15 mins       12
Ingredients

  • 1 pound sweet Italian sausage

  • ¾ pound lean ground beef

  • ½ cup minced onion

  • 2 cloves garlic, crushed

  • 1 (28 ounce) can crushed tomatoes

  • 2 (6.5 ounce) cans canned tomato sauce

  • 2 (6 ounce) cans tomato paste

  • ½ cup water

  • 2 tablespoons white sugar

  • 4 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley, divided

  • 1 ½ teaspoons dried basil leaves

  • 1 ½ teaspoons salt, divided, or to taste

  • 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning

  • ½ teaspoon fennel seeds

  • ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper

  • 12 lasagna noodles

  • 16 ounces ricotta cheese

  • 1 large egg

  • ¾ pound mozzarella cheese, sliced

  • ¾ cup grated Parmesan cheese

Directions

  1. Gather all your ingredients.

  2. Cook sausage, ground beef, onion, and garlic in a Dutch oven over medium heat until well browned.

  3. Stir in crushed tomatoes, tomato sauce, tomato paste, and water. Season with sugar, 2 tablespoons parsley, basil, 1 teaspoon salt, Italian seasoning, fennel seeds, and pepper. Simmer, covered, for about 1 ½ hours, stirring occasionally.

  4. 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.

  5. In a mixing bowl, combine ricotta cheese with egg, remaining 2 tablespoons parsley, and 1/2 teaspoon salt.

  6. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

  7. To assemble, spread 1 ½ cups of meat sauce in the bottom of a 9x13-inch baking dish. Arrange 6 noodles lengthwise over meat sauce, overlapping slightly. Spread with 1/2 of the ricotta cheese mixture. Top with 1/3 of the mozzarella cheese slices. Spoon 1 ½ cups meat sauce over mozzarella, and sprinkle with 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese.

  8. 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.

  9. Bake in the preheated oven for 25 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for an additional 25 minutes.

  10. Let the lasagna rest at room temperature for about 15 minutes before cutting; this helps it set and firm up.

Notes

This recipe uses 2 layers of lasagna noodles by slightly overlapping 6 noodles on each layer. You can also use 3 layers, using 4 noodles on each layer that don't overlap. If you want the 3 layers, use 1 cup of meat sauce and 1/3 of the ricotta cheese mixture in each layer.

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