Michelle’s Lasagna – this is now a favourite in our house!
Sauce Ingredients:
- 1 med onion diced
- 1 – 2 cloves fresh garlic minced
- 2 lbs ground meat (I use a mixture of ground turkey and Spolumbo’s Italian sausage (1 lb each)
- Worcestershire sauce (to taste)
- 1 tsp Oregano
- 1 tsp Basil
- 1/2 tsp Ground Thyme
- Black pepper (to taste)
- Bay leaf (remove from sauce before adding to lasagna pan)
- Mushrooms
- 1 – 2 bell peppers chopped
- 2 jars Pasta Sauce (Our favourite is Pasta Del Pellegrino (local)
- 1 796 ml can of stewed tomatoes including juice
- 1-2 TBSP balsamic vinegar (On Tap’s Traditional Balsamic Vinegar – located in Airdrie & Okotoks) or you could also use a little sugar (or none at all if you prefer)
Filling Ingredients:
- 500 ml of cottage cheese
- 1 egg
- 1/2 cup to 1 cup of Parmesan cheese
- 1 Tbsp Cian’s Mustard (I used Hot though Medium is a nice choice too)
Layer Ingredients:
- Noodle layers: Measure pan for the number of noodles needed, 2 or 3 layers (your choice)
- Top layer: Shredded Cheese: Mozzarella, combination of Italian cheeses….your flavour and amount choice
Prep Directions:
Sauce
- Brown ground meat with onion (I cook the turkey and sausage separately)
- Place cooked meat in a large pot, adding garlic, Worcestershire sauce, Oregano, Basil, Thyme, Black Pepper, Bay Leaf, Mushrooms, Bell Peppers, both jars of pasta sauce, stewed tomatoes, and balsamic vinegar
Filling
- Mix cottage cheese, egg, parmesan cheese and Cian’s Mustard; set aside
Noodles
- Cook noodles according to package directions for Al Dente pasta as they will continue to cook once layered in pan; drain and let cool
Pan Layers
- Put a thin layer of sauce on the bottom of the pan and a single layer of lasagna noodles on top
- Add 1/2 cottage cheese mixture and spread all over the noodles
- Add tomato sauce mixture
- Layer of lasagna noodles
- Add remaining cottage cheese mixture, spreading all over noodles
- Add tomato sauce mixture
- IF desired add another layer of noodles
Cooking Instructions:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees
- Cover pan with foil, baking for 1 hr (longer if making a pan larger than 9×13) Tip: place cookie sheet under the pan to catch any dribbles of sauce
- Remove foil and add shredded cheese
- Continue to cook uncovered until cheese is melted and toasty brown 🙂
- Let sit for 10 – 15 minutes before slicing, if you can…..