Classic Lasagna

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Comforting, familiar flavors but refined—my all-time favorite lasagna layers oven-ready noodles, a rich meat sauce, veggies, and plenty of cheese.

I love this lasagna recipe because it beautifully combines the familiar flavors of the lasagna I grew up on with the refined taste of a restaurant-style dish. It’s also relatively easy to make, thanks to the use of oven-ready or no-boil lasagna noodles, which save time and effort while delivering a taste remarkably similar to fresh homemade pasta—a definite win! The noodles are layered with a flavorful meat sauce made with Italian sausage, vegetables, crushed tomatoes, and cream, as well as creamy ricotta, gooey mozzarella, and Parmesan cheese. Baked until bubbly and golden, it’s the perfect cozy dish for a crowd, and it reheats and freezes well, too. This is definitely my go-to lasagna recipe!

What You’ll Need To Make Lasagna

• Onion, Garlic, Carrots, and Celery: These vegetables are the base of the sauce, contributing to the depth of flavor.
• Italian Sausage: The key flavor component of the sauce, it adds richness and depth of flavor with its spices and fat content.
• Red Wine: Ådds acidity and complexity to the sauce.
• Canned Crushed Tomatoes: Provides body, acidity, and tomato flavor to the sauce.
• Heavy Cream: Added to the tomato sauce to balance the acidity of the tomatoes and wine.
• Thyme and Bay Leaves: These herbs contribute aromatic flavors to the sauce.
• Ricotta Cheese: Mixed with egg, cream cheese, and Parmigiano-Reggiano, used as a creamy layer in the lasagna, adding moisture and richness.
• Cream Cheese: Adds extra creaminess and tang to the ricotta mixture, and prevents the ricotta from becoming grainy when baked.
• Egg: Acts as a binder in the ricotta mixture, helping it to set and maintain structure when the lasagna is baked.
• Parmigiano-Reggiano: A hard, aged cheese that’s rich in flavor, added to the ricotta mixture and also sprinkled on top of the lasagna.
• Oven-Ready (No Boil) Lasagna Noodles: These noodles do not require pre-boiling, which means you don’t have to worry about them slopping around and sticking together, which is always an issue when using regular lasagna noodles to prepare lasagna. They absorb moisture from the sauce and cheese during baking, cooking to perfect tenderness. I like the Barilla brand.
• Mozzarella Cheese: Adds stretchy, melty texture to the layers of the lasagna.
• Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements

Step-By-Step Instructions

1. Make the Sauce

Begin by placing the onions, garlic, carrots, and celery in a food processor. You need to give them a rough chop first, otherwise, they won’t chop evenly.

Pulse until minced but not puréed, so that they melt into the sauce.

Heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a large pot over medium-high heat, and add the sausage.

Cook, stirring occasionally and breaking the sausage into small pieces, until slightly browned but not cooked all the way through, about 5 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the partially cooked sausage to a plate. Set aside.

Add the remaining tablespoon of olive oil to the pan, reduce the heat to medium, and add the minced vegetables.

Cook, stirring frequently, until the vegetables are very soft, 6 to 8 minutes. Do not brown; reduce the heat if necessary.

Add the wine and continue cooking, stirring to scrape any brown bits from the bottom of the pan, until the wine is mostly absorbed by the vegetables, a few minutes.

Add the tomatoes, cream, salt, pepper, sugar, thyme and bay leaves.

Stir and bring to a boil.

Reduce the heat and simmer until the sauce is thickened, about 20 minutes.

Add the sausage back to the pot.

Continue simmering until the sausage is fully cooked and the flavors all meld together, about 10 minutes. Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary. Fish out the bay leaves and discard.

2. Make the Ricotta Filling

Combine the ricotta, cream cheese, egg, garlic, Parmigiano-Reggiano, salt and pepper in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal blade.

Process until evenly combined, then add the basil.

Pulse until the basil is finely chopped.

3. Assemble the Lasagna

Spread about 1-1/2 cups of sauce in the bottom of the baking dish.

Arrange 3 noodles over the sauce, and dollop a third of the ricotta filling over the noodles.

Spread the ricotta mixture evenly over the noodles.

Sprinkle with 3/4 cup mozzarella cheese.

Repeat layering of sauce, noodles, ricotta filling and mozzarella 2 more times. Top with the remaining 3 noodles. Spoon the remaining sauce over the noodles, then sprinkle with the remaining mozzarella and 1/4 cup Parmigiano-Reggiano.

Spray a large piece of foil with nonstick cooking spray. Cover the lasagna tightly with the foil, sprayed side down. Bake for 40 minutes in a 375°F oven. Carefully uncover and increase the oven temperature to 400°F. Bake, uncovered, until the noodles are tender, the sauce is bubbling, and the edges are golden and puffed, about 20 minutes.

Remove from the oven and let stand for 15 to 20 minutes before serving.

Frequently Asked Questions

Video Tutorial

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