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!
Table of Contents
“Best Lasagna recipe – ever! And that includes those prepared in notable Italian restaurants…Conversation at the dinner table was reduced to sighs of delight and the utterance of an occasional OMG or YUM.”
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
Absolutely! The lasagna can be assembled and refrigerated up to 1 day ahead of time before baking. Allow a few extra minutes in the oven if baking from cold.
Yes, lasagna can be frozen for up to 3 months. If you choose to freeze it before baking, ensure it is thoroughly defrosted in the refrigerator for 24 hours before you follow the recipe’s baking instructions. For already baked lasagna, place any leftovers in a freezer-safe container, or cut it into individual servings. Each serving should be tightly wrapped first in plastic wrap and then in foil. To reheat, cover the lasagna with foil and warm it in an oven preheated to 325°F (165°C) until it is heated through.
Italian sausage is the best choice for this recipe because it is loaded with spices and herbs, such as salt, oregano, basil, fennel, garlic, and red pepper flakes. In contrast, ground beef is completely unseasoned, which means it lacks these built-in flavors. If you decide to use ground beef, I recommend amping up the seasoning by adding a mix of herbs and spices mentioned above.
Video Tutorial
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Classic Lasagna
Comforting, familiar flavors but refined—my all-time favorite lasagna layers oven-ready noodles, a rich meat sauce, veggies, and plenty of cheese.
Ingredients
For the Sauce
- 1 medium yellow onion, roughly chopped
- 5 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
- 2 medium carrots, roughly chopped
- 1 stalk celery, roughly chopped
- 3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
- 1½ pounds Italian sausage (bulk or removed from casing)
- ¾ cup dry red wine
- 1 (28 oz.) can crushed tomatoes
- ½ cup heavy cream
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 2 teaspoons sugar
- 1½ teaspoons dried thyme
- 2 bay leaves
For the Ricotta Mixture
- 1 (15 oz.) container whole milk ricotta (about 1¾ cups)
- 3 oz. cream cheese
- 1 large egg
- 1 garlic clove, roughly chopped
- ¾ cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- ½ cup roughly chopped fresh basil
For Assembling
- 12 oven ready (no boil) lasagna noodles (such as Barilla)
- 16 ounces shredded whole milk mozzarella cheese
- ¼ cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
Instructions
For the Sauce
- Place the onions, garlic, carrot and celery in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the metal blade; pulse until finely minced but not puréed.
- Heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add the sausage into the pan and 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 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; 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 and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, covered, until the sauce is thickened, about 20 minutes.
- Meanwhile, transfer the sausage to a cutting board and chop into smaller pieces (big chunks don't work well in lasagna).
- Add the sausage back to the pan and continue simmering, covered, until the sausage is fully cooked and the flavors meld together, about 10 minutes. Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary. Fish out the bay leaves and discard.
For the Ricotta Mixture
- 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. Add the basil and pulse until finely chopped.
For Assembly
- Preheat the oven to 375°F.
- Spread about 1½ cups of sauce in the bottom of a 13x9x2-inch baking dish. Arrange 3 noodles over the sauce (there will be a bit of space between the noodles; they expand as they cook). Dollop a third of the ricotta filling over the noodles, then spread evenly to cover. Sprinkle with ¾ cup of the mozzarella cheese. Repeat the 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 ¼ 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. 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 about 15 minutes before serving.
- Make-Ahead Instructions: The lasagna can be assembled and refrigerated up to 1 day ahead of time before baking. Allow a few extra minutes in the oven if baking from cold.
- Freezer-Friendly Instructions: The lasagna can be frozen for up to 3 months. If you choose to freeze it before baking, ensure it is thoroughly defrosted in the refrigerator for 24 hours before you follow the recipe's baking instructions. For already baked lasagna, place any leftovers in a freezer-safe container, or cut it into individual servings. Each serving should be tightly wrapped first in plastic wrap and then in foil. To reheat, cover the lasagna with foil and warm it in an oven preheated to 325°F until it is heated
Pair with
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (8 servings)
- Serving size: 1 slice
- Calories: 776
- Fat: 45g
- Saturated fat: 23g
- Carbohydrates: 47g
- Sugar: 9g
- Fiber: 4g
- Protein: 46g
- Sodium: 1812mg
- Cholesterol: 158mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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This is hands down the most amazing recipe ever! We do not eat sausage, so I usually make two pans; one I add ground chicken to and the other I layer with chopped broccoli and carrots. The sauce is incredible and it only gets better the longer it sits. We enjoy it for days! Thank you so much for the amazing recipes, I have never tried one that we did not like!
Excellent recipe! My my 4 teenage boys loved it.
My food processor has broken. Can I use a ninja blender on the pulse mode to make the Ricotta mixture?
Hi Carolyn, It’s okay if your food processor is on the fritz – it will just be a bit more time-consuming/labor-intensive You could certainly do the cheese mixture in a blender. And, you’ll just want to ensure that the veggies are in small enough pieces that they kind of melt into the sauce. Hope you enjoy it!
Thank you. I’ll write back after I make this.
Jenn, I had a small chopper and that worked wonders on the veggies. This dish was terrific. I used hot Italian sausage and was so nervous it would be overpowering for my guests. But the cheese mixture toned it down just enough. One question, the noodles seemed mushy. Is this the product of the no bake noodles (I have never used them before). Any insight would be appreciated as I will definitely be making this again. I did assemble the day before, just an fyi.
Hi Carolyn, glad you enjoyed the lasagna but sorry you found the noodles to be mushy. The no bake noodles do you have a bit of a different texture but I wouldn’t describe them as mushy (assembling this ahead would not have impacted the texture of the noodles).
This is an excellent recipe. I have made the recipe twice and always make an extra lasagna for my parents or one for the freezer! The sauce is delicious, and the lasagna sets well and stays moist but isn’t drowning in sauce.
I make a pan of lasagna and freeze it every year at Christmas for each of my grown children and their families. I have tried many recipes over the years, but yours is the best. Making it is a labor of love, and our Christmas wouldn’t be the same without your beautiful lasagna! Many thanks, and happy holidays to you.
I accidentally used tomato sauce instead of crushed tomatoes. Do you think it will make a big difference in taste?
Hi Jennie, It should be fine. Enjoy!
Hi Jenn,
I can’t wait to try your lasagne recipe but just realized I bought Swiss Emmentale cheese instead of Mozzarella – do you think that would work?
Thank you for all your wonderful recipes – we have never been dissappointed!
DD
Hi Dale, technically it will work — it will just have a different flavor. And so glad you like the recipes! 🙂
I can’t seem to get the video to play and I really love to watch a video, gets me in the mood to start cooking! It starts, then advertisements, and then goes to an egg salad recipe, more advertisements and then goes to an enchilada recipe. What am I doing wrong???
Hi Pamela, You’re not doing anything wrong. I’m aware of how they work – giving you a snippet, followed by an ad and then moving on to another video. I wish it didn’t work that way and have requested that it be changed, but the network that I work with presents the videos that way and isn’t flexible to change them – frustrating for me too! If you see a recipe video that you’d like to see more of us, just search for the recipe on my blog, and one of the search results on the page will be the video. Just a heads up that while you’re viewing it, about 1/3 of the way through, you’ll get two little buttons show up on the right side of the video saying “next” or “stay?” Just click on the stay button and you should see the remainder of the video with no ad. Hope that helps and that you enjoy the lasagna if you make it!
This was the best homemade lasagna I’ve ever had. Served for friends. Recipe is perfect and I wouldn’t change a thing BUT in case you are missing heavy cream and cream cheese like I was, no worries! I bet they make the recipe better but it was perfectly fine without. All I had was 2% milk and a bit of cornstarch to sub for cream. Can’t wait to follow recipe as written.
Hi Jenn! I am in love with this lasagna and making it for a party of 14 this weekend. May I ask….would you make a double batch and cook in a larger pan OR would you do two separate? If one large pan, would the cook time increase? If you did 2 separate, can you bake at one time? I plan to make the night before and just bake the next day. I cannot thank you enough for your patience and advice! And for the outstanding recipes.
-Maura
Hi Maura, so glad you like the recipes! If you have the option to make it in two pans, I’d go that route as it ensures that they will bake evenly. You can bake them at the same time – just keep in mind that they may take a few extra minutes as the oven will be more crowded. Hope everyone enjoys!
Thank you so much! 🙂