Sweet Sausage and Three Cheese Lasagna

When I was kid lasagna was the only thing I would eat outside of hot dogs and my grandma's soup (oh how things have changed!) Over the weekend I got my weekend fix of the Food Network and watched my first episode of Ask Aida and she made Sweet Sausage and Three Cheese Lasagna. I was in the mood for some comfort food but with a twist so this fit the bill. It was DELICIOUS!!! Now I know some people aren't crazy about pork so you can make the whole thing with ground beef (just don't forget to skim off the fat before adding the tomatoes.) I actually substituted the lean ground pork for lean ground beef and I think the mix of the two flavors made it even better.

Sweet Sausage and Three Cheese Lasagna

Prep Time: 15 min

Inactive Prep Time: 20 min

Cook Time: 1 hr 25 min

Serves: 12 to 15 servings/10 cups sauce

For the sauce:
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 medium yellow onion, finely chopped (about 1 cup)
4 medium garlic cloves, thinly sliced
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 pound sweet Italian sausage, removed from casings and crumbled
1/2 pound lean ground pork
1/3 cup dry white wine
2 (28-ounce) containers crushed tomatoes
1 teaspoon dried basil (plus more for taste)
1 teaspoon dried oregano (plus more for taste)
Adobo (you know how much I love my Adobo!)
2 medium dried bay leaves

For the lasagna:
1 (9-ounce) box no-boil lasagna noodles
24 ounces ricotta cheese
1 pound mozzarella cheese, low-moisture or fresh, thinly sliced
2 cups finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano (about 2 ounces)

For the meat sauce: Heat oil in a Dutch oven or a large, heavy-bottomed pot over medium-high heat. When it shimmers, add onion and garlic, season well with salt and freshly ground black pepper and cook until just softened. Add sausage and ground pork and stir to break up meat. Cook, stirring occasionally, until meat starts to color, about 8 to 10 minutes. Add wine and cook, scraping bottom of pan to incorporate browned bits, until the alcohol smell is cooked off. Add tomatoes, 1 tablespoon salt, basil, oregano, bay leaf, and season well with freshly ground black pepper. Stir until well mixed and tomatoes start to simmer. Reduce heat to low and simmer, stirring occasionally, until flavors meld, at least 10 minutes and up to 1 hour.

For the lasagna: Heat oven to 375 degrees F and arrange rack in middle.

Spread 2 cups sauce in a thin layer over the bottom of a 13 by 9-inch baking dish. Layer 4 noodles over sauce, top with 2 cups sauce and spread it evenly over the noodles. Evenly dollop 1/4 of the ricotta across the sauce, top with 1/4 of the mozzarella, and sprinkle evenly with 1/4 cup Parmigiano-Reggiano. Repeat with remaining ingredients. Cover with foil and bake until liquids are bubbling and noodles are beginning to soften, about 40 minutes.

Remove foil and continue baking until top is golden brown and noodles are completely tender, about 20 minutes more. Allow to rest 20 minutes before cutting.


I actually had family over and was still able to gossip, dance, drink and watch an episode of The Housewives of the OC ( 45 minutes total) I figured that was enough simmer time for the sauce so I proceeded to layer and pop in the oven. I was surprised how well the no boil noodles cooked up--In my best Scarlet O'hara voice "as God as my witness I will never cook another lasagna noodle again." All jokes aside Darren loved this this he ate it for dinner and brought to work the next day for lunch. On a scale of 1-10 he gave it a 9!!!!

If you don't yet have something to bring to your family holiday gathering then I would highly recommend this.