Easy Lasagna
photo by Swirling F.
- Ready In:
- 1hr 20mins
- Ingredients:
- 11
- Serves:
-
8
ingredients
- 1 egg, beaten
- 1⁄4 cup parmesan cheese
- 1 1⁄2 teaspoons italian seasoning
- 1 (16 ounce) container cottage cheese, divided
- 2 cups grated mozzarella cheese, divided
- 1 lb ground beef
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1⁄2 cup water
- 2 (26 ounce) cans chunky spaghetti sauce
- 1 (12 ounce) box oven-ready lasagna noodles, uncooked
directions
- Preheat oven to 350°.
- In a mixing bowl, combine the egg, parmesan cheese, Italian seasoning, cottage cheese, and 1 cup mozzarella cheese; set aside.
- In a large skillet, brown the beef, onion, and garlic together until the beef is done; drain excess grease.
- Add water and all but 1 cup of spaghetti sauce to beef.
- Spread reserved spaghetti sauce into the bottom of a greased 13x9 inch pan.
- Layer 5 to 6 lasagna noodles over the sauce, overlapping or breaking to fit.
- Spread half the cheese mixture over the noodles.
- Spoon a third of the beef mixture over the cheese layer.
- Repeat layers once.
- Add one more layer of 5 to 6 noodles and spoon remaining third of beef mixture over the top.
- Cover and bake 50 minutes.
- Sprinkle remaining mozzarella cheese over the top.
- Let stand 5 minutes before serving.
Reviews
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This was so quick and easy! Everyone loved it. I was surprised that I like the cottage cheese in the recipe. I could only find 16 ounce boxes of lasagna noodles and I used all but 4 of them. I also boiled the noodles because they were not oven-ready. This recipe really fills the pan! Thanks NurseDi!
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This is the recipe I use, after trying many that were too much work or didn't have the right consistency. I do add one more egg to the cheese mixture, 1/2 cup Parmesan instead of 1/4, and often use ricotta instead of cottage cheese. I also omit the onion for picky eaters. I use whole wheat noodles, and don't precook, as baking it covered with plenty of sauce does the trick. My family also likes it if I use less ricotta or cottage cheese and make up for it with more mozzarella. Zucchini shredded into the sauce is good too, just use that much less sauce.
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Tweaks
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I never use "oven ready" lasagna and I stopped pre-cooking regular lasagna noodles ages ago. I layer uncooked noodles with meat or cheese. After all layers are complete I add about 1-1 1/2 C. water to pasta sauce jar to "rinse" it out. I pour the sauce-y water into the pan (in between the layers) cover with foil and bake. The noodles absorb the water and they come out perfectly tender. Bake at 375 degrees for about 45 minutes. Uncover, add a layer of mozzarella and bake another 15 minutes. After removing from oven let rest for about 15-20 minutes. Perfect lasagna every time!