Ingredients
- 1 pound sweet Italian sausage
- 3/4 pound lean ground beef
- 1/2 cup minced onion
- 2 cloves garlic, crushed
- 1 (28 ounce) can crushed tomatoes
- 2 (6 ounce) cans tomato paste
- 2 (6.5 ounce) cans canned tomato sauce
- 1/2 cup water
- 2 tablespoons white sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoons dried basil leaves
- 1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1 tablespoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 4 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
- 12 lasagna noodles
- 16 ounces ricotta cheese
- 1 egg
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 pound mozzarella cheese, sliced
- 3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Directions
1. In a Dutch oven, cook sausage, ground
beef, onion, and garlic over medium heat
until well browned. Stir in crushed
tomatoes, tomato paste, tomato sauce,
and water. Season with sugar, basil, fennel
seeds, Italian seasoning, 1 tablespoon salt,
pepper, and 2 tablespoons parsley.
Simmer, covered, for about 1 1/2 hours,
stirring occasionally.
2. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to
a boil. Cook lasagna noodles in boiling
water for 8 to 10 minutes. Drain noodles,
and rinse with cold water. In a mixing
bowl, combine ricotta cheese with egg,
remaining parsley, and 1/2 teaspoon salt.
3. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190
degrees C).
4. To assemble, spread 1 1/2 cups of meat
sauce in the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking
dish. Arrange 6 noodles lengthwise over
meat sauce. Spread with one half of the
ricotta cheese mixture. Top with a third of
mozzarella cheese slices. Spoon 1 1/2
cups meat sauce over mozzarella, and
sprinkle with 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese.
Repeat layers, and top with remaining
mozzarella and Parmesan cheese. Cover
with foil: to prevent sticking, either spray
foil with cooking spray, or make sure the
foil does not touch the cheese.
5. Bake in preheated oven for 25 minutes.
Remove foil, and bake an additional 25
minutes. Cool for 15 minutes before
serving.