This is a huge recipe which creates about 4 pans worth of Lasagna. Making it is a great way to spend a cold fall or winter weekend. You really need at least 2 people to create this masterpiece. The lasagna can be frozen in single serving portions for those days when you don't feel like cooking, and the "send same pizza" trick on the phone is not quite satisfying enough.
Ingredients (makes 4 large pans)
- 2 medium onions
- 2 heads of garlic (yes that's heads, not cloves!)
- 3 cans diced tomatoes (we use Muir Glen Organic brand 28 fl oz. or 796ml)
- 4 cans crushed tomatoes (we use Muir Glen Organic brand 28 fl oz. or 796ml)
- 2 cans tomato paste (optional - use if you want the sauce to be thicker)(we use Muir Glen Organic brand 6oz or 170g)
- 4 ricotta tubs (about 475g each)
- 1 large bunch fresh basil (about 1/2 cup when chopped)
- 1 large bunch fresh oregano
- 1 small bunch fresh thyme
- 3 mozzarella balls (about 340g each)
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (+ oil for lasagna pans + oil for bowl used to hold separated cooked noodles)
- 2 pounds extra lean ground beef
- 2 packages lasagne noodles (DeCecco brand fits well into pans)
- fresh ground pepper to taste
- 4 lasagna pans (9 inches x 12 inches x 2 inches)
Instructions for Lasagna
Put on contact lenses (the steam from the process will fog your glasses).
Finely chop onion and 1 head of garlic. In a very large pot saute onion and garlic in olive oil until translucent.
Add all cans of tomato to the very large pot. Add oregano and thyme. Add pepper to taste. Simmer on medium heat until thick, at least 1 hour. Make a mess everywhere. (OK, so the "make a mess everywhere" isn't an instruction... but it's gonna happen!)
Chop basil. In a medium bowl combine ricotta and basil. Put in fridge until needed.
Grate mozzarella. Put in a bowl in the fridge until needed.
Finely chop second head of garlic. Brown beef and garlic in a frying pan. Add pepper to taste. Drain meat and put in bowl. Set aside until needed.
After about 1 hour or so of simmering the tomato sauce, take sauce off heat and set aside.
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
Count the number of noodles in the package. Plan ahead, you want 3 layers of noodles with equal numbers of the noodles, and any extra noodles should be on the bottom of the pans!
Boil water for the lasagna noodles. Cook 1 package of lasagna noodles according to instructions on package. Do not overcook the noodles. Use the water the noodles were cooked in to keep them wet while separating each noodle. Put separated noodles on sides of a large oiled bowl.
Set up lasagna assembly line on one counter: Oil 2 lasagna pans, put them in the middle. Put bowl with noodles above pans to the left. Put tomato sauce to the left of the pans. Put bowl of meat, bowl of ricotta, and bowl of mozzarella in a line above pans.
Layer noodles, sauce, ricotta, beef, mozzarella. Repeat. Repeat a 3rd time for the top layer but put only sauce and mozzarella on the top noodle layer.
Boil more water for the second round and repeat process.
Bake at 375 degrees F for 25 minutes. Bake 2 pans at a time. Let sit after removing from oven for about 10 minutes before consuming.
Keep in fridge over night and cut into freezable portions the next day.