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Really, you can’t beat the classics.
Classics are always good and most people love them. They never disappoint.
This is the story of the way I make lasagna through photos. Be prepared, there are lots of photos, but I think you guys will find them helpful.
When I make lasagna I always, always, make my own pasta. To me it is easier than boiling a pot of water, draining and messing with dried lasagna sheets.
Of course, I do have a stand mixer that pretty much does all the work for me. If I had to do it by hand I might be singing a different tune. If you are not into the homemade pasta feel free to swap in dried lasagna noodles.
You can definitely make pasta by hand, I even included directions on how to do this. But I am not going to lie, I personally think using a mixer makes life so much easier.
So I took lots of photos to help you guys out. I promise though, it is pretty easy, especially once you get the hang of it. For me now, I don’t even think about, I just do it.
The dough comes together in minutes, then rolling it out is simple.
I use this KitchenAid attachment for my stand mixer and I LOVE it. I used to have one that attached to the counter, but this is so much easier. It stays still and the mixer does all the cranking for you. Yes!
Ok, and now the sauce. the sauce simmers for at least two hours, but if you can, let it simmer all day and then place it in the fridge overnight. This makes for the best sauce. It allows the flavors to settle and get all delicious.
Plus, it makes the whole process of making lasagna a lot less daunting.
The way I like to make my lasagna is to make the sauce, let it simmer all day and then place it in the fridge overnight.
The next day I make the pasta, béchamel and then assemble the lasagna.
And then I place it all back in the fridge. Again.
And then the next day I bake.
I know it seems like a process, but I have found this is the easiest way to do it. However, you can completely skip all the overnight fridge time and make this in one day, but it is still a process. It is lasagna, not chicken and rice.
My family absolutely loves this lasagna. Everyone eats it (yes, I mean the whole family, which if you read regularly, you know this is a big deal!), and the leftovers. Later they wish there were more leftovers.
It is a great thing.
Unlike most lasagna, I use a mixture of spicy ground italian chicken sausage and ground chicken. You can use beef if you like, but I love a little spice.
I think is works with all the cheese!
Oh, and just like in any other traditional lasagna, I use a béchamel sauce. Only mine is not just butter, milk and parmesan, I also add provolone (so good) and a pinch of nutmeg. The béchamel makes the lasagna.
I make this at least two or three times throughout the month of December.
One, it feeds a ton.
Two, everyone loves it.
Three, it is kind of pretty to look at and people seem to be really impressed when you make a real lasagna.
It is pure winter comfort food.
Cozy, cheesy and so good.
FYI, don’t think I am drinking this wine.
Nope, that would be pomegranate juice in those glasses. No wine drinkers in my house, so I subbed pomegranate juice and it worked.
Extra Cheesy Classic Homemade Lasagna.
Servings: 10
Calories Per Serving: 1767 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
Lasagna
- 4 ounces pancetta chopped (optional, but adds great flavor)
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 small onion diced
- 2 cloves garlic minced or grated
- 1 red pepper diced
- 3/4 pound ground spicy italian chicken sausage or regular spicy italian sausage
- 1/4 pound ground chicken or ground beef
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- 1 teaspoon dried parsley
- 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 (28 ounce) can crushed tomatoes
- 4 tablespoons tomato paste
- 2 cups water
- 1 cup milk I use 2%
Béchamel Sauce
- 4 tablespoons butter
- 1/4 cup flour
- 2 1/2 cups milk I use 2%
- 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
- 2 cups provolone cheese shredded, divided
- 1/2 cup parmesan cheese grated, plus more for serving
- 1 cup mozzarella cheese shredded
- chopped parsley for garnish
Instructions
Fresh Pasta Dough
- 1. To make the dough using a stand mixer. Add the flour and eggs to the bowl and knead the dough, using the dough hook on medium speed until the dough comes together and forms a ball. If your dough seems dry add water 1 teaspoon at a time, being careful not to add too much water. I add 4-6 teaspoons. The dough should be moist, but not too sticky. If you add too much water just add a teaspoon of flour at a time to balance it out. 2. To make the dough by hand. Mix the eggs into the flour in a bowl usuing your hands until a shaggy dough forms. Dump the dough out onto a floured surface and knead the dough with your hands until firm and smooth, about 8 minutes. Shape into a ball. 3. Divide the dough into four balls and place each ball in a sandwich bag.
Lasagna
- Make the sauce. In a heavy bottomed pot, cook 1 tablespoon of olive oil and the pancetta over medium heat, stirring, until the pancetta is lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Add the onion, garlic and red pepper and cook, stirring, until the veggies are softened, about 5 minutes. Push the veggies off to the side of the pan and increase the heat to medium-high. Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil to the center of the pan and crumble in the ground sausage, ground chicken or ground beef. Cook without stirring for 3 minutes and then begin breaking up the meat and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until well browned, about 5 minutes. Add the oregano, basil, parsley and thyme. Cook another minute or so.
- Add the tomatoes, tomato paste, 2 cups water, 1 cup milk, bay leaf, salt and pepper to the pot. Cover the pot and simmer the sauce, stirring occasionally, until thickened, about 2-3 hours. If the sauce seems too watery after 2 hours remove the lid and simmer until thickened. Discard the bay leaf, taste to season with salt and pepper. Remove from the heat. At this point the sauce can be placed in the fridge overnight or up to 3 days. You may also freeze the sauce.
- Quarter the dough and shape into 4 balls. Place each ball in a sandwich bag. Set aside.
- Now make the Béchamel Sauce. Melt the butter over medium heat. Add the flour and cook, whisking constantly, for 1 minute. Whisk in the milk in a steady stream. Add the nutmeg and simmer for 3-5 minutes, whisking until thickened. Remove from the heat, stir in provolone and parmesan and season with salt and pepper. Let cool, stirring occasionally to prevent a skin from forming.
- To assemble the lasagna grease a 9x13 inch baking dish. If baking the lasagna right away Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
- Spoon a little of the red sauce over the bottom of the dish. Grab 1 ball of pasta dough and flatten the dough. Lightly dust the dough with flour, brushing off excess. Set a pasta machine to the widest setting; run the dough through. Fold the dough into thirds like a letter, then run it through again, short end first. Run it through 2 more times, dusting with flour if it seems too sticky. Now switch to the 2nd setting and roll all the dough sheets through the machine again. Switch to the 3rd setting and roll the sheets through again. Switch to the 4th setting and roll the sheets through again. Now switch to the 5th setting and roll the sheet through the machine one last time. All machines vary, but I find I like the 5th setting for lasagna sheets. Generally, when you see your hand through the pasta sheet, it's thin enough to cut.
- Cut the sheet of dough to fit inside your dish. I can normally get 2 long and wide noodles + enough extra dough on the ends to fully make one layer of pasta cover the bottom of the pan. If this is not the case just form the extra dough into a ball and roll it out again. Fit into the pan where it is needed.
- Now spoon about 1/2 of the remaining red sauce over the noodles. Drizzle about 1/3 of the Béchamel on top of that.
- Grab another dough ball of pasta and roll it out just as you did above. Layer the pasta over the Béchamel. Now add the remaining red sauce and another 1/3 of the Béchamel. Roll out another ball of dough and layer the pasta. Add the remaining 1 cup of provolone cheese and the mozzarella cheese. Roll out the last ball of dough and layer it over the cheese layer. Pour the remaining Béchamel over the noodles and then sprinkle with a little shredded provolone and mozzarella.
- Spray a piece of foil with cooking spray and cover the the lasagna. At this point the lasagna can be placed in the fridge for up to 3 days or frozen.
- Bake, covered for 1 hour and then uncovered for 15 minutes more. Let stand for 15-20 minutes before slicing. If your lasagna was cold bake, covered for 15-30 minutes longer.
Carbs make Monday bearable.
*Don’t forget to enter to win A KitchenAid Stand mixer. The giveaway is going on right now. Enter here!
I know you posted this recipe years ago, but it’s still amazing! I was looking for a completely homemade, labor intensive, lasagna recipe to make on Christmas and this was perfect! The bechamel sauce I was worried about vs the normal ricotta but it added so much flavor. Instead of spicy italian sausage, I threw in 3 arbol peppers to simmer with the sauce but other than that I made it exactly as written. Thank you for giving me something to occupy my time and then pass out from eating way too much 🙂
Hey Amanda,
Thanks so much for giving the recipe a try, I am so glad you enjoyed! Happy Holidays! xTieghan
Made this last night with the homemade noodles and cooked it in a Dutch oven and it was the best thing I’ve ever eaten. The homemade noodles make it next level and cooked perfectly. Did the prep work Sunday and stored in fridge overnight and it baked perfectly Monday night! Simply the best.
Hey LeeAnn,
I am thrilled to hear that this recipe was a hit, thanks so much for making it and sharing your review! xTieghan
Can I use almond milk instead?
Hey Emily,
Yes, almond milk will work. I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! Happy Holidays! xTieghan
Can I half the recipe!? If so, what size of pan should I use??
Hey Emily,
Yes, you can cut this in half, I would use a 9 inch baking dish. I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! Happy Holidays! xTieghan
How is the texture of the pasta without pre-boiling the sheets prior to assembly? Is this step not necessary? Thank you.
Hey Mark,
Totally fine, you would never know they weren’t pre boiled! I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
Hands down best lasagna ever! It is spot on! I made the lasagna sheets from scratch (always prefer making my own pasta), and it took me three hours altogether but so worth it. Left it in the fridge overnight before baking it and I believe really helped with the flavour – divine!
Thank you!! I am so happy to hear that! xTieghan
I second the “lasagna soup” comment. I noticed some small typos in the recipe (items said to be added in instructions and not in ingredient list, errors in description of crushed tomato size, etc.) and I believe there may be a typo in the quantity of milk in the cheese sauce? The tomato sauce is amazing and the cheeses smelled great, but the cheese sauce was nearly the consistency of just pouring milk straight on the noodles.
Hey Kari, I am so sorry the recipe had some typo. I have looked it over and now fixed all the typos. Please let me know if you have any other questions. I hope you love this recipe! Thank you!! xTieghan
This is my all time favourite lasagne recipe! I cook the sauce uncovered for the whole 2 hours and it thickens up quite nicely. I also just use thin oven ready noodles and it turns out amazing. The Bechamel sauce is what really makes this next level.
I am so glad this turned out so well for you Erica! Thank you so much for trying this! xTieghan
Hi, I have been wanting to try to make fresh pasta; you are always my first go-to for recipes. When pasta sheets are fresh, I don’t have to boil them before layering in the lasagna? Thanks for all your inspiration.
Hi Lori! No need to boil the fresh lasagna sheets. They will cook up perfectly in the lasagna as is. Please let me know if you have any other questions. I hope you love this recipe! Thank you! xTieghan
Hello – I would like to make this lasagna ahead, freeze & then take to the mountains this Christmas to bake for friends staying in a cabin. How would the recipe need to be revised so that it can be frozen & baked off later? Thanks very much!
HI! Assemble the lasagna as directied, but do not bake. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and freeze. Thaw before baking and bake as directed. That will be great! Please let me know if you have any other questions. I hope you love this recipe. Thanks so much! xTieghan
Could you use fresh mozzarella on the top and/or before the last layer of pasta?
Thank you so much, most amazing lasagna, making it for the 2nd time!!
Sure! Fresh mozzarella will be great! Please let me know if you have other questions. Hope you love this recipe! Thanks! 🙂
Ugh…. This lasagna is so flipping sinful! The best I or anyone in my house hold has ever had! My picky kids loved it, my husband loved it, and I was excited that I didn’t ruin it that I gave some to our best friends and THEY LOVED IT TOO! It’s spectacular! If you come to this recipe and turn away because you feel intimidated…. well…. YOU ARE MISSING OUT! Do yourself a favor and just MAKE THE DANG LASAGNA! Wednesday is our 9 year anniversary and this is what my husband has requested for me to make and I am so excited that he did. We are doing weight watchers, but are taking the night off to enjoy an amazing meal and talk about how amazing the past 9 years has been to us! Thank you so much for this recipe and for giving couples a meal to celebrate a successful marriage over! All others fall WAY short!
<3 Cori
You are too sweet! Thank you so much Cori, I am so glad you loved this lasagna! I hope you continue to love my recipes!
I made this for a holiday party I hosted yesterday along with two of your other recipes, Everything came out delicious, but this recipe was a standout! I loved that this was easy to make in staged. I had a busy week, so I made the sauce earlier mid-week, purchased pasta from a local store that sells fresh pasta, and cut corners buy using pre-shredded cheese. Then, on Saturday, I made the bechamel, assembled the lasagna and left it in the fridge all day until it was time to bake. I pulled it out of the oven while the guests were settling in and everyone oohed and ahed at the lovely end product. An instant favorite that I’m stashing away for later. Thanks!
This is so awesome! I am so glad you enjoyed this Jennifer! Thanks!
Holy stink!
I was intimidated by all the steps, but in hind sight this was quite easy (I used store bought pasta). It’s a labour of love, and holy smokes it’s delicious. Perfect for these snowy winter nights.
I am really glad this turned out great for you Alison! Thank you!!
Hi! I don’t have a pasta machine, can I just roll the pasta dough by the rolling pin?
Yes, that works great! Let me know if you have other questions. Hope you love this recipe! Thanks you! 🙂
My 12 year old daughter and I made this together yesterday! It is the most amazing lasagna I have ever had!!! My daughter made the homemade lasagna noddles all by herself! We had so much fun in the kitchen together!!! Thank you so much for such an amazing recipe! My daughter was looking at your blog while the lasagna was cooking and saw that you have a cookbook coming out! She asked right away if she could get that for Christmas! I can’t wait to surprise her with it for Christmas and to make all of your yummy recipes with her!!!!
OH MY GOSH!! This sounds like so much fun (: Puts a smile on my face!
Your daughter sound so cute!! I love that she likes making food!! Thank you so much Lindsay!