Next Post
Salted Caramel and Milk Chocolate Brownies.
This post may contain affiliate links, please see our privacy policy for details.
My go-to dinner for feeding the family, Pesto Bolognese Lasagna. Slow cooked Italian style Bolognese sauce with a mix of beef, peppers, sweet tomatoes, and herbs. All layered with basil pesto ricotta, provolone cheese, and no-boil lasagna noodles. This is the classic lasagna updated with an easier method and so much more flavor. Serve this topped with a generous amount of parmesan cheese for a comforting lasagna that everyone will love. This is a great make ahead dinner to serve to family or use for your next holiday dinner party.
We’re officially just one week from Christmas Eve, and two weeks from New Year’s Eve. I’m hoping that soon everyone will be settling into a much slower holiday mode, and preparing to spend some time with family and friends over the next couple of weeks.
For me, I have a few more busy days ahead. But I’m really looking forward to at least a couple of days off. I’ll be spending time with my parents, siblings, and cousins who will all be with us this Christmas. And little miss Asher and I have a Christmas afternoon planned later this week. It’s truly my favorite time of year. I love that no matter how busy or crazy things are with work and life, everything slows for a couple of days, the snow falls (hopefully), and we all just take a minute to breath.
All of my siblings are already here except Brendan and Lyndsie, but the rest of the family arrives this Friday. Before the chaos that comes with eighteen people arrives, I’m attempting to get ahead by prepping a few dinners. It’s much easier said than done, but as said, lasagna are my go-to when it comes to feeding the masses.
I make one white lasagna, and one or two more classic lasagna. Last week I shared my favorite white pesto lasagna. This week it’s time for the more classic, Bolognese style, lasagna.
This is without a doubt everyone’s favorite dish. The boys of the house look forward to this lasagna ever single year. I’ve yet to meet anyone who doesn’t love it. Unless you are vegetarian in which case you should definitely check out my white lasagna.
The secret is all in the sauce. A slow cooked Bolognese sauce is what makes for the best, classic lasagna. I like to make mine with a mix of vegetables, spicy Italian sausage, lean ground beef, sweet tomatoes, and milk (for richness). It’s basically my slow cooker Bolognese pasta, but instead of serving over pasta, we’re layering it into a lasagna.
You can cook the sauce in as little as thirty minutes. But I will not lie, it’s so much better if you can simmer the sauce over a low heat for a couple of hours. Even better? Simmer the sauce all day and then let chill overnight in the fridge. The added sitting time really allows for the flavors to mend and become mouth wateringly delicious. Obviously do what you have time for, either way this will be delicious. But if you can plan ahead, I would recommend doing so. Just make the sauce a day or two ahead of assembling the lasagna.
When you have the sauce all ready to go, it’s time to assemble.
The second secret to my lasagna is all in the cheese. Instead of just using ricotta, which in my opinion can sometimes be on the bland side if not seasoned properly, I like to mix a little basil pesto into the ricotta for extra flavor. You all know how much I love pesto. So I always have either some homemade or store-bought on hand to create quick dinners. It’s my go-to pantry ingredient that adds so much flavor.
I swirled a good amount of pesto into the ricotta. Then I layered with the Bolognese sauce, provolone cheese, and no-boil lasagna noodles.
If you wanted to add even another layer of flavor, a lot of times I’ll top my lasagna with pepperoni. I highly recommend this if you’re feeding a crowd that loves pizza. The pepperoni are always a hit.
I like to serve my lasagna with a wintry salad, the family’s favorite bread, and my spicy pomegranate mule for the ultimate welcoming holiday dinner.
What’s great about serving up a dish like lasagna is that I can make them completely ahead of time and have them baking when everyone shows up for dinner.
The best part though?
The smell, oh my goodness, it’s good. And trust me, this lasagna tastes just as good too.
If you make this lasagna, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to also tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Hi!! I am making this for a meal train! Would you recommend I prepare and then drop if off with baking instructions?
Thank you!! xx
Hey Carly,
You bet, that will work nicely for you! I hope you love this dish! xT
Hi! I’m going to make this for a dinner party. There will be 10 of us. We’ll be having appetizers before the meal. Will one recipe be enough?
Hi there! I would probably double the recipe just to be sure! xT
Thanks!
This is so very tasty! Thank you! I love the pesto mixed in with the ricotta. I made it on NYE so we would have food in the new year and we are enjoying it so much, even reheated! I couldn’t find shredded or a block of provolone, so I bought sliced and it was totally fine. I also added a carton of fresh cherry tomatoes as I had them and wanted to use them, and they blend it with the chopped/diced tomatoes so well you wouldn’t even know they were there. Highly recommend!
Thank you SO much! Always love to hear when a recipe is a success! Hope you have an amazing New Year! xT
I’ve made this before and loved it! Do you think I could add spinach to the ricotta? (block of frozen spinach- drained?)
Hi Katherine! Yes that would work just fine 🙂 xT
I will be making this for Christmas Eve dinner for 22 people. Should I wait til the day to assemble and bake? I’ll prepare the sauce a couple of days ahead.
Hi there! I would assemble the day of and bake! 🙂 xT
I’m hoping to make this for my family for Christmas! I’m curious if it would work to fully make this lasagna 2 days before baking it? Will it stay okay in the fridge for that long? Or should I wait to assemble until the day of? Thanks!
Hi there! I would probably wait to assemble it until the day of! xT
OBSESSED 🤩 I made this for my family Thanksgiving this year. We do not eat red meat so I did ground turkey and added butter to the sauce to fatten it up (since the turkey was so lean). Simmered the sauce for about 2 hours and honest to goodness I cannot believe how delicious this tastes. I think I’m going to make it again for Christmas. Perfect for a cozy date night or for feeding the masses 🤍
Hey Lynn,
I appreciate you making this recipe and your feedback! So glad it was enjoyed:) Have a great week! xT