Italian-Style Lasagna-My Way

Submitted by gailanng

"Don't second guess the cream cheese cubes--it's wonderful! Can freeze either prior to or after baking."

 

• Ready In: 2hrs 20mins
• Ingredients: 19
• Serves: 10-12

ingredients

• 2 lbs lean ground beef
• 1 lb Italian sausage, casing removed and crumbled
• 2 onions, chopped
• 2 stalks celery, finely chopped
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 (15 ounce) cans tomatoes (diced or crushed)
• 1 (6 ounce) can tomato paste
• 1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce
• 3 teaspoons salt (approximately)
• 1 teaspoon pepper
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 2 tablespoons dried Italian seasoning
• 2 bay leaves
• 1⁄4 cup parsley, minced
• 4 ounces cream cheese, diced
• 3 -4 cups shredded cheddar cheese, divided
• 1 -2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
• 1⁄2 - 1 cup parmesan cheese, grated
• 1 lb lasagna noodle, prepared according to package directions and drained

directions

1. Fry together ground beef and Italian sausage until no longer pink; drain.
2. Add onion, celery and garlic; cook about 5 minutes.
3. Add to meat mixture the remaining 8 ingredients; cook covered for 30-45 minutes, adding small amounts of water if necessary and stirring frequently. Mixture should be relatively thick. Remove from heat and stir in minced parsley.
4. Preheat oven 350 degrees. Grease lasagna baking pan.
5. Layer a small amount of meat sauce in bottom of baking pan (about 1 cup), topping with about 5 noodles, overlapping slightly. Top lasagna noodles with more sauce, several pieces of cream cheese and the 3 cheeses all equally divided between remaining layers. Repeat until sauce, noodles and cheese are used up.
6. Cover baking pan with foil (can grease underside of foil, too) and bake 40 minutes; remove foil from pan and return to oven, baking an additional 10 minutes or until bubbly.
7. Let stand 10 minutes before cutting.

Reviews

[kellychris]

This is definately a GREAT lasagna!! I was expecting "just another lasagna", but this one really excited me! Thanks so much- will be making again!! Oh- and thanks for the wonderful tip on spraying the aluminum foil with oil! DEFINATELY need to remember that- :)

 

[foodtvfan]

An extra cheesy delicious lasagna recipe added to my favorite recipezaar recipes binder! Made two 9 inch square casseroles, exactly as written, and froze one unbaked for later. I spread the lightly cooked lasagna noodles in a single layer on a lightly oiled cookie sheet to prevent sticking while assembling the lasagna. Served with garden salad and garlic bread.

 

[teresas]

Delicious! I also cut the recipe in half but used a 9X7 inch baking dish. The noodles fit perfectly in the pan with three layers of three noodles overlapping a bit. I used a sweet Italian sausage. Loved the flavor of the sauce. I did add an additional oz of cream cheese giving me 1 oz per layer. The cream cheese doesn't melt but does give you a nice burst of cheesiness when you bite into it. Thanks for posting. :)

 

[susan kline]

How is it Italian style without ricotta cheese?

 

[CoffeeB]

I cut this recipe in 1/2 and made it into a 9x9. Really good and filling meal for DH and DS. I omitted the celery but otherwise followed the recipe as written. I also should add I didn't boil my noodles ahead of time as I quit doing that some time ago upon learning that it really isn't needed:-) Thanks for a great supper!~ Made for PRMR.