Beef Lasagna Recipe

This Beef Lasagna Recipe is a little long and drawn out but it can be done in stages.

Do the sauce ahead of time and refrigerate.

Cooking the noodles and the assembly can be done up to 3 days later.

The sauce can also be frozen which means you can have an Italian dinner on the table in a hurry for several months.

Beef Lasagna Recipe

Tomato Sauce:

1/4 cup olive or salad oil
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
1 clove crushed garlic
2 tsp. finely chopped parsley
1/2 lb. ground beef chuck
1/4 lb. ground pork
1/4 tsp. Pepper
1 can (2 lb. 3 oz.) Italian tomatoes, undrained
2 cans (6 oz.) tomato paste
1 tsp. dried basil leaves
2 tsp. dried oregano leaves
1 Tbsp. Salt
2 Tbsp. Sugar

Slowly heat the oil in a large deep heavy skillet. In the hot oil, sauté the onion, garlic and parsley until the onion is tender, about 5 minutes. Add the beef chuck and pork to the skillet.

Sauté the meat, stirring occasionally until well browned. Add the rest of the sauce ingredients to the skillet and stir to mix well. Bring to boiling and then reduce the heat and simmer, covered, for 3 hours. Stir occasionally during the cooking.

Beef Lasagna Recipe Ingredients

1 tsp. Salt
1 tsp. olive or salad oil
1/2 pkg. (1 lb. size) lasagna noodles
1 lb. Ricotta
1 lb. Mozzarella cheese, grated
1 jar (3 oz.) grated Parmesan cheese

In a large kettle bring 3 quarts of water and the salt to boiling. Add the olive oil. Add the lasagna noodles 2 or 3 pieces at a time to the boiling water and then return the water to boiling. Cook, uncovered, 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Drain and rinse under hot water. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 13 x 9 x 2-inch baking dish.

Assemble The Lasagna

Spoon 1/3 of the tomato sauce into the bottom of the prepared dish and spread evenly. Layer 1/3 each of the noodles, Ricotta, Mozzarella and Parmesan cheese over the sauce layer. Repeat the layering twice, beginning with sauce and ending with Parmesan.

Bake, uncovered, 45 to 50 minutes or until the cheese is melted and the top is browned.

Let the lasagna stand 10 to 15 minutes before cutting to make serving easier. Makes 9 servings.

Decorative Beef Lasagna Recipe Topping

Sliced Mozzarella cheese, cut into long narrow strips
Chopped fresh parsley
Grated Parmesan cheese

Amounts are hard to judge; depends on size of lasagna and what amount you might need to cover.

For the final topper to your beef lasagna recipe, instead of the usual sprinkling of Mozzarella or Parmesan, make an inviting design.

Arrange the Mozzarella strips in a lattice pattern on top of lasagna. Alternate green parsley and white Parmesan cheese in the holes created by the lattice.

I would do this after lasagna is almost done, returning the lasagna to the oven to melt the Mozzarella and lightly brown the Parmesan. The parsley may overcook otherwise and lose its green color.

The red, white and green colors of the dish reflect the colors of the Italian flag and also make a perfect holiday presentation.

Whether you decide to use the decorative topping or not this Beef Lasagna Recipe is great party fair. Give it a try and wow your guests.

More Ground Beef Recipes: