Get the Mouthwatering Recipe for the Best Lasagna With Ricotta Cheese

I’m a firm believer that every cook just has to have comfort food up their sleeve. This recipe for lasagna with ricotta cheese ends up so soft, tender, and yummy, that it not only works as great comfort food, but it’s also elegant enough for those gatherings and holidays.

I should probably mention that there is a lot of cheese in this lasagna. There are three kinds of cheese, combined with a hot and meaty tomato sauce, and layered in the perfect order. So, if you’re wondering how to make lasagna with ricotta cheese, let’s take a look.

Jump to:

• Ingredients
• Instructions
• Substitutions
• Variations
• Equipment
• Storage
• Tips
• Recipe For Lasagna With Ricotta Cheese
• Comments

Ingredients

1. Base ingredients

• Lasagna noodles — 1 pound, uncooked.
• Parmesan cheese — 1 cup, shredded.
• Mozzarella cheese — 3 ½ cups, shredded.

2. Tomato sauce

• Ground beef — 1 pound.
• Italian sausage — ½ pound.
• Onion — 1 pc., diced.
• Garlic — 2 cloves, minced.
• Tomato paste — 2 ½ tbsp.
• Italian seasoning — 1 ½ tbsp.
• Olive oil — 1 tbsp. 
• Sugar — 1 tbsp.

3. Ricotta cheese filling

• Ricotta cheese — 2 ½ cups.
• Eggs — 2 pc., large.
• Salt and pepper — to taste.

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

2. Heat the olive oil in a skillet on medium heat.

3. Place the Italian sausage and the ground beef in the skillet, breaking up the ground beef.

4. Add the onion and garlic.

5. Cook until the meat is browned, which should take up to 10 minutes.

6. Then add tomato paste, Italian seasoning, sugar, your preferred herbs, salt, and pepper to taste.

7. Stir well until combined.

8. Cover and let it simmer for between 1-2 hours. Don’t forget to stir occasionally.

9. Cook the lasagna noodles according to package instructions, which should take about 10 minutes.

10. Drain and rinse the noodles under cold water.

11. Set it aside for now.

12. Combine the ricotta cheese, mozzarella cheese, and parmesan cheese with two large eggs in a mixing bowl.

13. Add ⅓ tbsp. salt. Add the remaining Italian seasoning.

14. Spread ⅓ cup of meat sauce on the bottom of the casserole dish.

15. Follow by layering three lasagna noodles, with ⅓ of the cheese filling and 1 cup of meat sauce.

16. Repeat until you’re out of ingredients.

17. Cover with foil and bake for between 30-45 minutes.

18. Remove the foil and bake for another 20 minutes.

19. Let your ricotta cheese lasagna rest for 15 minutes.

Substitutions

• Oil — Olive oil is usually the go-to oil when it comes to cooking. Other options for this lasagna recipe include canola oil, coconut oil, and even butter if you’re willing.

• Cottage cheese — Admittedly, this whole recipe is all about how to make lasagna with ricotta cheese. However, if you’ve made up your mind about finding a substitute for ricotta cheese, you might want to try cottage cheese. The two have a fairly similar taste and they are generally used interchangeably when it comes to cooking, regardless of the dish. Since it is wetter than ricotta, you might want to use one more egg to bind the cottage cheese together.

• Herbs — If you’re short on Italian seasoning or you’d just rather make your own seasoning instead of using a store-bought one, try dried oregano and basil. ½ tbsp. of each would be enough for a great seasoning. If you’re feeling a bit spicier, go for thyme or rosemary.

Variations

• Vegetarian — Though a dairy-free version of this recipe for lasagna with ricotta cheese doesn’t really make sense for obvious reasons, you can still go for a vegetarian version with a few tweaks. Try tofu, which is a great replacement for ground beef. Just make sure that you remove the excess water before using it. Pressing the tofu is also a good way to make sure that it has a firm, structured texture. For Italian sausage, you can use a plant-based sausage, though it can also be omitted completely too.

• Gluten-free — If you’re wondering how to make your ricotta cheese lasagna gluten-free, the answer is pretty simple; all it takes is one simple change — gluten-free lasagna noodles. They should be pretty easy to find, and they just taste so similar that your lasagna will still be yummy and delicious. We recommend adding gluten-free veggies, such as spinach, mushrooms, and kale. Just chop them and add them to your skillet.

Equipment

• Skillet.

• Measuring spoons and cups.

• Medium-sized mixing bowl.

• 9 x 13 casserole dish.

• Oven.

Storage

• Cover any leftovers tightly and store them in your fridge for later, for up to a week at most. Freezing the leftover lasagna is another option, which would increase its life by up to three months.

Tips

• Make ahead — If you suspect you’ll be short on time, you can easily make this creamy delight ahead and freeze it. You can just simply bake it when the time comes and you’ll be ready to go.

• Try wine — Try adding a splash of wine to your tomato sauce. You’ll get a unique and deep flavor, using either red or white wine. Though you can also opt for beef stock instead of wine, it just won’t taste the same.

• The deeper the better — Make sure that your casserole dish is at least 3 inches deep so that you can fit the layers of your lasagna more comfortably.