Home » Blog » Course » Main Dish » Easy LasagnaEasy Lasagna Pin RecipeRate RecipePublished: Nov 25, 2021 · Modified: Jun 13, 2023 by Andrea + Stef · This post may contain affiliate links. Please see our full Disclosure Policy for details. Use jarred sauce and quick assembly techniques to make a delicious lasagna without all the fuss. Jump to Recipe Looking for the easiest way to make a delicious lasagna? This easy lasagna recipe has a great taste and is flavor packed without all of the extra time consuming process of making a classic lasagna recipe. Table of Contents EASY LASAGNA INGREDIENTSSUBSTITUTIONSPOSSIBLE VARIATIONSSERVING SUGGESTIONSINSTRUCTIONSSTORAGE TIPSMore Recipes You’ll LoveFREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONSWAYS TO USE LEFTOVERSEasy Lasagna RecipeMORE RECIPES YOU MIGHT LIKE This simple lasagna recipe is the perfect dish when you’re craving comfort food. Add it to your list of recipes for a special family gathering or a busy weeknight. EASY LASAGNA INGREDIENTS The best part of this easy lasagne recipe is that you may have all of these simple ingredients in your refrigerator or pantry and not need to make a trip to the grocery store! Check out the list of substitutions below if you’re missing something. Herbs + Spices: basil, parsley, garlic, thyme, salt, pepperCheese: ricotta, parmesan, mozzarellaNoodles: boil or no boil lasagna noodlesMarinara: jar of marinara sauce (pasta or spaghetti sauce) or use homemade marinaraOther: egg, ground pork, ground beef SUBSTITUTIONS Click the tabs to see possible substitutions for each of these ingredients. GROUND PORK AND BEEF: Use any variation of ground meat that you prefer. You can use all spicy Italian sausage, all beef or even substitute ground turkey or chicken. We like the combination of pork and beef but experiment a little to see what you prefer. If you use lean ground beef, ground chicken, turkey or any low fat content meat, you’ll want to add a couple tablespoons of olive oil to your pan before cooking the meat. This will prevent sticking. If you prefer, you can use a cooking spray. MARINARA SAUCE: Substitute a jar of pasta sauce for homemade marinara. Traditional lasagna recipes call for canned tomatoes, tomato sauce and tomato paste. Using a marinara sauce simplifies the recipe and makes it much easier to make. FRESH BASIL, FRESH PARSLEY, FRESH THYME, GARLIC: When substituting dry herb for fresh herbs remember that dry herbs tend to be more potent. A general rule of thumb is add 1 teaspoon of dry herb for every 1 tablespoon of fresh herb in the recipe. You can even use Italian Seasoning (from the spice aisle) if you have it. If you’re substituting garlic, we recommend a garlic powder not a garlic salt. RICOTTA CHEESE: Cottage cheese is a popular substitution for ricotta cheese. It has a bit more water content so increases the moisture in the lasagna. Best Marinara Sauce Pin Recipe Learn how to make spaghetti sauce. This is the best marinara sauce with red wine whether you call it pasta sauce or marinara sauce. 1 hour hour Check out this recipe POSSIBLE VARIATIONS ADD VEGETABLESSlice some zucchini, spinach or squash thinly and layer them in your lasagna for some extra nutrients. Many recipe call for bell peppers as well. We find green bell peppers to be a bit too bitter for this recipe so try a sweeter pepper like a red or orange pepper. Adding more vegetables will increase the dietary fiber and vitamins. It’s also a sneaky way to get people who are vegetable averse to eat more veggies. MAKE IT SPICYSwap out all the ground meat for a hot Italian sausage. We love a good spicy lasagna! SERVING SUGGESTIONS Enjoy this great recipe as an addition to a full meal with these other recipes: Salad: Italian Salad – This classic side dish is colorful and full of flavor!Side Dish: Italian Meatballs– These would make a great appetizer!Bread: Pizza Dough Garlic Knots – Dip these in your marinara! YUM!Drink: Red Wine Sangria – This is one of my all time favorite sangria recipes. Use the rest of the wine leftover from your marinara recipe.Dessert: No Bake Chocolate Lasagna – This needs no introduction! INSTRUCTIONS PREPARE: Place lasagna noodles in a 9×13 casserole dish and cover with hot water. Allow noodles to soak while preparing the meat sauce – you can alternately pre-cook your lasagna noodles in boiling water OR use the lasagna noodles labeled “Oven Ready” that do not require pre-cooking. COOK MEAT: In large skillet, brown ground beef and Italian sausage until no pink remains. Drain any excess oil from the skillet. ADD GARLIC: Add the minced garlic and saute 1-2 minutes longer, until fragrant. KITCHEN TIPDrain excess oil into a bowl. Once it hardens it’s easy to throw away in the trash. Do not drain oil down your sink drain. ADD MARINARA: Add the marinara sauce and herbs to the skillet. Bring sauce to a boil; reduce heat and simmer, covered, about 20 minutes to allow the flavors to marry together. MAKE CHEESE MIXTURE: In a medium bowl, combine ricotta, ½ cup parmesan, egg, salt, and pepper. COMBINE SHREDDED CHEESES: Add the remaining parmesan cheese to the mozzarella cheese and stir together. Set aside for assembling the lasagna. PREHEAT OVEN: Preheat oven to 375°F. REMOVE NOODLES FROM WATER: Remove lasagna noodles from the water and set aside to assemble the lasagna. Discard the soaking water. KITCHEN TIPRinse noodles with cold water to prevent them from sticking together quickly. ADD MEAT SAUCE TO DISH: Ladle just enough meat sauce into the casserole dish to cover the bottom of the pan. ADD LAYER OF NOODLES: Top with a single layer of lasagna noodles, tearing any noodles in half to cover the entire area of the pan. Spread about ⅓ of the ricotta mixture over the noodles. Top with ⅓ of the remaining sauce mixture. Sprinkle 1 cup of mozzarella cheese mixture over the sauce. FINISH LAYERS: Continue layering noodles, ricotta, sauce, and cheese until you have made three layers. Top the final layer with 2 cups of mozzarella cheese. COVER: Cover the lasagna with aluminum foil. Remove the aluminum foil for the last 20 minutes of baking. BAKE: Bake for 50-60 minutes, removing the foil after the first 30 minutes. KITCHEN TIPAllow lasagna to cool for 10-15 minutes before cutting. This will help keep the layers together and prevent it from being really runny. STORAGE TIPS Storing your food properly is important to prevent spoiling or food poisoning. Refrigerate: Allow to cool then store in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 3 days. If the lasagna doesn’t cool before being stored it will form condensation inside and could possibly heat up the temperature of the refrigerator enough to spoil other food inside. Freeze: Cool completely then store in an airtight, freezer safe, container. Freeze for up to 3 months. Defrosting: Defrost in the refrigerator overnight. Reheat in the oven or microwave. More Recipes You’ll Love How To Make Pizza Dough: An easy thick crust pizza dough recipe. Italian Sausage Lasagna (without a jar of marinara): Make lasagna the way my mother made it! Pesto Pasta Salad: This delicious and easy pasta side dish is good any time of year. No Bake Chocolate Lasagna Pin Recipe Creamy layers of chocolate cookie crumbs, cream cheese filling, chocolate pudding, and whipped topping make this Chocolate Lasagna recipe a family favorite. 1 hour hour 30 minutes minutes Check out this recipe FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS Click the questions to see the answer. Do you have to boil lasagna noodles before baking?Maybe. You can buy noodles that do not need to be boiled first but they need to specifically be labeled as no-boil lasagna noodles. If you aren’t boiling lasagna noodles before baking, make sure the layers below and above the noodles are wet (marinara, wet cheese mixture) and cover the entire noodle. Make sure you also cover the dish when baking. If you have the time, regular lasagna noodles bake up better if they’re boiled first. How do you make lasagna gluten free?Buy gluten free lasagna noodles. Do I need to cover the lasagna with foil to bake?You do not have to cover with foil but we recommend it. Your lasagna will cook more evenly if you cover with foil. Without foil it will tend to look finished on top before the center is cooked. WAYS TO USE LEFTOVERS DEEP FRY: Cut your leftovers into squares and freeze. Then follow our deep fried lasagna recipe! Garlic Parmesan French Bread Pin Recipe An easy recipe for garlic french bread made by slathering a bakery loaf of bread with a homemade garlic butter, and parmesan mixture and then toasting it up into golden deliciousness! This garlic cheese bread is quick and delicious. Check out this recipe garlic, marinara, mozzarella, parmesan 5 from 32 votes Easy Lasagna Recipe Author Andrea + Stef Course Main Dish Cuisine Italian Prep Time 45 minutes minutes Cook Time 1 hour hour Print Pin Rate 12 Use jarred sauce and quick assembly techniques to make a delicious lasagna without all the fuss. Cook ModePrevent your screen from going dark Ingredients 1x2x3x▢ ½ pound lasagna noodles▢ ½ lb Italian sausage▢ ½ lb ground beef▢ 2 cloves garlic minced▢ 32 ounce jarred spaghetti or marinara sauce▢ 2 teaspoons fresh minced basil▢ 1 teaspoon fresh minced oregano▢ 2 teaspoons fresh minced parsley▢ 15 ounces ricotta cheese▢ 1 teaspoon salt▢ ½ teaspoon pepper▢ 1 large egg beaten▢ 4 cups shredded mozzarella cheese▢ 1 cup Parmesan cheese grated InstructionsPlace lasagna noodles in a 9×13 casserole dish and cover with hot water. Allow noodles to soak while preparing the meat sauce – you can alternately pre-cook your lasagna noodles in boiling water OR use the lasagna noodles labeled "Oven Ready" that do not require pre-cooking.In large skillet, brown ground beef and Italian sausage until no pink remains. Drain any excess oil from the skillet.Add the minced garlic and saute 1-2 minutes longer, until fragrant.Next, add the marinara sauce and herbs to the skillet. Bring sauce to a boil; reduce heat and simmer, covered, about 20 minutes to allow the flavors to marry together.In a medium bowl, mix together ricotta, ½ cup parmesan, egg, salt, and pepper. Add the remaining parmesan cheese to the mozzarella cheese and toss together. Set aside for assembling the lasagna.Preheat oven to 375°F.Remove lasagna noodles from the water and set aside to assemble the lasagna. Discard the soaking water.Ladle just enough meat sauce into the casserole dish to cover the bottom of the pan.Top with a single layer of lasagna noodles, tearing any noodles in half to cover the entire area of the pan. Spread about ⅓ of the ricotta mixture over the noodles. Top with ⅓ of the remaining sauce mixture. Sprinkle 1 cup of mozzarella cheese mixture over the sauce.Continue layering noodles, ricotta, sauce, and cheese until you have made three layers. Top the final layer with 2 cups of mozzarella cheese.Cover the lasagna with aluminum foil and bake for 30 minutes. Remove the aluminum foil and bake for an additional 20-30 minutes or until the lasagna is bubbling and the cheese melts and begins to brown around the edges. NutritionCalories: 418kcal | Carbohydrates: 21g | Protein: 25g | Fat: 26g | Saturated Fat: 13g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 9g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 96mg | Sodium: 1139mg | Potassium: 478mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 835IU | Vitamin C: 6mg | Calcium: 381mg | Iron: 2mg Did you create this? Share it on Instagram and follow us on Pinterest for more cleverly simply recipes. Email Recipe Pin Recipe Share Recipe MORE RECIPES YOU MIGHT LIKE How To Make Perfect Cast Iron Skillet Burgers March 10, 2023 No Comments If you have been craving a juicy and flavorful hamburger, then these easy, homemade cast… Read More Easy John Wayne Casserole Recipe February 16, 2023 No Comments This delicious Mexican inspired John Wayne casserole bakes in the oven and combines biscuits, taco… Read More 45 Game Day Appetizers: The Best Party Snacks February 7, 2023 No Comments Super Bowl party appetizers everyone loves! Read More Easy Basil Pesto Pasta With Meatballs February 7, 2023 2 Comments Delicious pesto fettuccine pasta recipe that pairs perfectly with turkey meatballs or your favorite meat… Read More Easy Hot Cheesy Pizza Dip Recipe February 7, 2023 No Comments A mouthwatering, cheesy hot pizza dip that can be bake in the oven or cooked… Read More Air Fryer 3 Cheese Biscuit Bombs February 6, 2023 10 Comments Easy air fryer 3 cheese bombs made with refrigerator biscuits. Read More PinShareTweet
How To Make Perfect Cast Iron Skillet Burgers March 10, 2023 No Comments If you have been craving a juicy and flavorful hamburger, then these easy, homemade cast… Read More
Easy John Wayne Casserole Recipe February 16, 2023 No Comments This delicious Mexican inspired John Wayne casserole bakes in the oven and combines biscuits, taco… Read More
45 Game Day Appetizers: The Best Party Snacks February 7, 2023 No Comments Super Bowl party appetizers everyone loves! Read More
Easy Basil Pesto Pasta With Meatballs February 7, 2023 2 Comments Delicious pesto fettuccine pasta recipe that pairs perfectly with turkey meatballs or your favorite meat… Read More
Easy Hot Cheesy Pizza Dip Recipe February 7, 2023 No Comments A mouthwatering, cheesy hot pizza dip that can be bake in the oven or cooked… Read More
Air Fryer 3 Cheese Biscuit Bombs February 6, 2023 10 Comments Easy air fryer 3 cheese bombs made with refrigerator biscuits. Read More