Beef and Sausage Lasagna
A hearty meat lasagna with a savory beef-and-sausage sauce and a creamy cheese layer made with cottage cheese and ricotta. The cottage cheese keeps it creamy and budget-friendly, making this a classic family favorite.
Servings: 12 servings
Ingredients
- ½ box lasagna noodles about 12 wide noodles
- 1 onion diced
- 2 stalks celery diced
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- 1 pound ground beef
- ½ pound ground pork sausage
- 2 teaspoons dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon ground sage
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 1 (28-ounce) can canned diced tomatoes
- 1 (15 ounce) can tomato sauce or 1 ¾ cup of Tomato, Basil Garlic Sauce
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 16 ounces cottage cheese
- 5 ounces grated Parmesan cheese
- 4 ounces ricotta cheese or use more cottage cheese
- ½ cup chopped fresh basil leaves
- ¼ cup fresh chopped parsley
- 2 large eggs
- 16 ounces shredded mozzarella
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of well-salted water to a boil. Add the lasagna noodles and cook for 6-7 minutes. Remove the pasta from the water and lay flat on a tray to cool.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- In a large saucepan, combine onion, celery and garlic, cook over medium heat for 2 to 3 minutes until soft.
- Add the ground beef and sausage and cook 5-6 minutes, breaking up the meat as it cooks, drain the fat off.
- Add oregano, onion powder, sage, salt and red pepper. Add tomatoes, tomato sauce and tomato paste. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer 15 minutes.
- In a small bowl, combine cottage cheese, Parmesan, ricotta, basil, parsley and eggs.
- Poor 1 ½ cups of meat sauce into bottom of a 13 x 9 x 2-inch baking pan. Place 4 lasagna noodles on top of sauce.
- Spread ½ of cottage cheese mixture over noodles, top with ⅓ of sauce and ⅓ mozzarella cheese. Repeat layers once more then top the last layer of noodles with the remaining sauce and mozzarella cheese.
- Bake 50 to 60 minutes until hot and bubbly. If the edges of the lasagna brown too fast, cover with tin foil. Let cool 10 to 15 minutes before slicing.
Video
Notes
Cook noodles al dente: Slightly undercooked noodles (about 6–7 minutes) hold their shape and absorb sauce without turning mushy.
Drain the meat well: Pour off excess fat after browning beef and sausage to prevent a greasy lasagna.
Lasagna layer order: Sauce → noodles → cheese filling → meat sauce → mozzarella. Repeat and finish with sauce and cheese on top.
Rest before slicing: Let the lasagna sit 10–15 minutes after baking so the layers set and slice cleanly.
Make-ahead friendly: Assemble a day ahead, cover, and refrigerate. Bake straight from the fridge with 5–10 extra minutes.
Nutrition
Serving: 1 serving | Calories: 606kcal | Carbohydrates: 49g | Protein: 40g | Fat: 27g | Saturated Fat: 12g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 11g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 125mg | Sodium: 982mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 5g
