American Lasagna

By RoketJSquerl

This is definitely not a traditional lasagna - hence the name American Lasagna - but it is oh, so delicious! I think the secret ingredient is the brown sugar. It doesn't make the lasagna sweet, but it brings something extra to it that I haven't had from any other lasagna. The other secret to this lasagna is that you want to make it the night before - up to the baking step - refrigerate it, and then bake it the next day. I've tried it both ways (waiting overnight and cooking the night of) and having it sit overnight really does make a huge difference. And I do what normally do in recipes like this - I do part ground beef and part sausage to add some extra flavor instead of just ground beef.

Ingredients

• 1 pound lean ground beef
• 1/2 pound sausage
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1 (29 ounce) can diced tomatoes
• 2 (6 ounce) cans tomato paste
• 12 dry lasagna noodles
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1 pint part-skim ricotta cheese
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 2 tablespoons dried parsley
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 pound mozzarella cheese, shredded
• 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

Details

Servings 8
Adapted from tasteandtellblog.com

Preparation

Step 1

In a skillet over medium heat, brown ground beef, onion and garlic; drain fat. Mix in basil, oregano, brown sugar, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, diced tomatoes and tomato paste. Simmer for 30 to 45 minutes, stirring occasionally. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add lasagna noodles, and cook for 5 to 8 minutes, or until al dente; drain. Lay noodles flat on towels, and blot dry. In a medium bowl, mix together eggs, ricotta, Parmesan cheese, parsley and 1 teaspoon salt. Layer 1/3 of the lasagna noodles in the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking dish. Cover noodles with 1/2 ricotta mixture, 1/2 of the mozzarella cheese and 1/3 of the sauce. Repeat. Top with remaining noodles and sauce. Sprinkle additional Parmesan cheese over the top.* Bake in the preheated oven 30 minutes. Let stand 10 minutes before serving. *If baking the next night, this is when you would cover and refrigerate. You might need to increase the cooking time by 15 minutes.