Lasagna

By RoketJSquerl

Ingredients

• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 10 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 carrot, finely chopped
• 1 green bell pepper, finely chopped
• 1/2 lb each of ground beef, ground pork and sweet Italian sausage
• 1 lb of Crimini mushrooms, sliced
• 2 cans of 28oz San Marzano tomatoes, roughly chopped
• 1 package of Barilla lasagna noodles
• 1/2 lb of grated Mozarella cheese
• 1 15 oz Ricotta cheese
• 2 cups of grated Parmesan cheese
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon dry oregano
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon red chili pepper flakes
• 2 teaspoon garlic powder
• salt, sugar & pepper to taste

Details

Adapted from food4wibowo.blogspot.com

Preparation

Step 1

Saute the onion in olive oil in a deep sauce pan over a medium heat until browned, then add carrot, green bell pepper, garlic and the red chili pepper flakes and cook for another 10 minutes until all vegetables are soft. Set aside.
In the same pan, add another tablespoon of olive oil and saute the ground meat over medium high heat for 5 minutes or so until totally cooked. Set aside and drain off any excess oil from the meats.

Saute the sliced mushroom in the same pan with a sprinkle of garlic until cooked and then set aside.
For the Sauce: Return 3/4 of the vegetable mixture, 1/4 of the meat and 3/4 of the mushroom into the same pan and add the two cans of chopped tomatoes, dry oregano, cumin, cinnamon and half garlic powder. Add 1/4 cup of red wine and simmer the sauce for 60 to 90 minutes until it thickens. Add seasoning accordingly.
For the Meat Filling: In a large bowl, mix the rest of the vegetable mixture, meat, mushroom and seasoning with half of the grated Mozarella cheese. The cheese will melt and become stringy.
For Cheese Mixture: Mix the Ricotta cheese, Parmesan cheese and the two eggs in a bowl

Assembling the Lasagna:

Preheat the oven to 350F.
If you are using Barilla lasagna noodles, you do not have to cook the pasta first. If not, cook the pasta according to the direction in the box.
Spread 1 cup of the tomato sauce over the bottom of a 9x13 baking dish.
Place 4 lasagna noodles on top, overlapping a little one top of the other.
Place 1/2 of the Ricotta cheese mixture on top and layer with 1/2 of the meat filling and 1/3 of the tomato sauce.
Add another layer of lasagna noodles on top and then repeat with the rest of the Ricotta cheese mixture and meat filling and another 1/3 of the tomato sauce.
Add another layer of lasagna noodles on top and top everything with the rest of the tomato sauce.
Cover (tent) the baking dish with aluminum foil and bake in the oven for 50 minutes.
Take off the aluminum foil and add the remaining Mozarella cheese on top.
Return to oven uncovered for 10 minutes until the cheeses on top are melted and the edges are slightly browned.
Cool for 5 minutes before cutting.
If you have leftover meat mixture or sauce, you can always freeze and use them for pasta sauce in the future.