My Mom’s Homemade Lasagna

By Thom7747

I rush in from school and ask my mom, “What’s for dinner.” I’d hold my breath praying it would be one of my favorites and oh my, she did not disappoint.

You must understand, I grew up in a “sticks, twigs and roots,” kind of a house hold. That’s the description we give people now, just so they fully understand how healthy her meal choices were on a regular basis.

No chocolate chip cookies for her little dumplins, it was carob and honey, my friends. So when tuna was bypassed for dinner, and her Best Homemade Lasagna declared its presence, the angels sang on Woodlawn Drive, that’s for sure.

Yes, I close my eyes and once again I’m transported back to the dinner table where I wait “Oh so patiently” as my mom dishes out our much anticipated dinner.

My Mom’s Best Homemade Lasagna can be a dinner choice that people save only for company. I mean why spend so much time on something when Stouffers creates something so delicious, right?

Wrong! Homemade Lasagna is SO much better than store bought and this base recipe of my mom’s taught me the pleasure of this meal.

It’s Pure Comfort Food in our family. I never go by a recipe anymore, since I have such fun playing around with it. Not only do I add minced garlic and grilled onions to my batches now, but I play around with seasonings – a little more garlic salt, onion powder and if I want a little kick of spice, a dash of red pepper flakes. If you like ground pork or turkey, feel free to mix and match meats. Again, any amazing lasagna recipe is a bit forgiving, and I’ve even developed a Whip It Up Quick 10 Minute Dinner version here.

I think that everyone should creative homemade Lasagna absolutely from scratch a few times in their lives, and that means homemade sauce as well. It’s one of the meals that I require my kids to master before they leave the nest. If they learn to play around with spices while layering meat, sauces and noodles, they are set in the kitchen.

Ingredients

• 1/2 Pound of Ground Chuck
• 1 1/2 Pound of Hamburger
• 1 Tablespoon of Basil Flakes
• 1 1/2 Teaspoon of Salt
• 1 – 16 oz. can of Tomato Sauce
• 12 oz (1 1/3 cup) Tomato Paste
• 10 oz Lasagna: Wide noodles
• 1 1/2 pounds Creamy Cottage Cheese (cheaper and lower in fat than Ricotta, but Ricotta is the traditional first choice)
• 1/2 cup grated Parm. Cheese
• 2 Tablespoon Parsley flakes
• 2 beaten eggs
• 2 Teaspoons of salt
• 2 Teaspoons of pepper
• 1 1/2 pounds of Mozzarella sliced thin

Preparation

Step 1

Preheat Oven to 375 degrees.

Brown meat slowly.

Drain off excess fat.

Add next 4 ingredients.

Simmer uncovered 30 minutes.

Stirring occasionally.

Cook noodles in large amount boiling salted water until tender; drain; rinse.

Combine remaining ingredients , except Mozzarella cheese.

Place 1/2 the noodles in 13x9x2 baking pan.

Spread with 1/2 cottage cheese filling

Add 1/2 the mozzarella cheese and 1/2 the meat sauce.

Repeat layers (adding meat sauce before mozzarella this time)

Bake in 375 degree oven for 30 minutes.

*(or assemble early; refrigerate. Allow 15-25 minutes longer in oven)

Let stand 10-15 minutes before cutting in squares; filling will set slightly.

Makes 8-10 servings.