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The Best Homemade Lasagna Recipe

November 5, 2021

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This is the best homemade lasagna recipe! It is made with homemade lasagna noodles, a flavorful meat sauce, layered with ricotta and shredded cheese, and topped with a mix of white cheddar and pepper jack cheeses. This from-scratch recipe is one you will want to make over and over again. 

Most of the recipes I share on the blog are family favorites, like the Green Beans with Mushrooms, Baked Mac and Cheese, and Easy Challah Bread. And some are recipes created in collaboration with my family members, like the Easy Peach Cobbler, and Southern Turnip Greens with Turkey Bacon recipes. 

However, this recipe is entirely my younger sister’s. She let me put it on the blog and share it with you guys.

My sister made this lasagna recipe for the first time about a year ago, and ever since it has been a major favorite in our home. Everyone loves it and there are rarely any leftovers. It is the ultimate comfort lasagna recipe. 

Here is what you will need to make it. 

Homemade Lasagna Ingredients

homemade lasagna

Bolognese (Meat Sauce)

This recipe starts by making the perfect bolognese or meat sauce, which includes:

  • Ground beef or bison (they taste pretty much the same, but I prefer ground bison)
  • Tomato sauce and tomato paste for a rich and flavorful sauce
  • Chopped green bell peppers
  • And lots of herbs and spices

Three Cheeses

You will need three kinds of cheese for maximum deliciousness:

  • Ricotta cheese
  • White cheddar cheese
  • Pepper jack cheese

The mix of the white cheddar and pepper jack cheeses throughout the lasagna, adds flavor and a hint of spice. We sometimes like to add yellow cheddar to the top of the lasagna as well!

Chopped Jalapenos

In addition to the pepper jack cheese, you could also add chopped pickled jalapenos in between the layers. They are not very spicy at all. They help to add a slight spice and tangy flavor to the lasagna. 

homemade lasagna ingredients on a table

Lasagna Noodles

My sister developed the perfect recipe for homemade lasagna noodles from scratch, which will be in the recipe card below. If you have a pasta roller it would make the rolling out process much easier.  Otherwise, you could use a rolling pin. It will just take longer, and the noodles may be a little thicker. 

If you don’t want to make your own lasagna noodles, you can also use some organic noodles from the store. But there’s nothing like homemade pasta! 

How to Layer Lasagna

how to layer lasagna

My sister says layering is key, so here’s how she does it!

Add about ¾ cup of the meat sauce on the bottom, a layer of noodles, and about ¼ cup of the ricotta and shredded cheeses, add noodles, then more sauce. Repeat until you have used up all the ingredients. You will have 7 layers ending with the meat sauce. Cover the top with the rest of the shredded cheese.

It is ok to overlap the lasagna noodles if they are too small to cover each layer. 

homemade lasagna with homemade noodles

This post may contain affiliate links, which means I’ll receive a commission if you purchase through my links, at no extra cost to you. Please read the full disclosure here.

Tools You May Need for This Recipe

Rolling pin

Pasta machine

9 x 13 baking dish

Kitchen aid shredder attachment, our favorite way to shred cheese

easy lasagna recipe with ricotta

I hope you try my sister’s homemade lasagna recipe! You will be in for a real treat! If you do, leave me a comment, a star rating, or tag me on Instagram (@themidwestkitchenblog) 

Enjoy!

Looking For More Recipes?

Turkey and Black Bean Enchiladas

Double-crust Chicken Pot Pie

Chicken Sausage gravy with buttermilk biscuits

Best Baked Mac and Cheese Recipe

Beef and Barley Soup

Southern Turnip Greens with Turkey Bacon

Chicken Fried Rice with Cabbage

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easy lasagna on a table

The Best Homemade Lasagna Recipe

  • Author: Tonya | The Midwest Kitchen Blog
  • Prep Time: 50 minutes
  • Cook Time: 80 minutes
  • Total Time: 2 hours 10 minutes
  • Yield: 6 – 8 servings 1x
  • Category: dinner
  • Method: Bake
  • Cuisine: Italian
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Description

This is the best homemade lasagna recipe! It is made with homemade lasagna noodles, a flavorful meat sauce, layered with ricotta and shredded cheese, and topped with a mix of white cheddar and pepper jack cheeses. This from-scratch recipe is one you will want to make over and over again. 


Ingredients

Scale
  • 4 tablespoons ghee or vegetable oil
  • 1 (6oz) can of tomato paste
  • 1 medium green bell pepper, chopped
  • 2 (15oz) cans of tomato sauce
  • 1– 1 1/2 lb ground beef or bison
  • 10 sheets of lasagna noodles
  • 16 oz mix of shredded pepper jack and white cheddar cheese, 5 cups
  • 1 (15) oz container ricotta cheese

Seasonings

  • 2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
  • 1 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
  • 3/4 teaspoon dried rosemary
  • 1/2 teaspoon red crushed pepper flakes
  • 1 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 3/4 teaspoon onion powder
  • 3 bay leaves

 

Homemade lasagna noodles

  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1/4 cup semolina flour*
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
  • 3 eggs
  • 3 tablespoon water

 

Optional

Fresh parsley or basil for garnish

4oz pickled jalapenos, chopped

 


Instructions

How to Make Homemade Lasagna Noodles

  1. In a large mixing bowl, add the all-purpose flour, semolina flour, and salt. Mix together, then add in the 3 eggs. Mix until well incorporated, you should have large crumbles. Add this mixture into a food processor, pulse until you have small crumbles. 
  2. Next, add in the water, one tablespoon at a time. Mix until the pasta dough starts to stick together and you have large crumbles. Form the dough into a ball and knead it a few times. The dough will be very stiff.
  3. Cover the dough with plastic wrap and allow it to sit in a warm environment for 30 minutes. It will become a little softer after resting. 

 Rolling Out the noodles

  1. Divide the dough into four parts, keep the others covered in plastic wrap, so they don’t dry out. Dust the dough with flour, and using a rolling pin, roll out the dough into a rectangle about  ¼ inch thick.
  2. Generously dust the pasta roller and the dough with flour. Roll out the dough on the largest setting on your machine. Run the dough through the machine several times, and each time lowering the setting until you reach the second smallest setting. Cut the dough into 12-inch pieces, lengthwise. Repeat with the rest of the balls of the dough. 
  3. Boil a large pot of water, and cook two lasagna noodles at a time, making sure they don’t fold on each other. Boil for 1 minute, then place it on a greased cookie sheet. Oil each layer of the pasta noodles so they don’t stick to each other. Set aside until ready to assemble the lasagna.

Yields 10 lasagna noodles

 

Making the Meat Sauce

  1. Boil your store-bought or homemade noodles, then set them aside.
  2. Start by adding the spices into a small mixing bowl – salt, ground black pepper, dried thyme and rosemary, red crushed pepper flakes, garlic, and onion powder. Mix together, then set it aside.
  3. In a large skillet, heat ghee or vegetable oil. Fry the tomato paste for 5 minutes, mixing consistently until the color deepens and the tomato paste is more ‘grainy’ in texture. Then add in the chopped green bell peppers. Cook until they just start to soften, 3 minutes.
  4. Next add in 1 (15oz) can of tomato sauce, and half of your spice mixture, and the bay leaves. Mix until well combined. Cook on low for 15 – 20 minutes. 
  5. Remove the sauce from the heat, and add in the second (15oz) can of tomato sauce.  Then transfer the sauce into a separate bowl, leaving ½ cup in the skillet. 
  6. To the sauce in the skillet, add the ground beef or bison, and the rest of the spice mixture. Mix until everything is well combined, then spread the meat out evenly in the pan. Turn the heat to medium-high. Allow the meat to cook undisturbed for 10 minutes, or until juices start to form on the top and the meat is almost cooked through. Gently stir until the meat is fully cooked.
  7. Add the reserved sauce to the cooked meat, and set aside. 

 

How to Layer the Lasagna

  1. In a 9 x 13-inch baking dish, add ¾ cup of the meat sauce on the bottom, a layer of noodles, ¼ cup of the ricotta, and ½ cup of shredded cheese, cover with noodles, then more sauce.
  2. Repeat alternating the ricotta and shredded cheese layer with the meat sauce layers until you have used up all the ingredients, ending with the meat sauce. You will have 7 layers.
  3. Lastly, cover the top with the rest of the shredded cheese.
  4. Bake for 45 minutes at 400F, or until the cheese is brown and bubbly.

Serve with a side salad and garnish with fresh parsley or torn basil. 


Notes

* Without the semolina flour, the lasagna noodles will be too soft. 

Keywords: best homemade lasagna, homemade lasagna, homemade lasagna recipe, lasagna recipe, from scratch lasagna

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Welcome to my corner of the internet! I am a twenty-something who loves to cook from scratch, food photography, reading inspiring books and drinking endless cups of tea!

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