Lasagna = Love

I remember it being a big deal when my mom made lasagna. It wasn’t in our regular rotation of meals. Lasagna meant something was happening. It was special.

When I hosted my first dinner party after getting married I made lasagna. It was an evening with friends I still remember. We were in our first, very small apartment at the table my grandparents gave to us as a wedding gift. I remember feeling accomplished as a hostess and a cook.

Over the years lasagna has become something special in our own home. I don’t make it often and when I do we are usually celebrating something special. It is my go to meal for gifting someone who has had a baby or is recovering from being sick. When my friend’s home flooded a few years ago and there was nothing open in the area it was the first thing I thought to make. Lasagna = Love.

The recipe is burned into my memory but every time I make it I pull out the worn recipe from the box my mom made me when we bought our first home. I have made a few changes to my mom’s recipe over the years but it makes me feel connected when I use the one she wrote out for me.

Lasagna

Note: I usually make my lasagna over two days. I like to make the meat sauce and cheese mixture first and let them sit overnight. I feel like it gets better results that way.

1 pound ground meat
1/2 pound ground Italian sausage
3 cloves of garlic
1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
1.5 teaspoon salt
28 ounces diced tomatoes
12 ounces tomato paste
1 package of lasagna noodles
20 ounces cottage cheese
4 eggs beaten
2 teaspoons of salt
1/2 teaspoon of pepper
2 tablespoons of parsley
1 cup of parmesan
1 pound mozarella

Meat Sauce:

In a pot brown meat and sausage. Drain grease. Add garlic, Italian seasoning, salt, diced tomatoes and tomato paste. Cook on stove on low for 1.5 hours stirring occasionally. Allow to sit overnight in the fridge if possible.

Cheese Mixture:

In a mixing bowl beat eggs. To the bowl add cottage cheese, salt, pepper, parsley, parmesan cheese. Allow to sit in the fridge overnight if possible.

Assembling:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. I cook my lasagna noodles for about 3 minutes just to soften. In a lasagna pan layer 1/2 noodles, 1/2 cheese mixture, 1/2 mozzarella, 1/2 meat sauce and then repeat. You can also just make one layer if your pan is not deep enough. Bake 1 hour to 1.5 hours depending on thickness. Remove from oven and let the pan sit for at least 10 to 15 minutes before cutting into it.