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Easy Lasagna Recipe – Classic lasagna recipe made with oven ready noodles, baby spinach, and 3 different cheese. Only requires 30 minutes to bake.
With the fall weather temperatures beginning to make their debut by ushering in cool mornings and evenings, it makes me crave more comforting foods nowadays. And when I say comforting, I’m talking about the foods that are filling and loaded with lots of cheese. One such recipe that definitely fits this description is lasagna.
Lasagna is one of those recipes that looks super complicated, but really is not. It just has so many different parts to it that make it seem really difficult. I mean you have to prepare the sauce, boil the lasagna noodles, and stir together the ricotta cheese mixture. Not to mention that after you do all of this, then you have to assemble the lasagna, and bake it for at least an hour before you can enjoy it. See…so many moving parts to this recipe I can see why so many people reserve it for special occasions only.
Over the years, I have tried many different ways to cut the cooking and prep time in half and I must say that I have gotten pretty good. So good in fact that now I even dare to make lasagna during the week and it takes me less than an hour from start to finish to have this dish completely finished and ready to eat.
I first begin by making a quick meat sauce by cooking up some ground beef until it has browned and to that I stir in my favorite pasta sauce. If you would like to omit the meat or use a pre-made meat sauce, this will cut down your prep time even more. I still like making my own meat sauce and since I only have to wait for the meat to finish cooking this step usually only takes me about 5 to 10 minutes. During the time that I am waiting for the meat to finish cooking, I go ahead and stir together the ingredients for my ricotta cheese mixture so that it is ready to go.
The biggest way that I save time with making this recipe is by using oven-ready noodles such as these. They require no baking and are ready to go right out of the package. Not having to pre boil the pasta also saves me from having another pot to clean.
I also like to add in a layer of fresh baby spinach for something green and to bring a little freshness to the dish. If you decide to try this recipe, please let me know in the comment section below.
Easy Lasagna Recipe
Print RecipeIngredients
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 jar (24 oz.) pasta sauce
- 1/2 package oven-ready lasagna noodles
- 15 oz. ricotta cheese
- 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
- 2 cups mozzarella cheese, shredded
- 1 large egg, lightly beaten
- 1 cup baby spinach
- 1/2 Tablespoon Italian seasoning
- salt and pepper, to taste
Instructions
In a large skillet, cook the ground beef until it has browned and drain off the fat. Stir in the pasta sauce. Set aside.
In a medium bowl, add in the ricotta cheese, Parmesan cheese, egg, Italian seasoning, and stir until combined. Add in salt and pepper to taste. Set aside.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
In a square baking dish, spoon enough meat sauce on the bottom to cover the bottom of the dish. Top this layer with enough oven-ready lasagna noodles to cover. Cover the noodles with enough additional meat sauce to cover, top with half of the baby spinach, and spread half of the ricotta mixture evenly over the top.
Sprinkle with half of the shredded mozzarella cheese. Top with the noodles, meat sauce, spinach, ricotta mixture, and the rest of the mozzarella cheese.
Cover the baking dish with aluminum foil and place into the oven to bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until the cheese is bubbling and melted. Remove the foil and continue to bake for an additional 5 to 10 minutes, until the top has lightly browned.
Allow the lasagna to cool for a few minutes prior to serving.
Got any comments, questions, or other ideas about this Easy Lasagna Recipe? Share them in the comments below!
4 Comments
Tamara
October 13, 2017 at 2:00 PMIt was 38 degrees here this morning! It totally took me by surprise. I love lasagna. Scarlet’s best friend’s mom was talking about how she made lasagna and her kids didn’t eat it and Scarlet said, “Hey, you made it once and it was amazing! Do it again?” I will! I’ll make THIS one.
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LaKita
October 19, 2017 at 7:51 PMThank you! Wow, the temperature really dropped in your neck of the woods. I wish it was like that here.
I totally agree with Scarlet…Lasagna is AMAZING 🙂
Sonya
October 19, 2017 at 10:42 PMI never thought about added spinach to a meat lasagna, but that’s a great idea!!! I love lasagna. Whenever I cook it I always eat it for breakfast the next day and usually have more for lunch 🙂 Basically, I can eat it for three straight meals.
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LaKita
October 24, 2017 at 3:21 PMI love adding spinach to lasagna…it makes it feel a little more healthy. I never thought to eat it for breakfast and lunch, I will have to give that a try 🙂