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Delicious layers of noodles, cheese, ricotta, and a luscious rich meat sauce, steeped in deep Italian flavors all come together to create the Family Best Lasagna Recipe! 

I’m super excited to share with you…THE World’s Best Lasagna! Well…it’s the World’s Best at this Nest!

I know someone has already claimed that ” name to fame”, and we shall quietly mourn for them for mistakenly thinking theirs was the best! They need not know. Shhhh… we have taken the title away from them! It can be our secret!

There’s good lasagna, there’s great lasagna, there’s fantastic lasagna, and then there is “THE BEST”! This is the BEST! I know because my friend told me so! Lol (Never underestimate the compliment of a friend!)

You’re looking at the pictures (and drooling… I hope you’re drooling?!) and you’re thinking to yourself…okay what makes your lasagna so much better than that other guys? I’ll tell you…two things…in my humble opinion.

Sauce, sauce, sauce! (That’s just one thing totally overstated!) 

The second, and I mean no offense when I say this…is NOT cottage cheese! When making lasagna please, save me from having a heart attack, and only use Ricotta!  (Gasp! Did she really just say that? How could she!)

You’re saying, “NORINE! Lasagna is an expensive dish to make. I’m just trying to save money.”

I get that. However, some dishes you just don’t skimp on. Homemade Lasagna is one of them! You can’t cut costs and have a “GREAT” pan of lasagna. You can have an “okay” dish of lasagna, but it won’t be “the best”!

How To Make GREAT Lasagna Meat Sauce

Let’s talk sauce. I’m going to share with you the secret to a really, really GREAT meat sauce. Are you ready?… You have to let it simmer for several hours!

You know those Italian movies where you see with the Italian Momma slaving over that pot of sauce all day long. There’s a reason for that!

As the sauce simmers and cooks down, it becomes thicker and richer, the sugars break down and caramelize and holy yum…you are on a whole new level of sauce of making! Bonus…your house smells like Italian Heaven!

This sauce is pretty simple. Begin by browning your ground beef with your mild Italian sausage.

Add canned diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, tomato paste, water, sugar, fresh chopped or dried onions, seasonings and garlic.

Turn the heat down to simmer and allow it to cook down for about 2–3 hours. Stirring occasionally.

How To Make a Great Family Lasagna

When the meat sauce is done, it’s just a matter of precooking your lasagna noodles and putting it all together.

TIP: I know some people don’t cook their lasagna noodles. I’ve done it both ways. There is a difference. I recommend cooking your noodles.

You will need 9 lasagna noodles for a 9 x 13 pan of lasagna, cook a couple extra to be safe. One or two always seem to tear during cooking.

Begin by laying 3 lasagna noodles side by side on the bottom of your baking dish.  My pan was a little narrow, so I overlapped them a tad.

Using a teaspoon dab the ricotta cheese over the noodles. A few rows is perfect.

Next, add a layer of cheese. Don’t go super heavy on the cheese. Just enough to cover the ricotta and noodles.

After the cheese, add a layer of sauce. (I forgot the picture. Sorry folks! I just get too excited in the kitchen mid-project! I really have to work on that! Yikes!) 

Repeat Layers 3 times

Repeat with another layer of noodles, another dabbing of the ricotta cheese, more mozzarella and more sauce.

One more layer of noodles, ricotta, cheese, and sauce. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. You can use fresh grated Parmesan or the Sprinkle blend. Either will work. It’s about personal taste.

Baking and Serving Lasagna

Pop it into the oven for 45 minutes or until bubbly. Remove. Let rest 10 minutes. Cut into 12 squares .

Can you see all the layers of deliciousness?! It has the perfect amount of cheese. The ricotta is so creamy. I love the texture and flavor with the meat sauce. It blends beautifully together.

I seriously wouldn’t make lasagna any other way. This lasagna has been my go-to recipe for over 30 years, and it never disappoints. Your Family will love this version of the classic Lasagna dish.

Serve this World’s Best Lasagna with a big tossed green salad and my favorite Cheesy Garlic Bread!

Homemade Lasagna is even better the next day! Best Leftovers EVER! Be sure to make extra! It’s like a fine wine, not that I know because I don’t drink, but it gets better with age! (Don’t we all!… Oh, dear… I just realized my “food twin” is lasagna!)

Easy Additional Pasta Recipes

• Leftover BBQ Pulled Pork and Mac-n-Cheese
• Easy Home Beef Stroganoff
• Spaghetti with Meat Sauce
• Meat lovers Baked Spaghetti
• Spinach Chicken Alfredo Lasagna Roll-Ups
• Fresh Stewed Tomatoes with Pasta from Julia’s Simply Southern

Thanks for stopping by! I hope you love this lasagna! It’s truly a classic dish.  

Happy Nesting My Friends!

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