Ingredients
- 1½ cups freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
- 1 15 ounce container whole milk ricotta
- 1 8 ounce container mascarpone
- 2 eggs
- ⅓ cup chopped parsley
- 2 tablespoons fresh garlic
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- 1 bunch fresh spinach, rinsed and stalks removed
- ½ pound Italian pork meatballs
- ½ pound mild Italian sausage
- 1 16 ounce box lasagna noodles
- 6 cups red sauce
- 8 ounces buffalo mozzarella
Preparation
Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Place red sauce over medium heat. Fill a stock pot with water, add 3 tablespoons kosher salt, place over heat, and allow to come to full boil. Mix the first 7 ingredients and set aside. Place spinach into preheated saute pan over medium-high heat and add 2 tablespoons water and a pinch of salt. Cover and let steam for 3-5 minutes, or until completely wilted. Place a colander in sink, and transfer spinach to drain and cool. Once completely cooled, wring spinach with your hands to release excess moisture. Place spinach in ricotta mixture, stir to combine, and set aside. Wipe out saute pan, and over the same heat, cook the sausage and set aside. Add meatballs to pan, and brown on all sides. Transfer meatballs to red sauce and allow to continue to fully cook through (about 25-30 minutes). Once the water comes to a rolling boil, add the pasta, and cook for seven minutes. Pasta should be able to bend without resistance, but still be undercooked. Drain and toss with a drizzle of olive oil to keep from sticking.
Assembly
Remove meatballs from red sauce and set aside. Use 2/3 cup sauce to coat bottom of 9x12 baking dish. Line bottom with three sheets of pasta, lining horizontally. Sprinkle half of the sausage over pasta. Roughly tear half of the meatballs and sprinkle over sausage. Drizzle 2/3 cup red sauce over the meat mixture, and lightly coat all edges. You should have a thin coating of sauce, but not a heavy amount.
Add another round of pasta sheets, going in a vertical direction. You will need to cut the pasta to fit. Add 3/4 of the ricotta mixture. Sprinkle the top with grated Parmigiano-Reggiano and 2/3 cup red sauce over the mixture, and add another round of sheets, lying in a horizontal direction. Repeat meat and 2/3 cup red sauce, cover once more with pasta in a vertical direction. Add 1 cup of red sauce over the final layer of sheets, and place baking dish on a lined baking pan to catch any dripping during baking. Bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes. Pasta should be bubbling. Carefully remove from oven and dollop remaining ricotta mixture. Grate Parmigiano- Reggiano over the top, and add slices of mozzarella. Bake for another 15 minutes, or until cheese is melted. Remove from oven and let rest for at least 30 minutes before cutting.
About this recipe
Find the Red Sauce recipe on our website: edibleokc.com