[Nida_Shaaz]

Ingredients:

450 grams ground meat
Ricotta cheese
Parmesan cheese
Mozzarella cheese
lasagna noodles
1 can tomato sauce (I used a plain variety, but feel free to use a flavour you like)
1 can tomato paste
1 onion
3-4 cloves garlic
3/4 of a green pepper (I found a red one to use too)
3-4 fresh tomatoes
Salt
Pepper
Oregano
Basil
Thyme
2 bay leaves
Chilies, if you want a bit of a kick.
2 tbsp olive oil

I did not measure anything out, so feel free to adjust your quantities of ingredients should you desire.


Step 1:Lasagna


I used 450 grams ground meat. I selected beef but you can use veal, pork, turkey or chicken too if you should so desire.


Step 2:

I used Ricotta cheese but you could also use cottage cheese.


Step 3:

Start by concocting your sauce. Brown your ground meat in a bit of oil if it's packaged as being lean, but don't use any if your meat's got a bit of fat in it. You should be able to tell just by looking at it.

Step 4:

Cut up your onion and garlic, and add it to the meat.


Step 5:

Prep your peppers, and sautee them in a bit of oil so that they break down a bit but don't get soggy. The point of this is to get a bit of the water out of them so they don't break down in your sauce and make it watery.


Step 6:

Blanch your tomatoes and remove their skins. You can also cheat like I did and just pull the tomato fruit off the skin once you've cut it up.

Add the tomato sauce to a large pot, and set your heat on low. Your meat should be nicely browned now, so drain it if there's a lot of fat in your pan and add it to your sauce. Add the peppers and tomato as well along with your bay leaves.

Cover and cook over medium heat while you prep your cheeses.


Step 7:

Grate the mozzarella, about 200 grams worth, and your parmesan if you have to. I used the pre-grated stuff, so I don't really have an exact measurement but I would estimate about 1/4 cup was used.

Drain the ricotta cheese either with cheesecloth or a fine strainer over a bowl.


Step 8:

Set it aside and check on your sauce. All of the flavours should be melding together nicely now, but since I used a bland sauce as my base it was imperative to season as it all tasted a bit flat.

When using dried spices, crush them in your hand or with a mortar and pestle to help release their flavour. I used about a tablespoon each of thyme, basil and oregano, but if you're using fresh herbs I would reccomend using 3 times as much of each. I also salted and peppered things at this point.


Step 9:

Let your sauce simmer some with its newly-added flavours and adjust as you wish while things cook. If you find your sauce is too watery, leave the lid off your pot for a bit to reduce it. Likewise, if it's too thick, keep it covered.

Prepare your noodles according to the package directions. 7-11 minutes in salted boiling water should do. Preheat your oven to 350f at this point as well.


Step 10:

Carefully drain the noodles and separate them with tongs so they don't stick together while you get ready to construct the lasagna.


Step 11:

Start by ladling a thin layer of sauce on the bottom of your pan.


Step 12:

Add a layer of noodles over the sauce.


Step 13:

Add your cheeses.


Step 14:

And finally, a layer of sauce. Top more noodles and repeat until you've reached your last layer.

Cover the top with mozzarella and parmesan, and then bake for 35-40 minutes.


Step 15:

Remove the lasagna from oven and let stand for 10 minutes before serving.

Pair the lasagna with a dry red wine if you wish, and serve with garlic bread and a small caesar salad. This lasagna recipe is absoloutely delicious!