Lasagna With Homemade Bolognese Sauce

Name: Lasagna With Homemade Bolognese Sauce
Total time: 18000 s
Yield: 8 servings
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 4 clove Garlic; 1 large Whole Carrots; 1 large Celery Stalk; 1 medium White Onion; 2 tbsp Olive Oil; 2 tbsp Italian Seasoning; 1 tbsp Paprika; 1 tbsp Ground Black Pepper; 1 tsp Kosher Salt; 1/4 tsp Rosemary Powder; 2 dash White Pepper; 1 dash Cayenne Powder; 2 lb Lean Ground Beef; 1 lb Ground Italian Sausage; 6 oz Can of Tomato Paste; 28 oz Can of Tomato Puree; 2 cup Red Wine; 2 tbsp Better Than Bullion - Beef; 1 tbsp Worcestershire Sauce; 1 tbsp Balsamic Vinegar; 2 Whole Bay Leaves; 32 oz Ricotta Cheese; 8 oz Cream Cheese; 1 1/2 cup Whole Milk; 1 tbsp Garlic Puree; 1 tbsp Italian Seasoning; 1 tsp Ground Black Pepper; 1/2 tsp Kosher Salt; 6 oz Fresh Grated Parmesan Cheese; 5 cup Grated Mozzarella Cheese

Dan Krause @cook_3272239

Chattanooga, Tennessee

This is a time consuming recipe that requires a modest amount of effort but it is wort it.

Dan Krause @cook_3272239

Chattanooga, Tennessee

This is a time consuming recipe that requires a modest amount of effort but it is wort it.

Saved

Ingredients

5 hours

8 servings

Bolognese Sauce
4 cloveGarlic
1 largeWhole Carrots
1 largeCelery Stalk
1 mediumWhite Onion
2 tbspOlive Oil
2 tbspItalian Seasoning
1 tbspPaprika
1 tbspGround Black Pepper
1 tspKosher Salt
1/4 tspRosemary Powder
2 dashWhite Pepper
1 dashCayenne Powder
2 lbLean Ground Beef
1 lbGround Italian Sausage
6 ozCan of Tomato Paste
28 ozCan of Tomato Puree
2 cupRed Wine
2 tbspBetter Than Bullion - Beef
1 tbspWorcestershire Sauce
1 tbspBalsamic Vinegar
2Whole Bay Leaves
Creamy Cheese Blend
32 ozRicotta Cheese
8 ozCream Cheese
1 1/2 cupWhole Milk
1 tbspGarlic Puree
1 tbspItalian Seasoning
1 tspGround Black Pepper
1/2 tspKosher Salt
6 ozFresh Grated Parmesan Cheese
5 cupGrated Mozzarella Cheese
Lasagna Noodles
16 ozLasagna Noodles

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Steps

5 hours

1

Mince garlic cloves and finely dice the carrots, celery, and onion.
2

In a large stock pot (enamel coated cast iron works best for this), heat olive oil on medium-high heat.
3

Add vegetables to stock pot. Sweat the vegetables on medium-low heat for about 7-10 minutes until tender and moisture is reduced.
4

Add and mix in the Italian seasoning, paprika, black pepper, kosher salt, rosemary powder, white pepper, and cayenne pepper. Cook for about 1 minute to release the fragrance of the spices.
5

Add the the ground beef, ground Italian sausage, and the tomato paste. Turn up the heat to a medium-high and start mixing with a wooden spoon. Continue to mix until the meat is fully cooked, approximately 10-15 minutes. By adding the tomato paste and cooking in this method, it will break up the meat into small particles an give your sauce a more meaty flavor and texture.
6

Drain off most of the excess fat. Using a very lean ground beef (90/10 0r 93/7) makes this easier. Plus the leaner meat makes for a better sauce.
7

After the meat is cooked and drained, add the tomato puree, red wine, Better than Bullion - beef, Worcestershire sauce, balsamic vinegar, and bay leaves.
8

Reduce the heat to low and simmer uncovered for about an 60-90 minutes, stirring occasionally. The sauce should thicken some in this time. Do not completely reduce the liquid from the sauce as it will be need to help cook the noodles later.
9

For the creamy cheese blend, mix all the ingredients in a large bowl except for the mozzarella cheese. Allow the cream cheese to come up to room temperature before combining to make it easier to mix. You should have a nice creamy sauce like mix when done. Note: Use fresh Parmesan cheese and grate as finely as possible, a micro plan grater is recommended.
10

Boil the lasagna noodles in a large stock pot for 4 minutes. The noodles should be pliable but not fully cooked. Drain and rinse with cold water. Note: Use a thicker lasagna noodle for a heartier dish.
11

Place the noodles in a shallow pan and cover with lukewarm water. This keeps the soft and helps prevent sticking.
12

After the sauce and noodles are cooked and the cheese blend is made, it is time to start layering your lasagna. Using large (13x9) and deep pan start with a thin layer of sauce in the bottom of the pan.
Note: Disposable aluminium pans work well for this as they are typically deeper than a standard 13x9 pan and it makes clean up that much easier.
13

Next add a single layer of lasagna noodles. Typically the pan will be a little wider than the width of 3 whole noodles. To get better noodle coverage, cut the edge of a lasagna noodle lengthwise to fill the gap. A pizza cutter works great for this.
14

Now add a thin, even layer of bolognese sauce.
15

Next, spoon a generous amount of cheese blend on top of the bolognese sauce. Spread it evenly over the pan with the back of a spoon.
16

Top the cheese blend with a generous amount of shredded mozzarella cheese.
Note: The bulk shredded mozzarella cheese sold at either Costco or Sam's Club is a great value and has the correct moisture content to melt nicely.
17

Repeat steps 13 through 16 once more.
18

Add one more layer of lasagna noodles, for a total of 3 layers of noodles, and top with more bolognese sauce. Do not add more cheese to this layer. The pan should be very full now.
Note: To help prevent spillage, if you used an aluminium pan, turn up the edges to form a catch.
19

Tightly cover the pan with aluminium foil and place in a preheated 325°F oven and cook for 75 minutes.
Caution: The pan will be heavy and will want to fold when lifted. Be sure to properly support the pan when moving it.
Note: Place the rack one step below the middle of the oven. Use a cookie sheet on the rack below the lasagna to catch any overflow.
20

After the cook time is up, remove the pan from the oven. Turn up the heat to 425°F and move the cooking rack to just above the middle of the rack.
Caution: The pan and rack will be very hot, be sure to use the proper hot pads/gloves.
21

Remove the foil from the pan and top the lasagna with a generous amount of shredded mozzarella cheese.
22

Once the oven is up to 425 F, return the lasagna to the oven and brown the cheesse top, about 10-15 minutes. Keep on eye on the lasagna to ensure you do not burn the cheese.
23

When the cheese is melted and golden brown, remove from the oven.
24

Now for the hard part, wait at least 15-30 minutes before serving to allow the lasagna to cool and settle. Even after resting for this time the lasagna will be very hot so use caution when eating.
25

Serve and enjoy.