3 Cheese Lasagna

A while back I posted my recipe for Spaghetti/Lasagna sauce and in that post I mentioned how I layer my lasagna.  Tonight while making some for dinner it just hit me that while it really is a fairly simple dish to make I am certain that there are some people that feel a bit overwhelmed at the thought of making it.  I know, I used to feel that same way.  It looked too hard but I promise it isn't. 

First you need to make a batch or two of my sauce.  You can find that recipe here.  If you want more meat sauce in it, go for two batches.  If you don't end up using all of it (I didn't tonight) I just put it in a freezer bag and toss it in the freezer then it will be ready to go for when we have Spaghetti next week.

There really is no right or wrong way to layer your ingredients.  I am going to tell you what I use and how I layer mine but you can do yours any way you want.  You can also leave out something I use or change it to something else.  For instance I put cottage cheese in mine.  But you may not like it - no problem, just leave it out.

I use a glass 9x13 Pyrex baking dish (unless it is traveling or being given away then I use a disposable foil pan bought from the Dollar Tree).  Speaking of giving it away - Lasagna is great to make when you are blessing another family with food.  Make a quick garden salad and a bag of rolls with you and voila.  :)

 

In the bottom of the pan put a very small amount of sauce and spread it around (so your noodles won't stick).

Then layer your ingredients. 

Layer #1
Pasta
Sauce
Cottage cheese (a whole container, drained)

Layer #2
Pasta
Sauce
Smoked Provolone Cheese (slices)

Layer #3
Pasta
Sauce
Mozzarella Cheese (about a 3 cup bag - I like A LOT of cheese)

Layer #4
Pasta
Small amount of Sauce
Top with mozzarella cheese (about 1- 2 cups or until you are happy).

Then I always sit mine on a cookie sheet because it is so full that I don't want it to accidentally bubble over in my oven (no fun to clean up).  Bake it for about 30 minutes or until your cheese is melted, the middle is bubbly and the top is slightly golden brown.