This lasagna casserole has all the deliciousness and ooey-gooey-cheesiness of traditional lasagna with a fraction of the work! It’s easy enough to make for a weeknight dinner and special enough for company or a Sunday supper! Call the fam and you’re good friends, it’s pasta night at your house tonight!
If you love baked pasta as much as we do, I hope you’ll try our chicken lasagna, baked ziti with ricotta, baked mostaccioli, or super simple ravioli lasagna next! Happy eating my friends ♥
Let’s make this!
What I Love About About Lasagna Casserole
- All the taste of lasagna with a fraction of the work!
- Family and Sunday Super fave!
- Easy to find ingredients.
Lasagna Casserole Ingredients
- Pasta: There are many types of pasta that work well in this recipe. Broken pieces of lasagna noodles, farfelle, or the campanelle I used. I love the campanelle because they have a wonderful toothsome quality that I find incredible.
- Oil: I like to use high-quality olive oil.
- Onion: Yellow onion.
- Garlic: I use fresh garlic from the head, never that stuff that comes already minced in a jar, preserved in that weird-tasting liquid!
- Meat: I like 80/20 ground beef best in this recipe.
- Marinara: I love to make this with my homemade marinara sauce (only 10 minutes prep!!!). For weeknight convenience and time-saving, I’ve written this recipe using 2-24-ounce jars of commercial sauce.
- Italian Seasoning: My favorite is McCormick’s Perfect Pinch Italian Seasoning.
- Pasta Water: This is the secret ingredient. It’s loaded with leftover starch and salt and creates the best texture for the meat sauce.
- Ricotta: I like to use whole milk ricotta.
- Egg: Use a large egg.
- Nutmeg: If you’re a fan of nutmeg, like me, use 1/8 to 1/4 of a teaspoon. One of my sisters hates nutmeg in anything, so when writing a recipe, I steer toward moderation.
- Basil: Fresh basil is wonderful in this recipe. Did you know that it grows well indoors in a sunny window even through the winter?
- Cheese: I use full-fat mozzarella cheese and shredded parmesan for the cheesy yum in this casserole.
Tips
- What does Al Dente Pasta mean? The term “al dente” is Italian for, “To the tooth”. It’s considered to be the ideal texture to which pasta should be cooked. When pasta is cooked and then baked in a casserole, this texture is extra important so that it doesn’t get mushy after it’s baked.
- Pasta Sauce: If you’re planning on using commercial marinara, Rao’s Homemade Marina is expensive, but considered the best tasting. Whole Foods’ 365 pasta sauce marinara, according to Bon Appetit, “is a mellower, milder-flavored sauce. It’s not too sweet, salty, with an “oregano-forward” flavor! If you have a bit of extra time homemade marinara is always a winner! I love to make a big batch of homemade and freeze it for situations just like.
- We Love It Saucey! If you follow our site, you know my family loves their casseroles, saucey. I’ve made this with just 24 ounces of sauce and all my family taste testers, including my chef SIL, felt it needed more sauce. Now, after making this a dozen or so times, the whole fam has decided 48 ounces of sauce is perfect.
- Lighten This Up! If you’d like this casserole to be lighter and a bit healthier, feel free to switch the 80/20 ground beef with ground turkey and use low-fat ricotta. You can also cut back on the amount of mozzarella and parm.
- Even More Flavor! Switch out the meat for Italian sausage. Use either mild or spicy per your family preferences.
How To Make Lasagna Casserole
- Saute the onion and garlic.
- Add the ground beef and cook until browned.
- Add the sauce, water, and seasoning.
- Pour the sauce over the cooked pasta and toss to coat.
- In a bowl, stir the ricotta cheese, herbs, and spices.
- Mix in the mozzarella and parmesan.
- Pour half the pasta into the prepared baking dish.
- Spread the cheese mixture over the pasta layer.
- Pour the remaining pasta over the cheese layer.
- Bake covered with aluminum foil. Remove the foil. Sprinkle the cheese on top and bake again until the cheese melts.
- Serve.
***See the full instructions below.
Storing + Freezing + Make-Ahead
- How Long Can You Keep This In The Fridge? Leftovers, the USDA recommends 3-4 days if stored properly in an airtight container at or below 40 degrees Fahrenheit. Be sure to observe the 2-hour window for serving at potlucks and get-togethers.
- Can You Freeze This? Yes, you can freeze this casserole. Simply prepare as directed and cool to room temperature, then wrap and freeze accordingly. I often make a double batch and freeze one of them for a ready-made meal during the busy week.
- You can also freeze your baked ziti in single-serve portions that are easy to pull out, a couple at a time. It makes great afters school snacks.
- Make Ahead Tips: You can certainly prepare this dish ahead of time for convenience and there are a couple of different ways you can do it. First, you can put the whole thing together, cover it, and place it in the fridge instead of the oven.
- You can also go ahead and prepare the meat sauce ahead of time, label it, and freeze it by itself. Just toss it in the fridge to slowly thaw the day before you’re ready to cook. When you want to make it, boil the pasta and mix the filling. It’ll be ready for the oven in no time flat.
- If you have made this dish ahead of time and placed it in the fridge, you should cook it within 2 days.
- Food Safety: If you’d like more info on food safety check out this link.
Serving Recommendations
I like to serve this with a simple green salad tossed with my easy-peasy homemade balsamic vinaigrette, my roasted green beans loaded with pancetta and sweet roasted shallots, simple roasted peppers, , or my fully loaded Mediterranean salad!
In our family, a meal isn’t complete without a side of bread! This is delicious with garlic and herb parker house rolls, copycat Olive Garden bread sticks, my truly delicious garlic bread (I promise it’s really outta this world!!).
More Delicious Baked Pastas
- Stuffed Shells (With our amazing shortcut!!)
- Million Dollar Spaghetti (Viral for almost 10 years!)
- Baked Ziti With Sausage
- Five Cheese Ziti Al Forno
- Chicken Spaghetti with Rotel
- Crack Chicken Spaghetti Bake
- Baked Ziti With Meat
- Spaghetti Pie
- Baked Spaghetti with Cream Cheese
Lasagna Casserole
This lasagna casserole has all the deliciousness and cheesiness of traditional lasagna with a fraction of the work! The perfect weeknight dinner.
Servings: 8 servings
Ingredients
- 12 ounces campanelle
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1/2 cup onion, diced
- 6 cloves garlic, divided, minced
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 2 (24-ounce) jars marinara sauce
- 4 teaspoons Italian seasoning, divided
- 1/2 cup reserved pasta water
- 15 ounces ricotta cheese
- 1 egg
- 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/4 cup fresh basil
- 3 cups mozzarella, divided
- 1 cup shredded Parmesan divided
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350ºF (177ºC). Spray a 9X13 inch baking dish with nonstick cooking spray; set aside.
- Cook pasta (12 ounces) in well-salted water per package instructions until just al dente. Save 1/2 cup of the cooking water before draining. Drain well. Return drained pasta to the cooking pot.
- In a large skillet, add olive oil (1 tablespoon) and sauté onion (½ cup) and garlic (4 cloves) over medium heat until it begins to soften, about 5 minutes. Add (4 cloves) garlic and continue sauté until it's fragrant about 1 minute.
- Add ground beef (1 pound), salt (1 teaspoon), and pepper to onions and garlic and continue to cook over medium heat until there is no longer any pink in the beef. Drain and discard excess fat.
- Add the marinara sauce (2 jars), Italian seasoning (2 teaspoons), and reserved pasta water (1/2 cup) and cook until heated through. Pour sauce over drained pasta (in the pot pasta was cooked in) and toss to coat.
- In a mixing bowl, stir together the remaining (2 cloves garlic), ricotta cheese (15 ounces), egg (1), nutmeg (1/8 teaspoon), fresh basil (1/4 cup), remaining Italian seasoning (2 teaspoons) until evenly combined. Add 2 cups of mozzarella and 1 cup Parmesan and stir until combined.
Easy Assembly
- Pour half the pasta in prepared baking dish, spread the cheese mixture over the pasta layer, then pour the remaining pasta over cheese layer. Use a spatula to press down the casserole.
- Spray one side of a large sheet of aluminum foil with nonstick cooking spray. Cover casserole with foil, sprayed side touching casserole. Bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes.
- Remove foil, top with remaining Mozzarella (1 cup) and remaining Parmesan (1/2 cup), return to the oven and bake uncovered, for 10 minutes or until cheese is melted. If you'd like the top more browned, place under the broiler until browned to your liking.
Fans Also Made:
Notes
- What does Al Dente Pasta mean? The term “al dente” is Italian for, “To the tooth”. It’s considered to be the ideal texture to which pasta should be cooked. When pasta is cooked and then baked in a casserole, this texture is extra important so that it doesn’t get mushy after it’s baked.
- Pasta Sauce: If you’re planning on using commercial marinara, Rao’s Homemade Marina is expensive, but considered the best tasting. Whole Foods’ 365 pasta sauce marinara, according to Bon Appetit, “is a mellower, milder-flavored sauce. It’s not too sweet, salty, with an “oregano-forward” flavor! If you have a bit of extra time homemade marinara is always a winner! I love to make a big batch of homemade and freeze it for situations just like.
- We Love It Saucey! If you follow our site, you know my family loves their casseroles, saucey. I’ve made this with just 24 ounces of sauce and all my family taste testers, including my chef SIL, felt it needed more sauce. Now, after making this a dozen or so times, the whole fam has decided 48 ounces of sauce is perfect.
- Lighten This Up! If you’d like this casserole to be lighter and a bit healthier, feel free to switch the 80/20 ground beef with ground turkey and use low-fat ricotta. You can also cut back on the amount of mozzarella and parm.
- Even More Flavor! Switch out the meat for Italian sausage. Use either mild or spicy per your family preferences.
Nutrition
Serving: 1serving | Calories: 648kcal | Carbohydrates: 47g | Protein: 37g | Fat: 35g | Saturated Fat: 17g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 12g | Cholesterol: 132mg | Sodium: 1674mg | Potassium: 912mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 8g | Vitamin A: 1452IU | Vitamin C: 14mg | Calcium: 504mg | Iron: 4mg
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