This lasagna casserole is the perfect winter dinner! It's gone in seconds in my house. Make sure to use whole-milk ricotta and use more red pepper if you like it hotter.
Ingredients
- jumbo pasta shells: 1 box (12 ounce box)
- extra-virgin olive oil: 0.25 cup (divided)
- ground sirloin: 1 pound
- Italian sausage, hot or sweet: 1 pound
- yellow onion: 1 piece (chopped)
- garlic: 6 clove (sliced)
- prepared marinara sauce: 1 jar (26 ounce jar)
- loosely packed fresh basil leaves: 1 cup
- red pepper flakes: 0.5 tsp (crushed)
- whole milk ricotta cheese: 1 container (15 ounce container)
- finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano plus additional: 0.25 cup (for serving)
- heavy whipping cream: 0.25 cup
- kosher salt: 1 tsp
- ½ cups shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese: 1 piece
- cooking spray:
Metric Conversion
Stages of cooking
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Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Set a rack in the center of the oven, about 10 inches from the heat source.
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Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add shells and cook, stirring occasionally, until almost tender, about 7 minutes. Drain pasta in a colander. Return to pot and toss with 1 tablespoon oil. Dotdash Meredith Food Studios
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Meanwhile, heat remaining 3 tablespoons oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add sirloin and sausage and cook, undisturbed, until bottom side is lightly browned, about 6 minutes. Stir, and continue to cook, stirring and breaking up meat into smaller pieces with a wooden spoon, until cooked through, about 4 minutes. Dotdash Meredith Food Studios
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Reduce heat to medium. Add onion and garlic, and cook, stirring often, until softened, about 4 minutes. Dotdash Meredith Food Studios
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Stir in marinara sauce, basil, and crushed red pepper. Remove ragu from heat. Dotdash Meredith Food Studios
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Stir together ricotta, Parmigiano-Reggiano, cream, and salt in a bowl. Dotdash Meredith Food Studios
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To assemble, spread about 2 cups of the ragu in the bottom of a 13- x 9-inch baking dish. Spoon 1/2 of the pasta over sauce. Dollop half of the ricotta mixture over pasta, and sprinkle with 1 cup mozzarella cheese. Spoon remaining pasta over mozzarella cheese. Spread remaining ragu over pasta mixture, and dollop with remaining ricotta mixture. Top with remaining 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese. Cover lasagna with a large sheet of aluminum foil that's been lightly sprayed with cooking spray (to prevent the cheese from sticking to it). Dotdash Meredith Food Studios Dotdash Meredith Food Studios
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Bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes. Remove from oven and remove foil. Increase oven temperature to broil with rack about 10 inches from heat source; preheat 5 minutes. Return baking dish to oven. Broil until cheese is browned in spots, 5 to 8 minutes. Dotdash Meredith Food Studios
