Ricotta Lasagne

Ingredients

• 1 lb (450 g) sweet Italian sausage
• ½ lb (230 g) minced (ground) beef
• ½ onion, chopped fine
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• 3½ tbsp sugar
• 1 tbsp salt
• 1½ tsp dried basil
• ½ tsp fennel seed
• ¼ tsp black pepper
• ¼ cup chopped parsley, divided
• 4 cups (1 kg / 2.2 lb) canned whole tomatoes, undrained, halved, seeds removed
• 12 oz (340 g) tomato paste
• ½ cup (125 ml / 4.2 oz) water
• ½ tbsp salt
• 2 cups (600 g / 1.3 lb) ricotta cheese
• 1 egg
• 16 oz (450 g) lasagna pasta
• 16 oz (450 g) mozzarella cheese, thinly sliced (a wire cutter is nice for semi-soft cheeses like this)
• about 3 tbsp grated Parmesan cheese

Method

1. Remove sausage casings, and break sausage into small bits.
2. Sauté sausage and ground beef in 5-quart (4.7 L) saucepan or Dutch oven over medium heat with onion and garlic until the meat is browned.
3. Add sugar, 1 tablespoon salt, basil, fennel, pepper, and half the parsley; mix well.
4. Add tomatoes, tomato paste and water, mashing the tomatoes a bit. Bring the sauce to a boil then reduce heat and simmer, covered and stirring occasionally for 1½ hours.
5. Preheat oven to .
6. Cook and drain pasta.
7. In a medium bowl mix ricotta, egg, ½ teaspoon salt and remaining parsley.
8. Assemble your lasagna in a inch roasting pan (listed bottom to top):
9. *Bottom layer of sauce (approx. 1½ cups / 375 g / 13.2 oz)
10. *Layer of pasta (overlapping slightly)
11. *Layer of ½ the ricotta mixture
12. *Layer of ⅓ of the mozzarella
13. *Sauce layer (again, about 1½ cups / 375 g / 13.2 oz)
14. *Layer of grated Parmesan sprinkled over sauce (not so much that the sauce layer is covered entirely)
15. *Layer of pasta
16. *Layer of remaining ricotta
17. *Layer of ⅓ of the mozzarella
18. *Layer of remaining sauce
19. *Layer of sprinkled Parmesan
20. *Layer of remaining mozzarella
21. Cover the lasagna with foil and bake 30 minutes covered, then 25 minutes uncovered (or until bubbly and lightly browned). Cool for at least 20 minutes before serving.