As I mentioned in my little meal planning schedule last week, we tried a lasagna recipe from The Harley Biker’s Cookbook and it was SO good. I didn’t get to follow the recipe exactly because I didn’t have any Italian sausage or ricotta (I used ground beef and cottage cheese instead for a super protein kick) but the base of this recipe will stay with us for a long while. The sauce part of the mixture is very thick because of the tomato paste – something I haven’t found in most recipes. I did add a few extra layers of noodles (an extra layer after the cheese mix) because we like our lasagna to be nicely stacked and hold together, but man was this good.
I think because I didn’t have the Italian sausage, the recipe came out a bit bland – something I haven’t been able to say with any of the other recipes in the book. At any rate, next time I will probably throw in some mushrooms, maybe some fresh zucchini from our garden, and who knows, maybe I can use paste from some of our own tomatoes 
Serve with a green salad, some garlic bread, and a glass of hearty red wine.
Ingredients
- 1 (8-ounce) can tomato paste
- 3 cups canned tomatoes
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon freshly shredded basil
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 2 bay leaves
- 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
- 1 pound ground Italian sausage or beef
- 1 teaspoon dry oregano
- 1 pound package lasagna noodles
- 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 2 1/2 pounds ricotta cheese
- 1 large egg
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Combine the tomato paste, canned tomatoes and their juice, salt, basil, sugar, bay leaves and water in a pot. Let simmer for about 2 1/2 hours.
- Gently brown the garlic in olive oil and add the sausage meat and oregano. Stir in tomato sauce mixture and continue to simmer until cooked through.
- Boil the pasta per package directions & drain.
- Combine ricotta, egg, sugar and salt well in a bowl.
- Sprinkle the base of a large casserole (or two small ones) with one-third cup of Parmesan cheese. Add a layer of half the tomato sauce, a layer of half the pasta and a layer of half the cheese mixture. Repeat layers and sprinkle remaining 2/3 cup Parmesan cheese on top.
- Put in 375F (180C) oven for at least 20-25 minutes until piping hot.
