World's Best Lasagna

Ingredients

• 1 pound sweet Italian sausage
• 0.75 pounds lean ground beef
• 0.5 cups minced onion
• 2 cloves garlic , crushed
• 1 can crushed tomatoes , 28 ounce
• 2 cans canned tomato sauce , 6.5 ounce
• 2 cans tomato paste , 6 ounce
• 0.5 cups water
• 2 tablespoons white sugar
• 4 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley , divided
• 1.5 teaspoons dried basil leaves
• 1.5 teaspoons salt , divided, or to taste
• 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
• 0.5 teaspoons fennel seeds
• 0.25 teaspoons ground black pepper
• 12 lasagnas noodles
• 16 ounces ricotta cheese
• 1 egg
• 0.75 pounds mozzarella cheese , sliced
• 0.75 cups grated Parmesan cheese

Instructions

1. 1

   Gather all your ingredients.

2. 2

   Cook sausage, ground beef, onion, and garlic in a Dutch oven over medium heat until well browned.

3. 3

   Stir in crushed tomatoes, tomato sauce, tomato paste, and water. Season with sugar, 2 tablespoons parsley, basil, 1 teaspoon salt, Italian seasoning, fennel seeds, and pepper. Simmer, covered, for about 1 ½ hours, stirring occasionally.

4. 4

   Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook lasagna noodles in boiling water for 8 to 10 minutes. Drain noodles, and rinse with cold water.

5. 5

   In a mixing bowl, combine ricotta cheese with egg, remaining 2 tablespoons parsley, and 1/2 teaspoon salt.

6. 6

   Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).

7. 7

   To assemble, spread 1 ½ cups of meat sauce in the bottom of a 9x13-inch baking dish. Arrange 6 noodles lengthwise over meat sauce, overlapping slightly. Spread with 1/2 of the ricotta cheese mixture. Top with 1/3 of the mozzarella cheese slices. Spoon 1 ½ cups meat sauce over mozzarella, and sprinkle with 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese.

8. 8

   Repeat layers, and top with remaining mozzarella and Parmesan cheese. Cover with foil: to prevent sticking, either spray foil with cooking spray or make sure the foil does not touch the cheese.

9. 9

   Bake in the preheated oven for 25 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for an additional 25 minutes.

10. 10

    Rest lasagna for 15 minutes before serving.