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50 Ways to Make Lasagna

Updated January 8, 2021
Crowd-pleasing, hearty and easy to make ahead, lasagna has a permanent spot in our dinner rotation. But the combination of melted cheese, saucy tomatoes and al dente pasta is not only perfect in classic recipes, like Italian Sausage Lasagna and Meatball Lasagna, it also works in Vegetarian Lasagna. And you don’t have to stop there, garden zucchini can replace lasagna noodles, as in the recipe for Cheesy Zucchini Pasta Roll-Ups. Alfredo sauce can replace red sauce — experience the luscious texture it adds to our Slow-Cooker Alfredo Spinach Lasagna — and the variations go on. In our opinion, the genius of lasagna lies in baking together layers of contrasting flavors — acidic tomato sauce with rich meat and cheese — and textures — chewy noodles with creamy cheese — in whatever palate-pleasing combination strikes your fancy. So, take a look at Betty’s best lasagna recipes and find a new way to make it tonight.
No matter which recipe or recipes you choose to make, your lasagna will forever be better once you commit the simple tips below to memory. Dried pasta, like lasagna noodles, should be labeled with the date of purchase and stored in a cool, dry place. Treated as such, they should keep for a year. When cooking pasta, use 1 quart (4 cups) of water for every 4 ounces of pasta. Once the water has boiled vigorously, add pasta gradually and stir frequently during cooking to prevent it from sticking together. To add flavor, use ½ teaspoon salt for every 8 ounces of pasta. Stir in just as water starts to boil and make sure it dissolves before adding pasta. As lasagna is baked, you should slightly undercook the noodles. They will finish cooking in the oven. After boiling noodles, place them in cold water until you are ready to layer. This keeps them from sticking together. You can also skip the boiling step by buying no-boil lasagna noodles. Want to gather a few more pointers before trying your hand at lasagna? Betty’s got a step-by-step tutorial to help you master lasagna.