Christmas Lasagna – Anthony  Salemme

by Anthony Salemme, contributing chef

Serves 8-10

Growing up in an Italian family, the first course of our Christmas feast was always Lasagna. There was always about 20 guests and my Grandmother Fanny cooked for all of us every year.

1 pound lasagna sheets cooked for 6 minutes

1 pound ground beef

1 pound hot Italian sausage, out of the casing

3 28-ounce cans crushed tomatoes

2 cups beef broth

4 tablespoons olive oil

1 large onion, chopped fine

8 cloves garlic, minced

Filling

1 pound ricotta cheese

1 ½ pounds mozzarella, shredded

1 cup Romano cheese

½ cup parsley, chopped fine

2 eggs

In a sauce pan add the olive oil, heat it until you can smell the aroma, add the onion and garlic, simmer slowly until soft about 5-7 minutes. Next add the ground beef and sausage and break it up with a fork so it browns evenly about 10 -12 minutes.

Add the broth and tomatoes and simmer for 2 hours until it starts to thicken, and the meat is tender.

Meanwhile make the filling.

In a bowl mix the ricotta 1 pound mozzarella, Romano cheese, parsley, and eggs until smooth.

When sauce is done you are ready to build the lasagna.

Preheat oven 375f

In a 13”x9” pan add 1 cup of sauce. Lay 3 lasagna sheets across the bottom of the pan. Top with  meat sauce and spoon some of the cheese mixture evenly over the sauce. Repeat with 3 more layers, ending the top with meat sauce and the remaining mozzarella. Cover the lasagna with a greased piece of foil.

Place on a baking sheet and bake at 375f for 1 hour then remove foil and bake 20 minutes longer.

Remove form oven and let cool for 20 minutes before serving.

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Anthony loves to cook and share recipes. You can follow him on Instagram at – @mealpvd and online at www.anthonysalemme.com