What sold me on this recipe was that you don’t have to cook the lasagna noodles before hand. It sounds silly, but I am terrible with pasta. I manage to miss al dente by a couple minutes every time I try. Check out what the folks over at Betty Crocker had to say about this incrediably simple and tasty recipe:
“Lasagna is a homemade comfort food tradition that the whole family loves, and this slow-cooker version is a must-try. The slow-cooker recipe, complete with Parmesan, mozzarella and ricotta cheeses, makes food prep easy – no boiling of noodles, necessary. If you love lasagna, you will love this version, trust us!”
I was nervous the first time I dished this out on dinner plates, but those nerves were short lived. It was a big success. I’ll never get the nerve to make it for Grandma, but I’m thrilled to find an alternative that makes everyone happy.
Ingredients
1 pound Jimmy Dean bulk Italian sausage
1 medium onion, chopped
3 cans (15 oz. each) Contadina Tomato Sauce w/ Italian Herbs
2 teaspoons McCormick Dried Basil Leaves
½ teaspoon Morton’s Course Kosher Salt
2 cups shredded Sargento Classic Chef Style Mozzarella cheese
1 15 oz. Sorrento part-skim ricotta cheese
1 cup grated Kraft Parmesan cheese
15 uncooked Barilla Lasagna noodles
Directions
- Cook Jimmy Dean bulk sausage and onion in 10-inch skillet over medium heat 6 to 8 minutes, stirring occasionally until sausage is no longer pink; drain. Stir in Contadina tomato sauce, basil and salt.
- 2 Mix 1 cup of the Sargento mozzarella cheese and the ricotta and Kraft Parmesan cheeses. (Refrigerate remaining mozzarella cheese while lasagna cooks.)
- 3 Spoon one-fourth of the sausage mixture into 6-quart slow cooker; top with 5 noodles, broken into pieces to fit. Spread with half of the cheese mixture and one-fourth of the sausage mixture. Top with 5 noodles, remaining cheese mixture and one-fourth of the sausage mixture. Top with remaining 5 noodles and remaining sausage mixture.
- 4 Cover and cook on Low heat setting 4 to 6 hours or until noodles are tender.
- 5 Sprinkle top of lasagna with remaining 1 cup mozzarella cheese. Cover and let stand about 10 minutes or until cheese is melted. Cut into pieces.
Quick Tip: Use dried basil leaves and not ground basil. The leaves are more flavorful in the slow cooker.
Thank you to Betty Crocker for this simple twist on an old fave!
