Chef’s Recipe: Grandma Guarnaschelli’s Lasagna by Chef Guarnaschelli (2024)

“Like every Italian-American,” chef Alex Guarnaschelli says, “I had two grandmothers who both interpreted lasagna in their own special way.” Her paternal grandmother somehow improved on the already amazing texture of lasagna by adding little meatballs, which she folded into the layers of the lasagna as she built the dish. “Those little meatballs are a bite that I remember vividly from childhood,” says Guarnaschelli.

She first wrote about this clever technique in her cookbook, The Home Cook, noting, “When making classic lasagna bolognese, the ground beef and tomato work beautifully together, but there is something about getting a bite of beef in a little meatball and then the burst of flavor from the tomato sauce that makes this dish even more delicious."

Here, the fast-rising celebrity chef who is host of her own Food Network show, Supermarket Stakeout, and a regular judge on Chopped, shares the cherished family recipe with La Cucina Italiana.

Chef’s Recipe: Grandma Guarnaschelli’s Lasagna by Chef Guarnaschelli (1)

Grandma Guarnaschelli’s Lasagna by Chef Alex Guarnaschelli

Serves: 8-10

Ingredients

Kosher salt
1 pound dried lasagna sheets
1 pound whole-milk mozzarella cheese, thinly sliced
1 pound whole-milk ricotta cheese
3 cups freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

For the tomato sauce:

½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 medium yellow onion, finely chopped
5 garlic cloves, minced
kosher salt
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
2 teaspoons sugar
1 (28-ounce) can whole peeled San Marzano tomatoes
2 teaspoons dried oregano
1 cup tightly packed fresh basil leaves

For the meatballs:

12 ounces 90% lean ground beef, preferably chopped sirloin
4 ounces ground veal
kosher salt
½ cup panko bread crumbs, toasted, plus more if need
¾ cup finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
½ cup finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves
1 large egg
3 medium garlic cloves, grated
1/3 cup canola oil

Method

1. Make the sauce: In a medium skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and season with 1 tablespoon salt. Stir in the redpepper flakes and sugar, and cook for about 2 minutes. Then add thetomatoes, with their juices, and the oregano. Cook for a few minutes overhigh heat, stirring from time to time. Taste for seasoning, add the basil leaves,ad remove from the heat.

2. Make the meatballs: put the beef and veal in a large bowl and spread the meat all over the bottom of the bowl and up the sides a little. (This will helpyou to distribute the seasonings evenly through the meat.) Sprinkle with 2teaspoons salt. Then sprinkle the bread crumbs, Parmigiano-Reggiano, and parsley all over the meat and use your hands to mix the ingredients together. In a small bowl, whisk together the egg and garlic. Drizzle the mixture over the meat. Mix the meat thoroughly with your hands.

3. Test a meatball: Form 1 small meatball (about 1 inch in diameter) with yourhands. Heat a splash of the canola oil in a small skillet over high heat. When the oil begins to smoke lightly, ass the meatball, lower the heat, and cook it over medium heat for 2 to 3 minutes. Taste for seasoning and texture. If itseems too wet, add some more bread crumbs to the mixture in the bowl. If itis too dry, add a splash of water. Adjust the seasoning of the mixture in the bowl as needed. Roll the remaining meat into balls; you should have about 20 very small meatballs.

4. Cook the meatballs: Heat a large skillet over medium heat and add half ofthe remaining canola oil. When the oil begins to smoke lightly, remove the pan from the heat and add half of the meatballs in a single layer, spreading them apart somewhat so they have a chance to brown instead of steaming.Return the pan to high heat and brown the meatballs, turning them as theybrown all around, until medium-rare, 2 to 3 minutes. Use a slotted spoon or spatula to transfer them to a baking sheet lined with a kitchen towel to drain.Wipe out the skillet and repeat the process with the remaining canola oil and meatballs.

5. Cook the pasta: Bring 6 quarts of water to a rolling boil in a large pot over high heat and season with ½ cup salt. The pasta water should taste like sea water. Add the lasagna sheets, stirring with a slotted spoon to make sure they do not clump or stick to the bottom, and cook for 4 minutes. Drain ina colander, rinse under cold water, and drain again. The pasta should still be very firm to the touch. Separate the sheets carefully so they don’t stick together.

6. Preheat the oven to 350˚F.

7. Assemble the lasagna: Spoon a thin layer of the sauce over the bottom of a 9 x13-inch baking pan. Arrange a layer of pasta sheets over the sauce. Sprinkle one fourth of the mozzarella, ricotta, and Parmigiano-Reggiano over the pasta, and then add another thin layer of sauce. Dot the surface with about one-third of themeatballs, spacing them evenly. Repeat the layering process to more time. Adda final layer of pasta and top it with the remaining sauce and cheese.

8. Bake the lasagna: Cover the dish tightly with foil and put it in the center of the oven. Bake for 45 minutes. Then raise the oven temperature to 450˚F and removethe foil. Bake the lasagna until the top browns slightly, 10 to 15 minutes.Remove the lasagna from the oven and allow it to cool for 15 minutes or sobefore serving.

Buon appetito!

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FAQs

How does Ina Garten cook lasagna noodles? ›

Garten advises soaking the noodles in hot water instead of boiling them.

What not to do when making lasagna? ›

A well-made lasagna can be a delicious and satisfying meal, just as long as it's cooked correctly.
  1. Not cooking the noodles correctly. ...
  2. Not having all the ingredients ready. ...
  3. Not browning the meat. ...
  4. Using the wrong cheese. ...
  5. Skipping the dairy sauce. ...
  6. Skimping on the amount of marinara. ...
  7. Improperly layering the noodles.
Feb 21, 2023

What can I add to my lasagna to make it taste better? ›

Sugar: Two tablespoons of white sugar add subtle sweetness and enhance the flavor of the sauce. Spices and seasonings: This lasagna recipe is flavored with fresh parsley, dried basil leaves, salt, Italian seasoning, fennel seeds, and black pepper. Lasagna noodles: Use store-bought or homemade lasagna noodles.

How many layers should a lasagna have? ›

Top the last layer of your lasagna with sauce and cheese. You can also alternate layers of sauce and ricotta cheese. Most lasagna recipes have two to three layers.

What is the most famous Italian appetizer? ›

Perhaps the most popular Italian appetizer, antipasto is a dish made up of a variety of different Italian favorites. Even throughout different regions of Italy, an antipasto appetizer contains different kinds of meats, cheeses, and vegetables.

What do Italians serve with lasagne? ›

This delicious lasagne is topped with a creamy homemade white sauce and a crunchy Parmesan topping, and served with a fresh green salad.

Is it better to make lasagna a day ahead? ›

Lasagna is the kind of food that can keep a family fed for many nights in a row, happily. But it has other perks, too: namely, that you can prepare the whole thing in advance, and store it in the fridge overnight—ready to pop in the oven an hour or so before dinner (just before the kids start to whine).

How far in advance can you make lasagna before cooking it? ›

You can prepare lasagna up to 24 hours before baking it. To do so, follow these instructions: Assemble the lasagna in an oven-safe container and store it in the refrigerator. The temperature should be at or below 40 degrees.

How many layers should lasagna have? ›

The correct way to compose lasagna is: ragù sauce on the base, then: lasagna pasta, besciamella sauce, ragù sauce, grated parmesan cheese for each layer, tipically 4 or 5 layers, no more because it will get difficult to bake and the pasta will not be completely cooked in the middle layers.

Should lasagna be 2 or 3 layers? ›

How many layers do you need for lasagna? This will vary depending on your ingredients and your tray, but the minimum is usually around three.

Should homemade lasagna be covered when baking? ›

Bake the Lasagna

Once the lasagna is ready, cover the pan with a layer of aluminum foil. Place the pan in the oven and allow it to bake for 30 minutes, then remove the foil so the cheese can brown. The lasagna is done when the internal temperature reaches 165ºF.

References

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