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Sunday, February 6, 2011

Skillet Lasagna


I love this recipe. I really do. I love it because it’s easy. I love it because, like the Chili Mac I told you about recently, the entire meal cooks in one skillet. Most of all, I love it because it brought lasagna back into my kitchen. And that is a glorious thing.


I grew up eating lasagna on a fairly regular basis. My mom would make it all the time for company and often just for our family, too. Stan, however, did not grow up eating pasta. When we first met, he had very little interest in my carb of choice. Being the pasta-lover that I am, I sort of beat him into submission through years of pasta dinners. Seven years later, he likes a good bowl of pasta. What he doesn’t like, however, is lasagna. No matter whether it came from a restaurant, my mom, or us making it together, Stan has never met a lasagna that he genuinely liked.


This Skillet Lasagna changed everything. Stan loved it. He went back for seconds. I had to stop him from eating thirds so that he’d have enough left for lunch the next day. In other words, for the two of us, this recipe is a winner. It’s a perfect dinner – a skillet full of broken lasagna noodles, cooked until al dente, in a flavorful meat sauce. There’s cheese in this version too, but it accents the pasta rather than taking a starring role. Dollops of creamy ricotta and a light sprinkling of mozzarella and Parmesan decorate the top of the pasta. Topped off with some fresh basil confetti, this skillet lasagna looks as good as it tastes.

One Year Ago: Soft Oatmeal Cookies

Skillet Lasagna
Adapted from The Best Skillet Recipe

Ingredients:
3 (14.5 oz.) cans whole peeled tomatoes
1 T. olive oil
1 medium onion, minced
Salt
3 medium cloves garlic, minced
1/8 tsp. red pepper flakes
1 lb. lean ground beef
10 curly-edged lasagna noodles (about 8.5 oz.), broken into 2-inch pieces *
1/2 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
Freshly ground black pepper
3/4 cup ricotta cheese, whole milk or part-skim
3 T. fresh basil, thinly sliced

* Do not use no-boil noodles for this.

Directions:Place the tomatoes with their juices in a blender or food processor and pulse until coarsely ground with no large pieces remaining.


Heat the oil in a 12-inch skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and salt and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5 to 7 minutes. Stir in the garlic and red pepper flakes and cook, stirring constantly, for 30 seconds. Add the meat and cook until the meat is lightly browned and no longer pink, about 3 to 5 minutes.


Scatter the pasta pieces over the meat, and then pour the tomatoes over the pasta.


Cover the skillet and increase the heat to medium-high. Cook, stirring often, until the pasta is tender, about 20 minutes.


Take the skillet off the heat and stir in half of the mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Place heaping tablespoons of ricotta over the top of the pasta and sprinkle with the remaining mozzarella and Parmesan.


Cover the skillet and let it rest off the heat until the mozzarella has melted and the ricotta has heated through.


Sprinkle the basil over the pasta and serve.


Serves 4.

14 comments:

  1. Oooh!!! This is going on my "to try" list - looks wonderful.

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  2. Katie - I'm enjoying following The Well-Fed Newlywed, though I am beyond the newlywed stage. ;-) This looks delicious and not as labor-intensive as traditional lasagna. Definitely going to try it.

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  3. Monica - I know! I wish I could take credit for coming up with the idea! Instead I'll just be trying out a bunch of recipes from the same cookbook.

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  4. Elen - I'm so glad you're enjoying the blog. I appreciate you letting me know!

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  5. Made this last night.... SO good!!! and super easy!! I subbed 99% FF Ground turkey for the beef, used part skim mozz and ricotta (as well as less of it) and it was delish! And WW friendly!!! This is a really good, hearty, winter dish. That I will be making year round.

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  6. We loved your Chili Mac recipe (and the leftovers). I'm going to make this tonight -- it's a perfect dish to warm our hearts that long for the sun of home -- it's freezing down here!

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  7. Heather - Thanks for sharing your modifications! Some of the people in my family don't eat beef, and I can't wait to share your success using ground turkey breast!

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  8. LC - So glad you loved the chili mac! I hope you like this one too. Please let me know how it turns out!

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  9. oh..... just.... oh wow.

    i finally got around to making this tonight, after putting it off for a while. i'd been putting it off because i'm ruined by other recipe and food blog sites. they always promise a nom-tastic dinner in 35 minutes. then an hour and a half later you've finished chopping/dicing/grating/bleeding/bandaging/crying/chopping/screaming and you're ready to start cooking?!?

    ruined no more.

    35 minutes? check!

    nom-tastic? well, i'd eat more but there are serious health hazards involved with cramming that much matter into that size container.

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  10. Mishka - Oh. My. Gosh. Thank you for the laughs! (Plus, I'm glad you're ruined no more!!)

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  11. I made a vegetarian version using soy beef crumbles. It was delicious (and easy)!

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  12. Amanda - So good to know this recipe works well with soy crumbles. Thanks for letting us know!

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