Mama’s Best Lasagna -- The Recipe That Feeds Twelve on a Birthday That Was Exactly What It Was Supposed to Be

I turned thirty-six on Wednesday and Brandon came home from work with a flower from the Costco bunch, just one, a single pink peony that he must have separated from the arrangement in the car, which he placed in a water glass on the kitchen counter when he came in the door without saying anything about it. He is sixty-four years old in the future version of himself and I am sixty-four in the future version of myself and we will have been married for forty-three years by then, and the language we use for love will still be this: a single flower in a water glass, no card, no explanation, because after fourteen years we have enough shared language that the flower is the card.

The community newsletter profile ran Wednesday, which I discovered because Sister Williams texted me a picture of it at seven in the morning with a row of exclamation points, which is not Sister Williams's typical communication style and which confirmed the seriousness of the event. The profile was half a page with a photo that the columnist took in my kitchen, which I only mildly disliked. It described the workshops and the system and the newsletter and quoted me saying: I started doing this because I needed to feed five children on a budget after losing a baby, and I kept doing it because other mothers needed the same thing. The columnist left in the part about the baby. I had told her she could. It was true.

Grace would have been three in September. I have been doing the math with more peace than I expected. The therapist said: you are moving from grief as emergency to grief as memory. I said: is that right? She said: it is not better or worse, it is different, and different is allowed. I said: okay. She said: happy birthday. I said: thank you. I meant it.

For birthday dinner I made Brandon's mother's pot roast again, same as last year, because it was right last year and it will be right every year until it stops being right, which I do not anticipate happening. Twelve people for birthday dinner: my parents from Orem, Brittany from Sandy, and the five kids. The house was full. The freezer was stocked. Grace's photo was above the stove. Thirty-six was exactly what it was supposed to be.

When you are cooking for twelve and the house is full and the freezer is stocked and you need something that holds in the oven while people arrive at different times from Orem and Sandy and the back bedrooms—you need a recipe that does not require your attention during the last hour. Brandon’s mother’s pot roast is our birthday tradition, but this lasagna is our every-other-occasion answer to the same question: how do you feed a full table something that feels like love without standing at the stove the whole time? Mama’s Best Lasagna is that recipe. It feeds twelve, it reheats for the week, and it has never once let me down.

Mama’s Best Lasagna

Prep Time: 30 minutes | Cook Time: 1 hour 15 minutes | Total Time: 1 hour 45 minutes | Servings: 12

Ingredients

• 1 pound sweet Italian sausage
• 1 pound lean ground beef
• 1 medium yellow onion, diced
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 can (28 ounces) crushed tomatoes
• 2 cans (6 ounces each) tomato paste
• 1 can (15 ounces) tomato sauce
• 1/2 cup water
• 2 tablespoons white sugar
• 2 tablespoons dried basil
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 4 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped and divided
• 12 lasagna noodles
• 32 ounces ricotta cheese
• 1 egg
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 4 cups shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
• 3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese, divided

Instructions

1. Brown the meat. In a large Dutch oven or stockpot over medium-high heat, cook the Italian sausage and ground beef with the diced onion until the meat is browned and the onion is soft, about 8 to 10 minutes. Drain any excess fat. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute more.
2. Build the sauce. Stir in the crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, tomato sauce, and water. Add the sugar, basil, oregano, salt, pepper, and 2 tablespoons of the parsley. Bring to a low simmer, then reduce heat and cook uncovered for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.
3. Cook the noodles. While the sauce simmers, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the lasagna noodles according to package directions until just al dente. Drain and lay flat on a sheet of foil to prevent sticking.
4. Mix the filling. In a medium bowl, combine the ricotta cheese, egg, remaining 2 tablespoons parsley, and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Stir until smooth.
5. Preheat oven. Heat oven to 375 degrees F.
6. Layer the lasagna. Spread 1-1/2 cups of the meat sauce in the bottom of a 9x13-inch baking dish. Arrange 4 noodles lengthwise over the sauce. Spread half of the ricotta mixture over the noodles, then top with 1-1/3 cups mozzarella and 1/4 cup Parmesan. Spoon 1-1/2 cups sauce over the cheese. Repeat with another layer of 4 noodles, the remaining ricotta mixture, 1-1/3 cups mozzarella, 1/4 cup Parmesan, and 1-1/2 cups sauce. Top with the final 4 noodles, the remaining sauce, 1-1/3 cups mozzarella, and 1/4 cup Parmesan.
7. Cover and bake. Cover the dish tightly with aluminum foil and bake for 25 minutes.
8. Uncover and finish. Remove the foil and bake for an additional 25 minutes, until the cheese is golden and the sauce is bubbling around the edges.
9. Rest before serving. Let the lasagna rest for 15 minutes before cutting. This is not optional—it holds together so much better if you wait. Slice into 12 squares and serve.

Nutrition (per serving)

Calories: 485 | Protein: 32g | Fat: 24g | Carbs: 35g | Fiber: 3g | Sodium: 890mg