Big Dish Lasagna

Make the marinara sauce:

1. Add olive oil and heat in a heavy-bottom pot or large pan.

2. Cook the ground beef and season with salt, pepper, and Italian seasoning, and break up into small pieces. Then, remove from pan.

3. If needed, add more olive oil. Add onion and garlic to pan, and cook over medium heat until onion is translucent- but don't burn the garlic!

4. Add tomato paste, and cook out until a shade or two darker.

   The paste may stick to the bottom of the pan, make sure it doesn't get too dark!

5. Add the canned tomatoes and sauce, and 1 cup of water. Scrape up the fond, those browned bits, from the bottom of the pan.

6. Add in ground beef to sauce along with sprigs of fresh herbs, and simmer over low heat for 30 minutes to an hour.

Make the ricotta and Parmesan cheese mixture:

1. In a medium bowl, combine ricotta, egg, chopped parsley, Parmesan cheese, salt and pepper until combined. Set aside. 

Assemble the lasagna:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grab a sheet pan and a 9x13 inch baking dish.

2. Remove herb sprigs from marinara sauce. Taste and adjust for seasonings.

3. Spread a cup of sauce onto the bottom of the baking dish. Add a layer of noodles, and top with ricotta and Parmesan cheese mixture. Sprinkle mozzarella cheese atop, and then layer on the marinara sauce. Layer until you run out of ingredients.

4. Finish the top of the lasagna with a layer of mozzarella cheese, and cover with tin foil.

   At this point, you can freeze the lasagna to bake later!

5. Set baking dish atop sheet pan, to catch any drips, and bake for 1 to 1 and a half hours. Halfway through, remove the tin foil to melt and brown the top layer of cheese.

6. The lasagna is finished cooking when the top has browned, and the sauce is bubbling. Allow lasagna to cool slightly, and garnish with fresh parsley and more Parmesan cheese before serving.