Cheater Lasagna

You know those solid, go-to meals that just hit the spot almost every time you make them? Enter Cheater Lasagna. Some people call this “lazy lasagna,” because it’s a shortcut version of homemade lasagna. It’s more approachable than traditional lasagna but tastes just as amazing!

I make two pans at a time because it’s an easy way to make a freezer meal. And even with a 9×13 pan, it’s a lot of food for my family of seven and we have leftovers. But it’s so dang good and the kids all gobble it up.

Ingredients for Lazy Lasagna

Noodles

I use Cavatappi pasta but you can use any kind of pasta noodle you would like. Cavatappi is a type of macaroni that is usually scored on the outside for texture. It gives the perfect mouthfeel and flavor to this dish! I recommend picking a pasta noodle that is tube-like to add some fun texture, similar to Cavatappi.

Other noodle ideas are: 

• Farfalle (bowtie)
• Detalini
• Gemelli
• Penne
• Rigatoni
• Rotini

Meat Sauce

Ground beef and pork sausage: The mix of ground beef and pork sausage is the way to go here! I recommend using traditional pork sausage. I use Jimmy Dean’s. Try and avoid the breakfast-flavored sausages that are out there. I would not recommend maple-flavored sausage in this recipe.

Onions, Mushrooms and Garlic: Diced and sautéed with the meat, these really add to the sauce! If you don’t like mushrooms, feel free to leave them out.

Tomato sauce: My favorite brand of fire-roasted diced tomatoes is the Hunt’s Brand. I recommend fire-roasted diced tomatoes because it gives the sauce smokier and a tad sweeter flavor.

I usually purée the tomatoes before putting them in the sauce. 

Cottage Cheese Mixture

Egg:  The egg helps stiffen the cheese mixture in the center of your lasagna. Honestly, it’s totally optional and won’t ruin the lasagna if you leave it out. 

Cottage Cheese: This might seem a little different, than the traditional ricotta but I promise it is delicious!

Cheese

What’s lasagna without a nice cheesy top layer? Use some of the mozzarella in the cottage cheese mixture and the rest to be baked on top. 

If you don’t have mozzarella, provolone, white cheddar, or cheddar are all good substitutes.

Italian Seasonings

Italian seasoning is just a mix of oregano, thyme, rosemary, marjoram, and basil (and sometimes some other spices). If you don’t have Italian Seasoning, a mix of thyme oregano, basil and rosemary are just as Italian and season-y! 

Although the recipe doesn’t call for much, these seasonings go a long way in enhancing the flavor of the dish. I do not recommend skipping Italian Seasoning in the meat sauce or cottage cheese mixture. 

How to Make Lazy Lasagna

Boil the pasta

Step 1 in this recipe is boiling the pasta in salted water. You’ve probably seen this in many recipes but have you ever wondered why to salt the water? Cooking the noodles in salty water is sort of like marinating them to add flavor. And trust me, it’s a game-changer when it comes to flavor. You can be generous with the salt (~1 tablespoon per gallon), the noodles won’t absorb it all. You won’t want to skip this step! 

Speaking of salt, many of you may know that I strongly prefer Redmond Real Salt.*

I love it because it is pure, unprocessed, full of naturally-occurring trace minerals, has no fillers, no anti-caking agents, no additives or unhealthy pollutants added to it. Sadly most commercial table salt has a lot of not-great things added to it, is processed, and has no trace minerals. Redmond real salt has been mined from an ancient sea bed in central Utah- making it true, mineral rich sea salt! I get my salt here.*

You can get 15% off with my affiliate discount code, “AMBERSKITCHEN”.

To make it more cost effective, I buy in bulk and order a 25 pound bag* of salt every few years. I store it in a bucket or in mason jars and it lasts me a few years.

*This is an affiliate link and I may receive a commission on your purchase with no extra cost to you. Thank you for shopping through this link. 

Cook your pasta until it is al dente, then strain and set it aside while you work on the next steps. I like to add a little olive oil or butter to the strained noodles so they don’t stick together while I make the meat sauce and cottage cheese mixture.

Make the meat sauce

Make the meat sauce by combining the onion, mushrooms, beef, and sausage in a large frying pan. Cook that all together until the meat is cooked through and the veggies are soft. Add the garlic and cook for another minute.

I like to puree the canned tomatoes so that they have a smoother texture, but you don’t have to. Either way, dump the tomatoes and seasonings into the sauce and let simmer.

Make the cottage cheese mixture

Purée the cottage cheese, then add an egg, the Italian seasoning, and about a cup of the mozzarella cheese. Mix to combine. 

Pureeing your cottage cheese is the secret to this recipe. It is so creamy and delicious! I have loved this hand blender* which makes pureéing and blending quick and mess-free. You can also use a traditional blender.  

*This is an affiliate link and I may receive a commission on your purchase with no extra cost to you. Thank you for shopping through this link. 

Assemble the Lasagna

At this point in the process, you are ready to start layering. You’ll start with the meat sauce and end up with 6 layers. Here’s the order:

1st layer: 1/2 the meat sauce

2nd layer: 1/2 the noodles

3rd layer: all the cottage cheese mixture

4th layer: the rest of the meat sauce

5th layer: the rest of the noodles

6th layer: all of the mozzarella

Make it a freezer meal!

I like to make two pans of this at a time to use one for a freezer meal or to give to a neighbor!

The recipe below is for one pan and serves 8-10. I just double the recipe when I want to make an extra pan. 

For the pan that I freeze, I double wrap it in foil, then wrap it once in plastic. I keep it frozen and then thaw it the day before we want to eat it. I’d let it thaw in the fridge, then bake with the instructions below.

FAQs

Q: Do you slightly undercook your noodles?
A: The noodles will cook even more while in the oven so to prevent them from getting over cooked or mushy, cooking them to Al dente or slightly undercooked is a good idea!

Q: How long can I keep this in the freezer? 
A: This will freeze well for at least 3 months, as long as it is wrapped tightly with plenty of plastic wrap.

Q: Could this be assembled earlier in the day and then baked later?
A: Absolutely! Just cover and refrigerate in after preparing and assembling it.

Q: If I make two pans and want to cook them at the same time, should I adjust the cooking time? 
A: It’s generally a good idea to increase the cooking time by a few minutes (maybe 5-10) to make up for the extra work your oven will have to do to bake two pans instead of one. But having said that, all ovens cook differently. I would keep an eye on the baking pans and remove from oven when they are bubbly and melted throughout.

More Pasta Recipes

Spinach and Basil Stuffed Shells

Pasta with Sausage, Fire-Roasted Tomatoes, and Basil

Margherita Pasta

HAPPY COOKING!

I hope you love this recipe as much as I do. If you want to follow along on my cooking adventures, follow me on Instagram @AMBERSKITCHEN

Cheater Lasagna

Everything you could want in lasagna and more. Plus, so fun and easy with cavatappi noodles!

Print Pin Rate

Course: Main Dishes

Prep Time: 25 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 35 minutes minutes

Total Time: 1 hour hour

Servings: 8 -10 servings

Ingredients

• 1/2 large white onion diced
• 4 oz. Mushrooms diced (optional)
• 1/2 pound ground beef
• 1/2 pound mild pork sausage not breakfast sausage
• 2-3 cloves of fresh garlic minced
• 2, 14.5 oz cans of fire-roasted diced tomatoes I love the hunts brand
• 1/2 teaspoon each of dried thyme oregano, rosemary, and basil
• salt and pepper to taste
• 2-3 cups of cottage cheese
• 1 egg
• 2-3 or maybe 4 🤷‍♀️ cups grated mozzarella
• 1/2 teaspoon of Italian seasoning or a combo of dried thyme oregano, basil and rosemary.
• 2/3 pound of dry cavatappi pasta or any pasta that you like

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Instructions

DIRECTIONS:

• Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. When it is boiling, add pasta and cook until tender. Remove, strain, and toss with a teaspoon of oil or butter until the meat sauce and cheese sauce are ready. 
  
• In a large frying pan, combine onion, mushrooms, beef and sausage. Cook together until onion and mushrooms have completely softened and until meat is cooked through. Add garlic and cook for another minute. 
• Purée the canned tomatoes and add them to the meat. Add the 1/2 teaspoon each of thyme, rosemary, basil and oregano. Add salt and pepper to taste. Let simmer. 
• Purée the cottage cheese (optional), then add an egg, the Italian seasoning, and about a cup of the cheese. Mix to combine. 
  
• In a 9×13 inch baking dish layer 1/3 of the meat sauce, then half of the noodles, all of the cottage cheese mixture, 1/3 of the meat sauce, the other half of the noodles, and the remaining meat sauce. Cover with remaining mozzarella. 
  
• Cover and bake at 350° F for 30 minutes. I uncover and bake another 5-10 min until bubbly. 
  
•       ENJOY!

Notes

To make this a freezer meal, double wrap the pan in foil, then wrap it once in plastic. I keep it frozen and then thaw it the day before we want to eat it. I’d let it thaw in the fridge, then bake with the instructions below.