Name: Lazy Man's Lasagna
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 45 min
Total time: 1 h
Ingredients: ½ pound ground beef; 1 medium onion, diced small; 2 cloves of garlic minced; ½ pound of ziti or penne (about 2 ¾ of a cup) cooked to just before al dente *see note; 8 oz ricotta cheese (half of a 15 oz container); 1 can (14.5 oz) crushed tomatoes; 1 can (14.5 oz) tomato sauce; 1 can (6 oz) tomato paste; 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning; ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes; 2 cups shredded mozzarella; 1 cup shredded parmesan; 1 egg

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I really love lasagna! One day I had planned to make a lasagna but discovered I didn’t actually have lasagna noodles. Undeterred, and determined to satisfy my meal craving I decided to try making it with the noodles I had on hand instead and this Lazy Man’s Lasagna was born.

It’s so simple. So easy. So delicious! Some might point out that it’s not correct to call it a lasagna, but darn it it’s got all the deliciousness of a lasagna, and can still be made with layers, so why not?!

This was an instant hit at home and I hope you love it as much as my family has.

Originally posted on 1/14/20. Updated on 1/7/25.

Lazy Man’s Lasagna

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All the delicious taste of lasagna with way less work and time to prepare!

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 45 minutes
Total Time: 60 minutes
Yield: Feeds about 6

Ingredients

Scale

½ pound ground beef

1 medium onion, diced small

2 cloves of garlic minced

½ pound of ziti or penne (about 2 ¾ of a cup) cooked to just before al dente *see note

8 oz ricotta cheese (half of a 15 oz container)

1 can (14.5 oz) crushed tomatoes

1 can (14.5 oz) tomato sauce

1 can (6 oz) tomato paste

2 teaspoons Italian seasoning

¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes

2 cups shredded mozzarella

1 cup shredded parmesan

1 egg

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Instructions

Pre-heat oven to 350 F.

Lightly spray a 10×10 baking dish and set aside (*see note)

In a large saucepan, cook ground beef, onions, and garlic till meat is cooked through. Drain excess fat and return to pan.

Add the crushed tomatoes, tomato sauce, tomato paste, Italian seasoning, and red pepper flakes. Stir together and simmer on low heat for at least 10-15 minutes while you prep the rest of the dish-

Cook/Boil the noodles to soften them a bit *see note

In another bowl, combine ricotta, egg, ½ cup mozzarella and ¼ parmesan cheese. Then add 1 cup of sauce to it. Add pasta into the cheese mixture and toss to coat evenly.

Pour about ½ cup of tomato sauce into the bottom of your baking dish to coat bottom of pan. Add ½ of the noodle mixture and spread evenly. Pour half the remaining sauce over the noodles evenly and then sprinkle half of the remaining shredded cheese over the sauce. Repeat this process for the second half of the noodles, sauce, and cheese.

Cover with foil and bake till cheese is melted and sauce is bubbling, about 30 minutes.

Let rest for 10 minutes before serving.

Notes

Frequently Asked Questions below recipe card.

Don’t cook the pasta to soft or even al dente or you’ll have very, very soft noodles in the end.

Frequently Asked Questions – Lazy Man’s Lasagna

What size dish can I use to make Lazy Man's Lasagna?

As written, this makes 1 very full 10x10 dish of food. If you’d rather a dish not be quite so full you can do this in a 9x13 but the dish won’t have as thick of layers.

Can I make Lazy Man's Lasagna ahead of time?

This dish can be prepared up to a few days in advance. If made ahead, cover tightly with plastic wrap after assembled and place in refrigerator. When ready to eat, just remove the plastic wrap, add foil over top and bake, adding about 10-15 minutes of baking time.

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Lazy Man’s Lasagna