Description
Hearty Crockpot Lasagna delivers layers of comfort straight from Italian kitchens to your dinner table. Cheesy, rich pasta creates a soul-warming meal that welcomes hungry diners with delicious simplicity you’ll savor to the last bite.
Ingredients
Scale
Main Ingredients:
- 1 pound ground beef or Italian sausage
- 9 lasagna noodles, uncooked
- 1 jar (24 ounces) marinara sauce
Cheese Ingredients:
- 15 ounces ricotta cheese
- 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
- 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Seasonings and Binding:
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- Salt to taste
- Pepper to taste
Instructions
- Brown the ground meat in a skillet, thoroughly draining excess fat, and blend with marinara sauce until well combined.
- Whisk ricotta cheese with egg, incorporating Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper to create a smooth, fragrant mixture.
- Create a foundation in the crockpot by spreading a thin layer of meat sauce across the bottom, ensuring complete coverage.
- Arrange the first layer of uncooked lasagna noodles directly over the sauce, breaking them to fit if necessary.
- Distribute half of the ricotta mixture evenly across the noodles, followed by a generous sprinkle of mozzarella cheese.
- Repeat the layering process: add meat sauce, another set of noodles, remaining ricotta mixture, and another portion of mozzarella.
- Complete the final layer with remaining meat sauce, topped with the last of mozzarella and a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese.
- Cover the crockpot and slow cook on low temperature for 4-6 hours, allowing flavors to meld and noodles to become tender.
- After cooking, let the lasagna rest for 15 minutes to set and stabilize, which helps create cleaner, more defined slices when serving.
Notes
- Ensure even browning by breaking down ground meat into small, uniform pieces during cooking to maximize flavor development.
- Drain excess fat completely to prevent a greasy lasagna and maintain a clean, rich taste profile.
- Layer ingredients carefully, pressing each noodle gently to create compact, well-distributed layers that hold together when serving.
- For gluten-free adaptation, replace traditional pasta with no-boil gluten-free lasagna noodles or thin zucchini slices for a lighter alternative.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 4-6 hours
- Category: Lunch, Dinner
- Method: Slow Cooking
- Cuisine: Italian
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 6
- Calories: 495 kcal
- Sugar: 6 g
- Sodium: 750 mg
- Fat: 27 g
- Saturated Fat: 14 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 11 g
- Trans Fat: 0.5 g
- Carbohydrates: 31 g
- Fiber: 2 g
- Protein: 35 g
- Cholesterol: 110 mg