Italian Lasagna

• servings: 12 servings
• active time: 30 minutes
• total time: 6 hours 10 minutes

Ingredients

9 thick slices bacon, diced

1 medium onion, chopped

2 (28 ounce) cans tomato sauce

1 ½ teaspoons Italian seasoning

1 teaspoon fennel seed

1 teaspoon dried oregano

2 pounds Italian sausage links

2 pints part-skim ricotta cheese

⅓ cup milk

2 large eggs

2 teaspoons chopped fresh parsley

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1 (16 ounce) package uncooked lasagna noodles

8 slices provolone cheese

6 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

Directions

Make the sauce: Brown bacon and onion in a large pan over medium heat until bacon is crisp and onion is translucent, 7 to 9 minutes. Stir in tomato sauce, Italian seasoning, fennel seed, and oregano. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer until thick, 4 to 6 hours.

Cook the sausage: When the sauce is almost ready, brown sausage links in a large skillet. Drain on paper towels and cut into 1-inch pieces.

Make the lasagna: Mix ricotta cheese, milk, eggs, parsley, and oregano together in a medium bowl.

Spread 1 cup sauce over the bottom of a 9x13-inch pan. Layer with 1/3 of the lasagna noodles, 1/2 of the ricotta mixture, 1/2 of the sausage pieces, 2 cups mozzarella, 4 slices provolone, and 1/3 of the sauce. Repeat layers once more, then top with remaining noodles. Spread remaining sauce over noodles and sprinkle with remaining mozzarella.

Bake in the preheated oven for 1 1/2 hours.

Nutrition

• Calories: 944 kcal
• Total Fat: 64 g
• Saturated Fat: 29 g
• Unsaturated Fat: 0 g
• Cholesterol: 195 mg
• Sodium: 2127 mg
• Total Carbohydrate: 43 g
• Dietary Fiber: 4 g
• Protein: 50 g