Inspiration for this recipe came from the The Best Make-Ahead Recipe by Cooks Illustrated. Add a tossed green salad for balance. One more note – this sauce is great tossed with whole wheat linguine instead of used in the lasagna.
2tablespoonsfresh finely chopped oregano leavesor ½ tablespoons dried
1largeegg
½teaspoonkosher salt
¼teaspoonground black pepper
Noodles and Cheese
8ouncesWhole wheat no-boil lasagna noodles
8ouncesfresh style mozzarella, grated
⅓cupfreshly grated Parmesan cheese
Instructions
Sauce
With a small sharp knife, slice down two sides of the sausage links. Peel off the casing and discard. Chop the sausage into chunks. In the bowl of a food processor, pulse the sausage chunks until fairly finely, about 12 pulses.
Heat olive oil in a large saucepan (4-5 quarts) over medium heat. Add onion and cook until softened, stirring. Add garlic and cook 30-60 seconds, then add the fennel, sausage and red wine. Stir and cook a few minutes until the wine is almost gone, then add the tomatoes, salt and peppers. Swirl a little water in the tomato can to wash it out and pour into the pan. Simmer for 30 minutes. Set aside and cool.
Filling
In a large mixing bowl combine the ricotta, Parmesan, herbs egg and seasoning. Set aside.
Lasagna Assembly (4 layers)
If serving right away. Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees. Place about ½ cup of the sauce in the bottom of an 8×8 stoneware or glass baking dish.
Place two noodles on the bottom. Top with ⅓ of the ricotta mixture. Layer on ⅓ of the mozzarella. Top with ½ cup of sauce. Next two layers, repeat with noodles, ricotta, mozzarella, and sauce. For the top layer, place the last two noodles, cover with the remaining sauce and top with Parmesan.
To Bake Now
Spray a piece of foil with non-stick spray and cover the baking dish. Place dish on a rimmed baking sheet and bake for 30 minutes covered. Then remove foil and bake another 30 minutes. Allow to stand for 10 minutes before slicing and serving.
To Bake for Later
Spray a piece of foil with non-stick spray and cover the baking dish. Place in the refrigerator for a few hours until ready to bake. Two hours before serving, remove the dish from the refrigerator and allow to come to room temperature. Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees. Bake 30 minutes covered with foil and 30 minutes without foil. Allow to stand 10 minutes, then slice and serve.