Nonna’s Lasagna Recipe That She Never Gave You

If you had a Nonna, this would have been Nonna’s lasagna recipe. I’ll get straight into the full recipe below after the brief introduction, so that you don’t have to scroll down to get the details.

However, after the recipe there are tips and variations that are worth reading, so make sure to check them out.

This recipe is a bechamel lasagna which I think is the superior type! This recipe takes a few steps to make as we make our Nonna’s Bolognese Recipe first. Then while that is simmering, we make Microwave Bechamel Sauce. In the microwave because it’s easier that way. All the steps are worth it!!

But first, let’s compare bechamel bolognese lasagna and no bechamel lasagna:

Bechamel Bolognese Lasagna

A note about Bechamel Bolognese Lasagna: Béchamel Lasagnas have creamy, decadent béchamel sauce in all of the layers and even more on top. Generally, this is what makes the Nonna’s Lasagna Recipe.

You layer bolognese sauce, then lasagna sheets, bolognese sauce, bechamel sauce, then lasagna sheets, bolognaise sauce, and finally bechamel sauce. Then you can have a layer of grated cheese on top to give that golden-ness on top.

No Bechamel Lasagna

No Bechamel Lasagna is a recipe where in the layers we have bolognesesauce and grated cheese and lasagna sheets, and there is no bechamel sauce at all. It is slightly easier to make, as you don’t have to make the bechamel sauce as well, and the layers go bolognese sauce, lasagna sheets, bolognese sauce, grated cheese, lasagna sheets, bolognese sauce, grated cheese.

You would use say 1.5 cups of grated cheese for each layer, so it will taste cheesy once it is done, rather than creamy. If you want to make No Behcamel Lasagna, you can still use this recipe, just instead of bechamel sauce use grated cheese! If you prefer that, that’s totally okay, but personally I find these too cheesy (and not creamy enough). You can try both and see how you feel!

Either way, it will feel like a celebration when you get that Nonna’s Lasagna Recipe out of the oven!

If you want to read more about lasagna, like some history, I found this article very interesting.

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Nonna's Lasagna Recipe

Yield: 10 servings

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Ingredients

• One serve of Nonna's Bolognese Recipe
• One serve of Microwave Bechamel Sauce
• Other ingredients
• 250g instant lasagna sheets
• ½ cup shredded cheese

Instructions

1. Start by making the bolognese sauce by following Nonna's Bolognese Recipe.
2. While it is simmering, make the microwave béchamel sauce.
3. Preheat the oven to 200 C
4. When both sauces are ready, it's time to assemble your lasagna:
5. Place some bolognese sauce into a large baking dish and spread it evenly across the bottom of the dish with a spoon.
6. Top with lasagna sheets in a single layer, feel free to break them to fit. We are aiming to make three layers of pasta sheets total so use about a third of the pasta sheets here.
7. Top with another layer of the bolognese, then a layer of the béchamel.
8. Repeat with half of the remaining pasta sheets, then some bolognaise sauce then some of the béchamel.
9. Now layer the last of the pasta sheets, the rest of the bolognese and the rest of the béchamel.
10. If you are using dry sheets, add in 1/3 cup water evenly around the sides this will help the pasta sheets to cook. If you are using fresh lasagna sheets, there is no need for this.
11. Bake for 35mins on the middle rack. Check your lasagna. It should be bubbling happily and a bit brown on top.
12. Sprinkle with shredded cheese and return to the oven for 5 more minutes to allow the cheese to melt.
13. Allow to rest for 10 mins, then cut up into ten single rectangles and serve.

Nutrition Information

Serving Size one piece (when lasagna is cut into 10 pieces)
Amount Per Serving Calories 341Total Fat 17gCarbohydrates 32gSugar 8gProtein 15g

Variations

Have a read of these variations to the Nonna’s Lasagna Recipe you can do to accommodate different diets and moods, there’s a Nonna’s Lasagna Recipe for everyone!

Gluten Free Lasagna

For gluten free lasagna, buy gluten free instant or fresh lasagna sheets. The fresh lasagna sheets from the refrigerated section of your supermarket tend to taste better in gluten free particularly. Also make sure to use gluten free flour in the bechamel sauce!

Dairy Free Lasagna, Vegetarian Lasagna or Vegan Lasagna

For vegan lasagna, vegetarian lasagna or dairy free lasagna, you can replace the beef mince with lentils in the bolognaise. In the béchamel, use soy milk and instead of butter, use oil or your favourite butter substitute. Check the ingredients on the label of the lasagna sheets to make sure there is no added dairy. And the cheese on top is optional, you can skip it or use vegan cheese or nutritional yeast.

More Veggies

You can add cooked, sliced vegetables as an extra layer in Nonna’s Lasagna Recipe (eg baked pumpkin or grilled eggplant or zucchini) anywhere you like in the lasagna, for example on top of every noodle later. If you prefer not to use pasta sheets at all, you can use the vegetables instead of the pasta layers.

Air Fryer Lasagna

To make Air Fryer Lasagna, follow the above Nonna’s Lasagna Recipe except at the end we won’t bake in the oven, we will bake the whole thing in your air fryer. Start by removing the basket if you have one in your air fryer, you can make the Air Fryer Lasagna right in the air fryer itself when there’s no basket or other attachments in there. Or you can find a baking tray that fits inside your air fryer, and put the lasagna in that, then inside the air fryer.

Layer your bolognese sauce, bechamel sauce and lasagna sheets in the air fryer, as in the above Nonna’s Lasagna Recipe, making sure to finish with a layer of bechamel. Set your air fryer to 180C and cook for 30mins. If the top starts to go too brown, you can put a layer of foil on top to protect it.

Check your Air Fryer Lasagna, and taste a little bit of lasagna noodle to see if it’s cooked through. Air fryers vary, so how long it takes to cook will depend on your own air fryer, but most likely you will need to cook it for another 10 mins to let the noodles cook through.

Then take off the foil if you used it, and sprinkle the lasagna with cheese, and cook it for another 5-10mins to melt the cheese until the top is golden and bubbling.

Let it rest for a few minutes before slicing, this helps the layers hold together.