Recipe: Crockpot Lasagna

Yes, another oldie-but-goodie that I hadn't made in far too long!

My family loves this!

I love this!

I love that it uses the crockpot!

Because otherwise? Lasagna doesn't get made around here. It dirties too many pots and takes too long to prepare.

This seems much simpler, somehow.



First, grab a 7-year old cutie from China:
Nah, you don't have to do that - but it does make the whole process more fun!

I got this from my Fix-It and Forget-It Cookbook (by Ranck and Good). It's called Helen's Lasagna (as opposed to Violette's Lasagna, on the next page. Whatever you do - don't try Violette's Lasagna. Just kidding, I'm sure that would be fine...I just use Helen's recipe!)

I like that this only cooks for 4-5 hours, unlike most slow-cooker recipes, so I can throw it together after lunch, instead of in the morning. Or, I can throw it together in the morning, and just keep it in my fridge until it's time to start it cooking.

And I also like that this recipe uses cottage cheese instead of ricotta like most lasagna recipes. Last time I checked, cottage cheese was cheaper (but I haven't bought ricotta for years now...so watch this not be the case anymore!).

Without further ado...

Helen's Lasagna

1 lb ground beef (I use ground venison that my manly man killed for us)

1 medium onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, pressed

29-oz can tomato sauce

1 cup water  (I omit this...we think it makes the lasagna too soupy)

6 oz can tomato paste

1 tsp dried oregano

8-oz package lasagna noodles, uncooked

4 cups (16 oz) shredded mozzarella chees

1 1/2 c. (12 oz) small-curd cottage cheese

1/2 c. grated Parmesan cheese

1. Cook beef, onion, and garlic together in saucepan until browned. Drain.

2. Stir in tomato sauce, water, tomato paste, and oregano. Mix well.

3. Spread one-fourth of meat sauce in ungreased slow cooker. Arrange one third of noodles over sauce.

4. Combine the cheeses. Spoon one-third of mixture over noodles. REpeat layers twice. Top with remaining meat sauce.

5. Cover. Cook on low 4-5 hours.


I double this recipe and throw all of it in my big 7 qt. crockpot...I love having planned-overs!