I was craving lasagna but wasn’t in the mood to spend an hour layering pasta and cheese. I wanted something quick and easy! I found several recipes for skillet lasagna and decided to give this one a try. It has all the same components as traditional lasagna, but instead of layering the pasta, cheese, and sauce/meat mixture, you cook the pasta right in the sauce/meat mixture and then just stir in the cheese at the end. The dollops of ricotta and parmesan really give it that “lasagna” taste. It’s the perfect weeknight dinner and I think the leftovers might be even better the next day! Serve it up with a salad and some garlic bread or cheese biscuits! Yum! Enjoy!
Easy Skillet Lasagna
1 lb lean ground beef
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1⁄4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
6 ounces lasagna noodles, broken into 2-inch pieces (8 noodles)
26 ounces marinara sauce
2 cups water
1⁄2 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded
1⁄4 cup grated parmesan cheese
3⁄4 cup ricotta cheese
1⁄4 cup fresh basil, chopped
1. Cook the meat in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat, breaking it into pieces with a wooden spoon, until cooked through. Drain meat and return to skillet.
2. Stir in garlic powder, red pepper flakes and cook over medium-high heat until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
3. Sprinkle broken lasagna noodles into the skillet, then pour in marinara sauce and water over the top.
4. Cover and cook, stirring often and adjusting heat as necessary to maintain a vigorous simmer, until noodles are tender (about 20 minutes).
5. Take the skillet off the heat source and stir in half of the mozzarella and half of the parmesan. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
6. Dot heaping tablespoons of ricotta over the noodles, then sprinkle with remaining mozzarella and parmesan.
7. Cover and let stand off heat until the cheeses melt (about 3-5 minutes). Sprinkle with basil before serving.
*adapted from Genius Kitchen
