Easy Meatball Lasagna

Author Notes

There is a constant argument in my house about serving red sauce with any pasta meal. While I like red sauce, I like variety more- so I end up experimenting with different kinds of sauces or sometimes no sauce at all. My husband is not too happy when the pasta is served without a sauce.

This dish is a compromise since it has the red and white sauce. I had the leftover meatballs from the previous day and I felt quite adventurous. I sliced the meatballs and sauteed them in a little oil and kept them aside. I wanted to make a lasagna with the left over marinara sauce in the fridge. I didn’t have any ricotta cheese- I decided to substitute a bechamel sauce instead. To give the sauce a little body and texture, I sauteed some onions before adding the all purpose flour and creamy fontina cheese. Fontina cheese is a must ingredient in my fridge. It is mild and nutty and melts really well on anything.

I layered the no-cook lasagna noodles (another ingredient found in my pantry) with the two sauces and the meatballs. I topped it all with some shredded cheese and stuck it in the oven. I was very excited to taste this experiment. I was hoping my daughter and husband will feel the same excitement when they taste it- and they did. They both loved it! I was extremely happy and very proud of myself.

It is easy to come up with ideas for left overs if your pantry and fridge are well-stocked. With lasagnas, sky is the limit- you can add as much or as little- as long as the ingredients are good and fresh.

I served it with a salad and a Merlot.

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