Kathy Brennan & Caroline Campion's Skillet Lasagna
Author Notes: It turns out lasagna can happen any old weeknight, if you’re smart about it—in fact, it can happen in the time it would take to make your average spaghetti with Marcella's tomato sauce. And in one fewer pot. Note: No-boil lasagna noodles are pre-cooked and dehydrated again—but that doesn’t mean that they’re a poor substitute. If you can’t find no-boil noodles, Brennan and Campion say you can substitute regular lasagna noodles—you’ll just have to cook them first (keep them very al dente because they’ll continue to cook in the sauce). Adapted slightly from —Genius Recipes
Serves 6
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 pound sweet or hot Italian sausages, casings removed
- 1 small yellow onion, finely chopped
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- Large pinch of hot red pepper flakes
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- Two 28-ounce cans whole, peeled tomatoes
- 1 sprig basil, plus a handful of basil leaves
- Salt and pepper
- One 9-ounce package no-boil lasagna noodles (they aren't all 9-ounce, so be sure to check!)
- 4 ounces mascarpone cheese or cream cheese (1/2 cup)
- 1/2 pound fresh mozzarella, thinly sliced and patted dry
- In a large high-sided sauté pan with a 3-quart capacity and a lid, heat the oil over high heat until it shimmers. Add the sausages and cook, stirring often and breaking up the meat, until browned, about 4 minutes. Leaving as much oil in the pan as possible, transfer the sausage to a medium bowl and set aside.
- Reduce the heat to medium-low, add the onions, garlic and pepper flakes to the pan, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions are softened, about 7 minutes. Add the oregano, the tomatoes and their juices, crushing the tomatoes with your hands or a potato masher, the sprig of basil, and the cooked sausage and any juices. Season with salt and pepper, then gently simmer for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Check the seasonings (it should be a little salty) and discard the basil sprig. Editor's note: Canned tomatoes can vary—if it’s really soupy (and you’re not into that) you can let the liquid boil off a little more, if it’s looking dry, add a little water.
- Break half of the lasagna noodles in half crosswise (it’s fine if smaller pieces break off) and as you do so, push each piece into the sauce under the sausage, distributing them evenly throughout the pan (it can help to do this off the heat, and to use an extra noodle to nudge them under—try to leave a little cushion of sauce beneath them, so they don't stick to the bottom and burn). Break the remaining half of the noodles in half and distribute them evenly over the sauce, then push down on them with the back of a spoon to submerge them. Cover the pan and gently simmer (raising the heat a little, if needed) until the noodles are tender and the sauce has thickened slightly, about 12 minutes.
- Dollop the mascarpone over the lasagna and swirl it into the sauce. Top with the mozzarella and gently simmer, covered, until the cheese is melted, about 2 minutes. Off the heat, top with the basil leaves, tearing any large ones. Let the lasagna rest, uncovered, for about 10 minutes, then serve.
- This recipe is a Community Pick!
More Great Recipes:
Lasagna|Entrees|Pork|Pasta|Cheese & Dairy
Topics: Weeknight Cooking, Genius Recipes, One-Pot Wonders, Pasta
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3 months ago betsyl
Has anyone adapted this to a 9 x 13 pan? I need to make a large amount (probably two pans worth) for my daughter's birthday dinner and just wondering about conversion. Thanks in advance for any guidance!
4 months ago Yayita
This was a hit with my bf and my neighbor! I followed the recipe for the most part but did make a few minor adjustments based on some of the comments I read:
1) When the instructions asked to push pasta into the sauce, I ladled all but one cup of the pasta sauce with sausage into the bowl I used to hold the browned Italian sausage. Then I proceeded to place the first layer of pasta, and then scooped out a bit of the reserved pasta sauce with sausage to cover the first layer, and kept doing this until I ran out of pasta (a total of 4 layers). A couple of people mentioned that it was a lot of pasta but I think that the way the recipe is written that it seem as it should only be a couple of layers. I felt that had I followed the instructions on how to place the pasta I wouldn't have been able to use all of the pasta, so grateful I read about the layering strategy from someone else.
2) I read in another comment that to intensify the flavor that they used tomato paste and added a bit of sugar. Which I thought was a good tip but I ended up no following it because I used San Marzano whole tomatoes in this recipe. In case anyone is wondering why this brand specifically, I became a believer after reading Food52's explanation on it https://food52.com/blog.... It's explained that they grown in Italy, Mount Vesuvius and I quote "The volcanic soil makes them sweeter, less acidic."
3) To deepen the umami in the dish I crushed and smashed 2 anchovies into the sauce.
4) Based on another comment, I placed the skillet under the broiler for a couple of mins to completely melt the mozzarella.
Overall, I am very pleased with the recipe as it took me about an hour and 15 mins to complete it (I took my time so I am sure 40-45 mins is doable if you have your mise in place).
A couple of other observations I wanted to make. The dish's surface naturally wraps as the pasta cooks and the dish settles, you can see this in the photos as well. Before making it I kept wondering how they had accomplished making the photos appear with so much cheese texture haha but it turns out it's the pasta that wraps a bit under the cheese making those ripples on the surface. And if you plan to photograph your end result keep in mind that the minute you place the basil leaves on top that they will wilt and turn black quickly due to the heat from the cheese; so be quick with your photographs!
5 months ago Linda Diaz
Made this last night for supper, and what a delicious, delightful surprise. The next time I prepare this dish, I will use fewer lasagna noodles. Even though I used a 4.5 quart skillet, the nine ounces of lasagna looked as if it over whelm the skillet. I removed about half of the noodles and that looked more balanced.
6 months ago BeverlyW
I found this recipe yesterday, and made it for dinner tonight as described. It was AWESOME! My family said it is 'dinner party worthy'! I've never used no-boil noodles before, they have such a nice texture and flavor when soaking up the sauce. I will definitely be adding this to our regular rotation!!!
6 months ago Eileen Shields
I made this twice but cut the recipe in half each time. Was easy to cut in half. Used ground pork instead of sausage and added red wine for additional liquid. Was a lovely, delicious surprise. Fully meets my daughter's craving for pasta, while still being able to pass it off as "lasagne." A fun endeavor. Try it!
6 months ago Rachel Zeller
I wouldn't bother with the lasagna noodles. They took longer to cook and seemed more trouble than they were worth. Next time I'll use bow ties and make sure they're submerged. Great version of lasagna with less cheese!
6 months ago Valerie Norton Treichel
I made it just as written. Very delicious and satisfying. Definitely quick and easy.
6 months ago Pamela Peerce-Landers
Also suggest mixing the mascarpone BEFORE adding the top noodles.
7 months ago Pamela Peerce-Landers
Your caution about too much liquid led me to over-reduce before adding the pasta. Had to add water because the top was just laying there high and dry.
I used my canned tomatoes, which may have less water than store bought. All their liquid comes from their juices.
Despite that, the dish was great.
Will definitely make it again.
7 months ago lois
I made this last night and was pleasantly surprised. Things that are supposed to be quick rarely are! It took me closer to an hour than the 40-45 minutes some folks are reporting, but that was still within my time budget for the evening. I did everything as directed (without stressing too much about the noodle placement) but stuck the pan under the broiler at the end. Otherwise I was not convinced the mozz on top would melt before everything on the bottom got burned and stuck to the pan. I will definitely make this again!
7 months ago Joan - Downstairs
On my second go with this recipe, I took it to a car-camp potluck dinner and it was a hit. I was hoping to have leftovers for dinner the next day but nothing survived. I prepared the recipe as written through the sauce-making stage than poured that into a couple of quart jars. In the half hour prep time I had in camp, I heated the sauce, tucked in the pasta proceeded.
Rich and creamy with stretchy strings of mozzarella - it was just right for a chilly evening.
I need to work on my pasta-tucking technique so I'll be making lasagna again soon.
7 months ago Jean LaVigne
Great recipe. It comes together quickly and is deliciously satisfying. I added a little anchovy paste (1 tbs) and some Parmigiano cheese (1/3 cup) as it is to my taste. Don't stress over getting the noodles submerged, just stuff 'em into the pan with a little sauce in between each so they don't stick together. I am really pleased with this dish. :)
7 months ago Rachel Parenteau
This recipe is a keeper!! My family loved it and keeps asking me to make it again. It was easy to make thank you
8 months ago cratecooking
Susan is a Recipe Tester for Food52
Great idea for jazzing up a camping menu!
8 months ago Diane K
Great recipe! What I did to intensify the flavor was to add a can of tomato paste once the onions and garlic were cooked. Added some sugar and cooked the rawness out of the paste.
Also added some fennel to the sausage and hit it with dry Marsala. Also added Marsala to the tomato sauce.
Easy and delicious one pan meal!
8 months ago Carey Letts
I grew up with cottage cheese being used in lasagna, so perhaps that's why I didn't miss the ricotta as much as others did. I went with cream cheese since that's what was in the fridge and I really enjoyed the creamy little pockets it ended up providing. A little hidden treasure!
8 months ago lauren
This was good. Could be great. Here is what I did and what I will do.
1. rather than pushing pasta around through hot sauce and to truly get it distributed, which was not that easy, I merely ladled all but a cup of sauce out of the pan, because why not? It was faster this way. I layered pasta, spooned sauce and layered again. easy.
2. I MISSED the ricotta layer and adding it is easy, so again, why not? Next time i will mix one up: ricotta (NOT mascarpone), mozz, parm, and put it between the two pasta layers. It adds almost no time and since I am layering ,which adds no time, I get fast skillet lasagna that actually is like the real thing.
8 months ago Ellis Weiner
Why mascarpone or cream cheese (both sweet) and not ricotta?
8 months ago Katy Gillette-Glover
This was a home run in our house tonight. Super simple. UMAMI. Lasagna is my favorite food and this was the best lasagna I have ever eaten.
8 months ago Kathy Brennan
Great to hear this! When Caroline and I developed the recipes for the KEEPERS cookbook, we kept reminding each other to keep it simple, which is harder than it sounds sometimes ;)
8 months ago Heather McKenzie Green
I don't know how people successfully got the noodles to the bottom of the pan with all the sauce/meat on top of it. Could you use tomato sauce instead of the whole tomatoes? My 3 year old hates seeing tomatoes. Also, it didn't seem cheesy enough with just the layer of mozzarella on top. And maybe I didn't melt it enough because it was still in big clumps and hard to eat. Any suggestions welcomed!
8 months ago Laura
Hi Heather! I used one can of crushed tomatoes and one can of whole tomatoes in puree because it's what I had on hand, and mashed the whole tomoatoes up with a potato masher (sometimes I'll use an immersion blender) and added a little water as needed to keep a saucy consistency. I personally don't like using tomato sauce from a can as it usually has other spices added and I like to have control over that! I think you just have to slide your noodles under the meat and keep nudging them with a wooden spoon to keep them covered. Oh, and I found that popping the cheese-topped pan under the broiler for a minute or two gave me that slightly blistered gooey cheese that I love about a lasagna, and that using a wide pan gave me a more favorable cheese-to-surface area ratio. Hope that helps! :D
8 months ago Kathy Brennan
This all sounds frustrating. I will try to help. First, the noodles don't need to get to the very bottom of the pan. Just angle them down and slide them into the sauce. Form a rough "layer" all over the pan, then do the same thing, not angling them down as much. The key is that you don't want layers of noodles right on top of each other--some sauce should be in between them.
As for the tomatoes, I suggest substituting either crushed tomatoes or pureeing the whole canned ones (use an immersion blender, food mill, or food processor). If you prefer to use a jarred sauce, that should work, but the seasonings would need to be adjusted.
Re the cheese, the fresh melts pretty quickly, unless it's thickly sliced. Try slicing it thinner or baking it longer. If you use(d) pasteurized mozzarella, that's a different story. Shredded would be a better option. No matter which type you use, feel free to use as much as you like.
Hope you try it again and have better results. Good luck!
8 months ago Kathy Brennan
Hi Laura. I just sent my reply and saw yours. Great tips. Thank you!
8 months ago Heather McKenzie Green
Thank you to both of you! I will try this again. I guess my husband didn't mind one bit because he told me today that it was his favorite meal I've ever made (ha!) I definitely cut the cheese too thick and will make thinner slices next time. I will also use your other suggestions. I would LOVE to see a video of someone doing this recipe to see exactly how to do the noodles. (Maybe I'm being too much of a perfectionist...) :-)
8 months ago Laura
Aw, thank you Kathy! That means a lot coming from you! :D
8 months ago lauren
I layered sauce and pasta. It was no big deal. I think in this recipe trying to be so easy, it actually got to be a little hard. It's not that hard to layer in the pan once you take the sauce out. You have a dirty bowl anyway from taking the sausage out. so you don't even add to clean up duties.
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