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Fastest Lasagna You’ll Ever Make with No-Cook Noodles

We love us some easy meal-makin’ in this house, especially when it concerns lasagna, how about you?  Yet, lots of folks hesitate to make it because it is time-consuming with the cooking of the noodles and the making of the sauce. What if I told you that this is the fastest lasagna you’ll ever make?  What if I told you you could use jarred sauce and DRY noodles?  WHAT THEN?!

Of course you’d make it!

What follows is the original recipe given to me years ago (I would credit the gal, but I can’t remember who gave it to me), but in the notes section I give you the tweaked recipe that I actually use for a family-sized lasagna:

Lasagna: Cheater-Style!

Ingredients

  • 1 large jar of pasta sauce (1)
  • 1 pound of hamburger (2)
  • 1 onion, diced and sauteed
  • 1 green or red pepper, diced and sauteed
  • 1 package of lasagna noodles (3)
  • 1 large container of cottage cheese, small curd (4)
  • 2 cups grated cheese (5)

Instructions

  1. Cook and drain hamburger, then add to sauce.
  2. Saute onion and pepper, then add to sauce. Heat through.
  3. Spray pan with no-stick spray.
  4. Place a single layer of DRY noodles on bottom of pan.
  5. Spoon and spread 1/3rd of cottage cheese on top of noodles.
  6. Top with 1/3rd of sauce, then sprinkle with layer of grated cheese.
  7. Repeat for three layers (or 4 for large pan...and in that case you'll use 1/4 of ingredients for each layer).
  8. Seal with foil and bake 1 hour @350°.

Notes

(1): I typically make my own sauce, and since I make this in a 9 x 13 or a 10 x 15 pan, I double everything. If I had to guess, I use about 32 ounces or more of sauce (2 jars-ish) (2) I use between 1-2 pounds of hamburger. You decide. (3) I use between 2-2 1/2 packages of lasagna noodles. (4) i use about 2 large containers of small curd cottage cheese (5) Double cheese.

https://ohmrstucker.com/fastest-lasagna-youll-ever-make-with-no-cook-noodles/

BOOM!  LASAGNA!

Well, the recipe didn’t come with the last part.  I added it because that’s how excited you will be to make this simple, yet tastes like you slaved over it for hours, lasagna.

How about a fast pictorial?

[Tweet “Fastest Lasagna You’ll Ever Make with No-Cook Noodles”]

Start with sauce…any sauce you either have on hand or that you love:

Fastest Lasagna You'll Ever Make with No-Cook Noodles

Noodles:

Fastest Lasagna You'll Ever Make with No-Cook Noodles

Full fat or low fat Cottage Cheese (or you could substitute ricotta cheese):

Fastest Lasagna You'll Ever Make with No-Cook Noodles

RECIPE NOTE: To those of you skeeved out by the use of cottage cheese in this recipe, let me tell you that I feel ya.  I HATE cottage cheese.  No lie.  Would never ever catch me eating it…unless…I’m eating this lasagna.  #1: You totally can’t taste it. #2: It’s a nice addition for some bulk. #3: You totally can’t taste it. #4: You gotta trust me here.

Grate some cheese:

Fastest Lasagna You'll Ever Make with No-Cook Noodles

Open the cottage cheese and give it a good stir:

Fastest Lasagna You'll Ever Make with No-Cook Noodles

Spray your pan with cooking spray, then line some noodles in a single layer (the broken parts cook down too, so no worries):

Fastest Lasagna You'll Ever Make with No-Cook Noodles

Spread some of the cottage cheese on the noodles:

Fastest Lasagna You'll Ever Make with No-Cook Noodles

Spread some sauce on top of the cottage cheese:

Fastest Lasagna You'll Ever Make with No-Cook Noodles

Looks like these after it’s been spread around:

Fastest Lasagna You'll Ever Make with No-Cook Noodles

Later some cheese on top of that:

Fastest Lasagna You'll Ever Make with No-Cook Noodles

Start all over again with more noodles:

Fastest Lasagna You'll Ever Make with No-Cook Noodles

You might get two or three layers, depending on the depth of your pan, but when you’re done layering, end with a layer of sauce and then top with cheese:

Fastest Lasagna You'll Ever Make with No-Cook Noodles

Lawsy.  Are you Italian?  Cause it kinda looks like it!

Here is the finished product (which looks a bit runny because we didn’t let it sit long enough after baking cause we had the HUNGRAYS! Normally, if you let it set a bit after baking, everything holds together better.):

Fastest Lasagna You'll Ever Make with No-Cook Noodles

As you can see, it made a boatload of lasagna.  No worries.  Eat a meal’s worth, save another meal’s worth of leftovers, then cut and freeze the rest.  It freezes and reheats beautifully.  Nothing goes to waste!

I’ve been using this recipe since I was a newlywed.  It has stood the test of time for over 32 years.  If that ain’t a recommendation, I don’t know how else to convince you!

Throw in a lovely salad, a garlicky french bread, maybe a tasty vino, and you have a fancy dinner that didn’t take you all day to prepare. Trust me when I tell you this will not only become a family favorite, but one you won’t mind preparing.

What are you waiting for?

Happy cooking, y’all!

 

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Lisa @ Fun Money Finds

Sunday 15th of March 2015

I love no cook noodles and that's all I use now! I've never tried the cottage cheese though...I'll have to try it next time!

Patti Tucker

Sunday 15th of March 2015

I love that any uncooked noodles are no-cook noodles! I'm all about making things easier.

Melissa D

Tuesday 10th of March 2015

I just switched to a brand of lasagna noodles that requires the pre-cooking, which is a drag...but apparently they digest better. Noodles that don't stick to my thighs are keepers, for sure! :) I'll definitely be adding the cottage cheese in, though--more protein and oomph for my hungry family!

Patti Tucker

Tuesday 10th of March 2015

The cottage cheese is an inexpensive filler and gives a sound nutritional boost. Plus, you can't taste it. That's my fav part.

Ronda Chesser Porter

Tuesday 10th of March 2015

Lasagna is my LOVE! Shared on my SM!

Patti Tucker

Tuesday 10th of March 2015

Thanks, Ronda. I hope this one doesn't disappoint.

Melissa @ Home on Deranged

Tuesday 10th of March 2015

Why, yes, I would love to try this. I've never had the courage to go without cooking the noodles first, but you make it look pretty darned easy. And lot less stress than the one I put together last time! Thanks.

Patti Tucker

Tuesday 10th of March 2015

No stress and pretty darn easy! Go wow 'em!

Skye

Tuesday 10th of March 2015

I was always so skeptical about not cooking lasagna noodles! It took me over a year to even be willing to try it.

Patti Tucker

Tuesday 10th of March 2015

Best tip ever, right? I haven't ever made it with pre-cooked noodles.

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