Cheesy Lasagna Recipe

Sauce:

1. In a large bowl, crush the tomatoes using the hands until they are in bite-size pieces.

2. In a large saucepan over medium-high heat, warm the olive oil, add the garlic, and cook, stirring, for about 1 minute until it begins to sizzle.

3. Add the tomatoes and 1 teaspoon of salt and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and let the sauce simmer, stirring every so often, for about 30 minutes until it is slightly reduced.

4. Whisk the crème fraîche into the sauce and season to taste with salt. Set the sauce aside to cool to room temperature.

Pasta Dough:

1. In the bowl of a food processor, combine the flour, eggs, and salt and run the machine until a firm ball of dough forms around the blade, cleans the side of the processor bowl, and doesn’t stick to the fingers when touched.

2. Once your dough is good to go, dust it lightly with flour and wrap it tightly in plastic wrap. Let it rest at room temperature for 1 hour.

3. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and have more parchment paper at hand.

4. Cut the rested dough into 6 pieces. Working with 1 piece at a time, lightly dust the dough with flour and press it down with the heel of the hand.

5. Run the dough through the pasta machine, starting on the widest setting and eventually through the narrower setting, rolling it through each setting 2, until it is very thin but not too thin.

6. Lay the rolled-out pasta on the prepared baking sheet. Repeat the process with the rest of the dough, keeping the rolled pieces separated with parchment paper.

To Assemble:

1. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F.

2. Ladle a thin layer of room-temperature sauce onto the bottom of a 9×13-inch baking dish. Spread the sauce with a spoon to cover the surface of the dish.

3. Add a layer of pasta, cutting the pasta, and arranging it as needed to form an even single layer. Spoon over just enough tomato sauce to cover the pasta and then scatter over some of the Parmesan, mozzarella, and basil.

4. Repeat the layering process until all components are used, ending with sauce and cheese.

5. Bake the lasagna, uncovered, for 35 to 40 minutes until it’s gorgeously browned and the edges are bubbling. Let it rest at room temperature for 15 minutes.

6. Serve and enjoy.