Grandma’s Italian Lasagna and a Memory
Grandma’s Italian Lasagna authentic recipe made exactly the way all of the Italians made it when I visited Italy! We eat this for every holiday meal and this is made in her memory to keep the tradition alive.
I’m dedicating this post, “Grandma’s Italian Lasagna”, to a wonderful lady that I had the pleasure and privilege of knowing for a mere 5 years of my life. My husband’s sweet grandmother, Differdange AKA “Rose”, passed away a little over a month ago at the age of 93.
This was a huge loss to the entire family and the many friends that she had. The way she loved God, her late husband, her family, and people, in general, right until her last day on earth was truly inspirational and admirable. It’s not very often that I meet people that I wish I could be more like and she was one of those people.
Since my husband and I have been together I always had fun going to visit her at her little apartment she lived in for over 25 years. She always had endless interesting stories to tell and they were always told with humor.
She had a great sense of humor and an impeccable memory, even up until right before she passed away. The details she remembered about anything and everything in her past was always so amazing to me. At age 93 her memory was, by far, way better than mine has ever been.
My husband has many great memories of having Sunday sauce with her there at her apartment where she would cook the most amazing sauce and meatballs. Everything she made tasted like perfection – even down to the littlest thing – like fried zucchini or peas and mushrooms, which were my husband’s favorite.
One regret of mine is not picking her brain more about how she got everything to just taste so delicious and full of flavor. I don’t know how she did it but she always gave that special touch to all her food.
I guess what they say is true: when something is “cooked with love”, it always tastes better. She truly did love and enjoy cooking and baking for the people she loved.
Of course, I have to make a note of her Italian cookies and pastries around Christmas time – no words to describe the deliciousness – unparalleled! I made her Grandma’s Italian Almond Macaroons every year. I’m happy to keep that tradition going. I also love her Chocolate-Covered Almond Biscotti.
Her signature dish was her lasagna, hence the name Grandma’s Italian Lasagna. She always made the best and was famous for this lasagna – I’ve never had better – it was beyond compare!
I remember always having it for Thanksgiving before the turkey and the fixings were served. Grandma knew that I loved to cook and bake, and less than a week before she passed away she asked me to make her lasagna using her ingredients she had prepared ahead of time.
She had made and froze them while she still was up and about. She didn’t have the energy to get into the kitchen and make it herself now.
I immediately got nervous and felt the pressure, knowing I could never meet the benchmark she had set in the lasagna-making world. No one could make it like her, even if I was using her homemade sauce she had previously prepared.
All the work was done for me and all I had to do was put it all together…. but I was still nervous I would screw it up and disappoint her. Believe it or not, I had never made lasagna before and wasn’t even sure exactly how to do it.
If you have an Italian grandparent, you KNOW you can’t say “no” when they tell you to do something! My mother-in-law even offered to do it for me because she saw the fear on my face – but Grandma said “no” and pointed to me. I agreed to take on the arduous task.
The next day I gathered up some confidence, tried to remember what I could of her lasagna, did the layering and baked it up. I was surprised and pleased with the results – it actually looked very appetizing and I was pretty proud of myself. I wasn’t sure how it would taste, but it definitely looked tasty.
That very same night, I brought Grandma’s Italian Lasagna to her apartment. Showing her my masterpiece was my shining moment.
Seeing the huge smile on her face when I knelt down next to her in her chair and she looked at the pan of lasagna in my hands was my last special memory of her that I’m so glad I have.
It makes me happy that I was able to help put a smile on her face in her very last days. I felt like she was content knowing her lasagna legacy was going to carry on. It will never taste exactly like hers, but at least I tried. She was able to try a small piece the next day and gave her stamp of approval.
I am thankful to have known such a lady, even for a short time in my life. I hope I can positively impact as many people as she did in her 93 years of life. She gave us all big shoes to fill, that’s for sure. We will miss her, will never forget her, and will see her again someday. ‘Til then, I will make Grandma’s Italian Lasagna to remember her by.
If you love Italian food, try this Ravioli al Pomodoro. I also have a lasagna version that has pesto sauce: Pesto Lasagna. I think she would have been really proud of it!
I also have a Cheesy Lasagna Soup that is similar to this recipe, but in a soup form. Enjoy!
- *What I'm sharing with you today is more of a method than an actual recipe. As far as the sauce goes, you can use your favorite recipe for spaghetti sauce. Grandma didn't use ricotta cheese in her lasagna which might be different than a lot of people are used to with Italian lasagna. After visiting Italy a while back, I realized the true Italians make lasagna without the ricotta cheese! Instead, they used hard-boiled eggs and ground beef. Grandma browned a pound of lean ground beef with a little water, and seasoned with salt and pepper. She hard-boiled 3 eggs and sliced them really thin and used them in the layering.*
- 1 lb. lasagna noodles
- 1.25 lb. ground beef
- 2.5-3 cups mozzarella cheese
- 3 eggs
- tomato sauce (I probably used around 4 cups)
- Hard boil eggs, peel, and crumble/cut up small.
- Cook lasagna noodles until al dente. Drain and then rinse with cold water to stop the cooking process.
- Brown ground beef with a little water, drain, and season with salt and pepper.
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
- Start by putting a layer of sauce on the bottom of a 9x13 pan or lasagna pan so noodles won't stick later on.
- Add a layer of lasagna noodles (overlap a little bit, put different directions or break pieces if needed to cover entire pan), sauce (make sure the noodles are completely covered so they stay soft while baking, don't use too much sauce in the layering or you will get lasagna soup), ground beef, sliced/crumbled hard-boiled egg, Mozzarella cheese, little bit of sauce (drop small spoonfuls).
- REPEAT. I had just enough ingredients to make 4 full layers of ingredients (4 actual noodle layers when all is said and done), then I ended with the next step below.
- Make sure you END with a layer of noodles (this is included in the 4 layers I mentioned above), sauce and mozzarella cheese on the very top.
- Cover with foil: to prevent sticking, either spray foil with cooking spray, or make sure the foil does not touch the cheese. Bake in preheated oven for 30-35 minutes. Remove foil, and bake an additional 20 minutes or until top is hot and bubbly. Watch so the cheese isn't burning.
- Remove lasagna from the oven and allow to cool and set for 15-20 minutes before serving. I spooned a little warmed sauce over top of each piece.
Beautiful! You made me cry. Thank you so much for sharing!
Aww thanks, Lara!
I grew up next to an Italian family where I was included in everything because I loved the food. My favorite thing was the lasagna well and the spaghetti with prigoli. And low and behold hard boiled eggs. Mom fell in love in Napoli with a great man. He moved here after she came back pretty quickly. Then my parents moved into the neighborhood and our families became almost interchangeable. I grew up picking our own tomatoes and making 150 jars of sauce a year and about 150 gallons of home made wine. I just am so happy to see someone as blessed as us to touch the old country!!!!
Thank you for sharing this with me!
I cried when Nick shared this story with me and I’m crying now. It is wonderful that Grandma shared this special dish with you. I’m sure knowing she had someone to carry on making the lasagna and continuing her tradition, was bery comforting to her before she left this world. God Bless.
Aww Nancy – thank you so much for this comment. I’m glad you read it and enjoyed it
That is such a beautiful memory-thank you for sharing it! This lasagna looks amazing. I actually have 2 different lasagna recipes from 2 diff. sides of my family (the Italian and the Irish)–oddly enough I prefer the Irish side’s, which is probably because I’m obsessed with ricotta 😛
Thanks for commenting, Kayle! See, my hubby doesn’t like ricotta so this recipe is his favorite!
aww what a sweet story! the lasagna looks delish and i’m sure Grandma would be proud! 🙂
Thanks, Lauren!!
Ashley thank you so much for sharing this! What a special memory you have and I think it’s great that you can spend some extra time remembering such a wonderful woman every time you make her lasagna!!!
Thanks, Sarah! Hope you are enjoying married life 🙂
Ashley, your story is so touching and sweet. I’m so glad you were inspired by such an awesome woman–and got her awesome lasagna recipe. You did her proud; this looks stunningly delicious.
Thanks, Hayley! I’m glad you read and enjoyed it 🙂
We like our lasagna wiohtut any kind of ricotta. Just vegetables (eggplant and/or spinach) and sometimes seitan crumbled in tomato sauce. We also never precook the noodles. Just throw the whole wheat noodles straight in the pan making sure they’re completely covered in sauce and cover with foil while it cooks so they sort of steam.I think you’re Italian-American, and I’ve probably just completely horrified you.
Not at all! I love your tips! I’ll have to try not pre-boiling the noodles next time
What a beautiful memory Ashley! Whenever I make my Grandma’s homemade fudge, I’m reminded of her. The lasagna looks incredible and she is SO proud I am sure. 🙂
Awww thanks, Sally! It’s nice to have certain recipes that remind you of your loved ones because those will always be there 🙂
I am sorry for your loss.My Italian grandmother …and mother…took too many recipes to their graves.They seem to have lost the point of the joy of feeding others well.
Good for you that you are spreading the joy; this is what I am trying to promote. Good for you!
Thanks, Tonette!! I appreciate your comment!
My grandma used ricotta and hard boiled eggs. It was great. I still sometimes do it that way.
That sounds delicious, Dee! Thanks for coming by my page!
Did you just use plain tomato sauce? I don’t have a clue what kind of sauce to use. This sounds really good…and unique! I’d like to try it.
Thanks, Myra! I just used a plain tomato sauce with a little bit of seasoning. You can use any spaghetti sauce but I would use a more smooth sauce instead of chunky so it’s easy to spread on the noodles 🙂
Just happened upon this via Incredible Recipes. It looks so good, but I’m a little concerned about using plain tomato sauce. I don’t want to over season though. It just seems like it would be too bland without more seasoning, but I’m willing to give it a try. I would guess that Grandma would have made her sauce using fresh tomatoes? Did she not give you her sauce recipe? I absolutely love your story of her. What great memories.
You can definitely season it (I do season the sauce my dad taught me to make, but my husband’s Grandma never used seasoning). It still tasted amazing and I never quite figured it out! She may have made her sauce with fresh tomatoes back in the day but she was 93 (I only knew her in her very old age) and she used the can sauce since I’ve met her. It still was delicious, though 🙂 She verbally told me how to make her sauce but I have yet to perfect it..she never measured anything really Thank you so much for stopping by my page and commenting, Linda! I really appreciate it.
I would LOVE to have the recipe for your Grandmother’s Red Sauce or Gravy, whatever it is called. I’m looking forward to trying this wonderful Lasagna recipe!!! Thank you for posting it!
I wish I had an exact recipe! I’m working on getting it just right so I can share the recipe eventually 🙂 She never measured anything!
Thank you SO MUCH for your response to my inquiry! I look forward to your posting a recipe for Red Sauce or Gravy.
Sincerely,
Ruth Best
No problem, Ruth! Thank YOU for visiting my page and commenting 🙂
My favorite post of yours yet, Ashley. Beautifully done, on so many levels. I love lasagna and have no doubt this would have a special element all unto its own. Great job, my friend!
You’re too kind – thank you!
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Hi Ashley, I wanted to tell you how thankful I am that you posted this recipe! We lost my mother-in-law a few years ago, a beautiful Italian born lady, and with her we lost a lot of traditional recipes. LIke your husband’s grandma, she had the recipes in her head, and sadly, we never took the time to write them down. Little by little I am recreating them, and tomorrow I am surprising my husband and his family with this lasagna for Easter dinner. It’s sounds exactly how she made hers- I know it will be amazing! Thank you again for posting. Buona Pasqua!
This is so special! Thank you so much for sharing this!
I am grateful for the recipe, but not having the one for the sauce is a killer. That’s where the flavor is.
There is something about when the Italians make what they call gravy that nobody can imitate. I had
a meal at these Italian friends and the sauce that woman made was like going to heaven. The next time
I see her, for sure I will beg her if I have to for that recipe.
The problem is most Italians don’t measure anything. Lol!
Well, this is intriguing, and beautiful, too! I’ve never heard of hard boiled eggs in a lasagna, and lasagna was the first thing I learned to really cook and perfect in my early 20’s 😉 Lately I’ve been doing a roll up lasagna, but I think I must try this recipe next! Looks delicious! My mil has many recipes that I have to make with her so I can learn her ways – you’re right though, it’s so hard to replicate a recipe because these amazing ladies don’t measure!
I am personally so very thankful to even have the opportunity to taste the food lovingly cooked by my mother, mother-in-law, grandmothers, and great-grandmothers! With each taste, we absorbed the love they put into their recipes. It truly breaks my heart to have lost the skills for fritullas, potato salad, cole slaw, and so many more. My mom could fix liver, onions , and mashed potatoes that Kings would battle for a taste! I’m sitting in a parking lot waiting for take-out food and bowing to all of you who cook up love for your families
This is truely the lasagna I had while living in Germany. The only difference was that there were pea’s.
At first when I was told were having lasagne I … In my mind thought american lasagna. Yet no… Truely authentic. And it was awsome.
Thank you.
This is the first lasagna recipe i’ve read that includes hard boiled eggs and no ricotta – the exact same way my italian father always made it! his family were from benevento. I love it this way, so authentic! thanks for sharing!