Five Cheese Hot Italian Sausage Lasagna for Sunday Suppers

Instructions

For the Meat Sauce

1. Heat a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium heat.
2. Add the oil and let it get hot.
3. Add the sausage and break it up well with a wooden spoon or some other fun kitchen implement. You don't want any big chunks of sausage, so be thorough.
4. When the sausage is starting to brown, add the onions, garlic, bell pepper and celery along with some kosher salt, freshly ground black pepper, the Italian seasoning and the pepper flakes.
5. Cook over medium to medium-high heat until the vegetables release all their liquid and are starting to turn golden.
6. Add the bottle of wine and simmer until reduced by half.
7. Add the 2 cans of still-kind-of-chunky-but-blended tomatoes and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and add 2 Tablespoons balsamic vinegar.
8. Taste and adjust seasoning, but hold back a bit since the sauce will be reduced and the saltiness will eventually get concentrated.
9. Simmer uncovered over low heat until the sauce is very thick. When you stop stirring, any pieces of vegetables, sausage and tomatoes should not sink to the bottom.
10. Taste and add a bit more balsamic if you think it needs a bit more sweetness. Adjust the salt last if necessary.

For the Ricotta Mixture

1. Combine all the ingredients in a bowl and stir until thoroughly combined.

To Assemble

1. Slice the ball of mozzarella into thin rounds. Try to get about 12 of them. Set aside.
2. In a 9"x13" glass baking dish (or similar), add about 1 1/2 cups of the meat sauce and spread evenly. Top with 5 uncooked lasagna noodles. (**See Note below) I can get four across, overlapping slightly. Then I break one to fit perpendicular to the rest at the end of the pan.
3. Add another cup or so of the sauce and spread evenly. (***See Note below)
4. Place slices of the fresh mozzarella evenly over the sauce.
5. Top with another layer of noodles. Put the perpendicular slice on the opposite end of the pan from the first layer of noodles. Alternating like this will make the lasagna easier to slice and more likely to hold together later.
6. Press down a bit on this layer of noodles just to make sure everything is compacted a bit. (This is another advantage of not boiling the noodles first. It gives you something to press down on!)
7. Add another cup or so of the meat sauce and spread it out in a thin layer.
8. Top evenly with the ricotta layer and spread it out to the edges of the noodles.
9. Top with another layer of noodles (this is layer 3 of noodles). Press down to compact a bit.
10. Add half of the remaining sauce and then top with layer number 4 of noodles.
11. Spread the last of the meat sauce over these noodles and then top with the grated mozzarella, Parm (or Grana) and Asiago.
12. Cover tightly with a sheet of non-stick foil and press the whole shebang down just a bit.
13. Place the covered lasagna on a sheet tray to catch any drips and bake for an hour.
14. Remove the foil and reduce the heat to 350 (for a softer top) or keep it at 375F for a crunchier top. Bake for an additional 20 minutes.
15. The lasagna should be bubbling all over. It may have spilled over some onto your sheet pan. Be glad you were smart enough to use one and know that I didn't think of it until there was already lasagna liquid on the floor of my oven.
16. Remove lasagna from the oven and let cool for at least 20 minutes or so before slicing and serving.
17. To get the cleanest cuts. Cool to room temperature and then refrigerate overnight. Reheat before slicing. If you do this, add another thin layer of mozzarella, Parm/Grana and Asiago to the top so you will still get to experience some gooey cheese.
18. Enjoy!