Cooking Frozen Lasagna In Oven

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Keep a Homemade Frozen Lasagna in your freezer for an easy meal on a busy day! Fresh, delicious, and a great time saver.

A serving of Homemade Frozen Lasagna.

Today I'm sharing my solution for feeding a pack of hungry boys within an hour of arrival on our annual family summer vacation. After years of traveling with a big family I quickly learned that heading to a small town in the mountains without a plan for dinner is not a good idea.

It is so worth the effort to put this lasagna together in advance and have a warm, wholesome, comforting meal for your tired family after a long road trip. Or, just to have a meal on hand for a night when no one feels like cooking. It is a snap to put together using no-boil pasta sheets and is frozen before baking. See below for the step-by-step instructions on how to put it together and transport it safely to your destination.

A package of Oven-Ready Lasagne pasta.

Barilla Oven-Ready Lasagne. I say Lasagna…you say lasagne. Lasagna, lasagne…. However you spell it, this stuff is zee best!

A package of Sausage and cans of marinara sauce.

I love this Jennie-O Hot Italian Turkey Sausage. Don't believe Jennie, it's not really very hot at all but it is packed with flavor and far lower in fat than the traditional variety of Eye-talian sausage. If you're completely unafraid of fat and calories, go for the traditional variety. Sometimes you just gotta go for it! You'll also need a couple of jars of your favorite basic marinara sauce. I'm a fan of Trader Joe's Tomato Basil Marinara and keep it in my pantry to uncomplicate my life.

A sausage with its casing being removed.

First things first. Remove the casings from the sausage by slicing through it, length-wise, with a sharp knife. Pull it off and repeat with the remaining sausage.

All the sausages with their casings removed are added to a skillet.

Drizzle about 1 tablespoon of olive oil into the bottom of a heavy skillet. Cook the sausage over medium heat, breaking it up with a spoon as it cooks.

Garlic is added to the cooked sauasage.

When no pink remains, drain off as much of the grease as possible and add the minced garlic. Season with a touch of salt and fresh ground pepper to taste. Cook for another minute or two and then remove the pan from the heat and set it aside.

A mixture of ricotta, egg, salt and basil.

In a medium bowl combine ricotta, egg, salt, and fresh basil.

A pile of chopped cremini mushrooms.

Coarsely chop your cremini mushrooms. Mushrooms add a great meaty layer to lasagna but if they don't do it for you, replace them with the veggie of your choice. Zucchini and summer squash are a great choice. Or, just leave them out altogether.

A pile of shredded cheese.

Shred up 8 ounces of fresh mozzarella. I find this to be plenty but if you want a very cheesy lasagna, feel free to up the amount. Fresh mozzarella will almost crumble as you shred it but don't be concerned. Fresh is the best!

All the ingredients required to assemble the lasagna.

The lasagna assembly line. Place all your ingredients within easy reach.

A deep pan has marinara sauce added.

And, here we go. Pour enough marinara sauce into the bottom of a freezer safe 13″ x 9″ pan just to lightly coat it.

A note about the pan. This is not my most beautiful lasagna dish but is is my favorite pan to use when I'm freezing meals. It's a very inexpensive 13″ x 9″ metal cake pan that came with a plastic cover. The metal is good for keeping it very cool when it's in transit and the plastic cover can be placed on top to keep any leftovers fresh in the fridge.

Back to the lasagna…

Lasagna sheets are laid across the marinara with ricotta mixture spread on top of the noodles.

Place four of the uncooked pasta sheets over the sauce, overlapping slightly, to fit the pan. Top the pasta sheets with 1/3 of the ricotta mixture and spread it out over the top with a knife.

Cooked sausage and mushrooms are spread across the pasta sheets.

Next we'll add 1/3 of the the cooked sausage and chopped mushrooms. I like to deliberately sprinkle some of the mushrooms into the sauce around the edges of the lasagna as well.

Shredded cheese is added on top of the sausage and mushrooms.

It's time for cheese! Top the layer with 1/4 of the mozzarella and Parmesan. You can skimp a bit in the layers but be sure to leave a good amount for the top of the lasagna.

Marinara sauce is added on top of the cheese.

More marinara. Don't drown it.

More Lasagna sheets and ricotta are placed on top of the marinara sauce.

Then we start the whole layering process over again with four more pasta sheets, ricotta, and all the remaining ingredients exactly as shown above for a total of three layers.

Marinara is added to the final sheet of lasagna sheets and is spread with a knife.

After adding the last four pasta sheets, pour enough marinara over the top to generously coat the lasagna. Spread the sauce out to the edges with a knife. You may not need to use the entire contents of two jars of pasta sauce to accomplish this. If you've got some left, just hang on to it for another purpose.

The marinara sauce after it has been spread evenly across the top.

Be sure the entire surface of the lasagna is coated with sauce.

Cheese is sprinkled on top of the marinara.

Sprinkle the surface with the remaining mozzarella and Parmesan and that baby is done! See those luscious layers? It's going to be good.

A sheet of foil being sprayed with cooking spray.

Coat the bottom of a sheet of heavy duty foil generously with non-stick cooking spray. This will help prevent the cheese from sticking to the foil as it cooks. You think of this kind of stuff when you love cheese.

Foil is wrapped around the pan of lasagna.

Cover the lasagna with the prepared foil and then wrap the entire pan in another sheet or two of heavy duty foil. It's ready for the freezer.

It will keep well in the freezer for three to four months and bake up beautifully whenever you're ready for it. Just knowing one of these is in my freezer brings peace to my life.

If you're planning to take and bake your lasagna, keep it frozen until you are ready to depart and then place the frozen lasagna between some ice packs in a cooler. I usually add a bagged salad mix and any other items I want to transport that need to stay cool. Pack it up and hit the road! Don't forget the loaf of French bread and the bottle of red wine.

The plastic cover is placed on top of the pan.

Our road trip took about six hours and the lasagna was still a bit icy on arrival but it will cook up just fine. Just be aware that if it is not completely defrosted when it goes in the oven, you'll have to increase the cooking time.

If you are cooking the lasagna for a regular dinner at home, remove it from the freezer the previous night and allow it to defrost completely in the refrigerator overnight. Do not be tempted to allow it to sit out on the counter to defrost. It is better to err on the side of safety and just cook it partially frozen.

The foil lined pan is placed in the oven.

Bake it, covered, at 375 degrees for 50 minutes. Hurray for vacation rentals with full kitchens!

The foil is removed from the pan.

Remove the foil and cook another 10 or 15 minutes till heated through and bubbly around edges.

A serving of Homemade Frozen Lasagna.

Dinner is served. Quick, easy cleanup. Everyone is happy. Job done.

Lasagna and salad on a plate.

Homemade Frozen Lasagna

Keep a Homemade Frozen Lasagna in your freezer for an easy meal on a busy day!

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Italian

Keyword: homemade frozen lasagna

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour 5 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour 35 minutes

1 tablespoon olive oil
16 ounces Italian sausage, pork or turkey
1 teaspoon salt, divided
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper ,
1 teaspoon minced garlic
15 ounces part-skim ricotta cheese, divided
1 egg
⅓ cup chopped fresh basil, plus additional for garnish, if desired
8 ounces cremini mushrooms, divided
48 ounces marinara sauce , (2 24-ounce jars), divided
9 ounce package no boil lasagna , (16 sheets Barilla Oven Ready Lasagne), divided - see Notes section of recipe card
12 to 16 ounces mozzarella, shredded, divided
1 cup shredded Parmesan cheese, divided

Coat the bottom of a large skillet with the olive oil and place over MEDIUM heat. If using link sausage, remove it from the casings by slicing through one side with a sharp knife. Discard casings and place the sausage in heated skillet. Cook and stir, breaking up the sausage, until no longer pink. Drain as much grease from the pan as possible and return the pan to the heat. Add the garlic, ½ teaspoon salt and the pepper. Cook and stir for another minute or two and then remove the pan from the heat and set aside.
In a small mixing bowl, combine the ricotta, egg, remaining ½ teaspoon salt, and chopped basil. Set aside.
Remove the stems, chop the mushrooms and set aside.
Lightly coat the bottom of a deep, freezer safe 13- x 9-inch pan with 1 cup of marinara sauce. Place 4 lasagna sheets over the sauce, overlapping just slightly, if needed. Spoon ⅓ of the ricotta mixture over the lasagna sheets and spread it out evenly with a knife. Sprinkle ⅓ of the cooked sausage over the ricotta. Top with ⅓ of the chopped mushrooms, purposely allowing some to fill in edges of the pan around the lasagna. Sprinkle with ¼ of both the mozzarella and Parmesan and then pour 1 cup (no more) of marinara evenly over the top.
Layer as directed above 2 more times for a total of 3 layers.
Top with the remaining 4 lasagna sheets and pour the remaining marinara sauce over the top. Use a knife or spatula to smooth out the sauce over the pasta sheets. Sprinkle with remaining mozzarella and Parmesan. See Notes section below for instructions to bake immediately, or follow as directed to freeze the lasagna.
Generously coat the bottom of a large piece of heavy duty foil with non-stick cooking spray. Cover the lasagna with the foil, crimping edges of foil around the pan. Wrap the covered pan completely in one or two more sheets of foil.
Place the pan in the freezer.
To cook, defrost the lasagna completely in the refrigerator overnight or follow the directions below for transport.
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. If your dish is very full, I recommend placing the foil covered lasagna on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake, covered, for 50 minutes. Remove the foil and continue to bake another 10 to 15 minutes until heated through and bubbly around edges.

A 9-ounce box of no-boil lasagna should have 16 sheets but I have had times where there were only 15 sheets. Don't fret! Layer as directed but just use 3 sheets on the final/top layer. Lay them side to side and they will fill in a bit as they bake.

If you want a very cheesy lasagna, use all 16 ounces of mozzarella.

Before baking, defrost completely overnight in your refrigerator. If not completely defrosted when cooking be sure to increase cooking time as needed. Do not allow lasagna to defrost on kitchen counter. Keep refrigerated for food safety purposes.

If you are baking right away (not chilling), bake the lasagna, covered, for 35 minutes. Remove the foil and continue to bake for an additional 10 minutes.

To take and bake your lasagna, keep it frozen until you are ready to depart and then place the frozen lasagna between some ice packs in a cooler.

Lasagna will keep well in freezer for 3 to 4 months.

Calories: 372 kcal · Carbohydrates: 17 g · Protein: 29 g · Fat: 22 g · Saturated Fat: 11 g · Cholesterol: 100 mg · Sodium: 2008 mg · Potassium: 898 mg · Fiber: 3 g · Sugar: 10 g · Vitamin A: 1405 IU · Vitamin C: 29 mg · Calcium: 470 mg · Iron: 8 mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated using generic ingredients, and is an estimate not a guarantee. For more accurate results, please refer to the labels on your ingredients at home.

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