2 hours 5 minutes
Ravioli Lasagna
Ravioli Lasagna tucks spinach and ricotta ravioli among layers of ricotta cheese, mozzarella cheese, and a mouthwatering homemade sauce! Just 20 minutes of hands-on prep time before your oven takes it the rest of the way!
I love serving this up to family and friends with a side of Parmesan Garlic Bread or Easy Garlic Parmesan Breadsticks!
This Ravioli Lasagna uses store-bought fresh ravioli to create a baked dish that the whole family will look forward to! Made with three kinds of cheese, it’s a recipe that all cheese lovers will surely appreciate!
Though the cheese isn’t the only thing to look forward to! The homemade sauce that holds this lasagna together is out-of-this-world delicious!
This is largely due to San Marzano Style tomatoes that this recipe calls for! I know that’s very specific for the tomatoes, but hear me out.
Those tomatoes are grown in volcanic soil near Mount Vesuvius, giving them a perfectly sweet flavor with low acidity. They make all the difference in this recipe and are well worth the attention to detail!
However, like any good recipe, there are substitutions and even a ‘lazy lasagna’ option that skips out on the homemade sauce altogether!
If you love lasagna, try out Classic Lasagna and Sheet Pan Lasagna recipes too! Oh, and the Lasagna Soup is another delicious spin on the traditional Italian dish!
Ravioli Lasagna
- Olive Oil
- Garlic Paste
- Cans Of Whole San Marzano Style Tomatoes
- Kosher Salt
- Dried Basil
- Dried Oregano
- Crushed Red Pepper
- Yellow Onion
- Ground Beef
- Parmesan Ring
- Ricotta Cheese
- Large Egg
- Ground Black Pepper
- Finely Grated Parmesan
- Shredded Mozzarella
- Cheese Ravioli
- Parsely For Garnish
Substitutions & Variations
- If you’d like to make a smaller lasagna, you can make this recipe with just two layers. In doing so, you would only need one family-sized bag of ravioli. When making just two layers of ravioli, use all the shredded cheese in the first two cheese layers. Just make sure you end with a cheese layer. You’ll also notice that with only two layers, you’ll have leftover sauce. This is a win for you since you can use it up for an easy dinner another night!
- Swap the ground beef out for Italian sausage for added wonderful flavor!
- For a vegetarian variation, just omit the ground beef. This will result in less sauce, making only enough for a smaller 2-layer lasagna.
- If you need a substitution for the San Marzano Style Tomatoes, you can try using the Cento brand, or for an even more budget-friendly option, try Hunt’s San Marzano Style tomatoes. If you can’t find these tomatoes, you can use just regular canned tomatoes. However, you may have to add in a bit of sugar to make up for the lack of sweetness. Just add to taste.
How To Make Ravioli Lasagna
- Heat the olive oil and garlic paste in a saucepan. Then add in the tomatoes, salt, basil, oregano, and red pepper flakes, and allow this to simmer.
- Cook the yellow onion in a separate pan with olive oil. Once they’re translucent, add in the ground beef and cook until browned.
- Drain the beef and onions and then transfer them to the tomato sauce mixture.
- Add in the Parmesan cheese rind and continue to simmer. Remember to remove the rind before using the sauce!
- Mix the egg, ricotta cheese, salt, and pepper. Set this aside.
- Combine the shredded parmesan cheese with the mozzarella cheese and set it aside.
- Spread a thin layer of sauce onto the bottom of a greased baking dish. Top the layer with ravioli and then cover them with sauce.
- Top the sauce layer with half of the ricotta mixture and then some of the shredded cheese mixture. Layer on more sauce and another layer of ravioli, and then cover them with more sauce.
- Add the remaining ricotta mixture on top and then cover it with more of the shredded cheese mixture.
- Layer more sauce, add the remaining ravioli, and then cover them with the remaining sauce. Sprinkle on the last of the shredded cheese mixture.
- Bake the lasagna covered with aluminum foil. Then remove the foil and continue to make it until the top is golden and bubbly.
Rebecca’s Tips
- Since frozen ravioli contains additional water content, it would change the outcome of this recipe. For best results, I highly encourage you to use fresh, uncooked ravioli.
- To make this recipe a bit easier, you can swap out the homemade sauce for 48 ounces of jarred marinara sauce. Then just add the cooked beef and onions to it. Simmer all together for 15 minutes, and then continue with the recipe instructions.
- For the fresh ravioli, I love using Giovanni Rana Ravioli with the Spinach and Ricotta filling.
- This amount of red pepper flakes do not make the sauce spicy, but it does help build on the amazing flavor, so don’t skip them!
- Don’t try to speed up the prep time with high heat or food processors. Because while they might help you get the desired consistency faster, you’ll miss out on a lot of flavor if you don’t let it build!
- You “can” cook the onion and ground beef in the pan you make the sauce in by cooking those first, but in testing, we felt that the meat and onions were too overcooked by the time the sauce was ready and preferred cooking it separately and adding it in at the end.
How To Store Leftover Ravioli Lasagna
You can tightly wrap the dish with aluminum foil or plastic wrap. Or even place the leftovers in an airtight container. Then store the leftovers in the refrigerator for up to 3 to 4 days.
How To Make Ravioli Lasagna Ahead Of Time
Just follow the instructions up until it says to bake. Then cover the dish tightly and place it in the refrigerator until you’re ready to bake it.
More Delicious Italian-Inspired Recipes:
- Baked Spaghetti Pie – Everything you love about spaghetti is just baked in a casserole dish!
- Best Penne Alla Vodka Sauce – A comforting sauce filled with spices, ready in under 30 minutes!
- Turkey Florentine Pasta Bake – Serve this easy baked casserole up to your family in just 35 minutes!
- Homemade Spaghetti and Meatballs – The classic meal that the whole family will happily devour!
- Easy Baked Ziti – Combines mozzarella, creamy ricotta, zesty marinara, and noodles for a quick weeknight meal!
Did You Make This Recipe?
If you’ve tried this recipe, please let leave a review in the comments below. I love hearing from you! Don’t forget to tag me – @sugarandsoulco – on Instagram and Pinterest with your photos, or join our Sugar & Soul Show-offs Community and share them there.
Ravioli Lasagna
This lasagna is made with ravioli for an extra thick layer of cheesy pasta goodness! Made with ricotta cheese, mozzarella cheese, and a mouthwatering meat sauce you can prep this tasty Italian-inspired dish in just 20 minutes!
Ingredients
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 2 tablespoons garlic paste
- 2 (28 oz.) cans whole San Marzano Style tomatoes
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon dried basil
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- ⅛ teaspoon crushed red pepper
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ½ yellow onion finely diced
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 Parmesan rind
- 16 ounces ricotta cheese
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 cup finely grated parmesan use rind in the sauce above
- 2 cups shredded mozzarella
- 40 ounces cheese ravioli fresh, not frozen, uncooked
- parsley for garnish
Instructions
- Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Then add in the garlic paste and stir frequently for about one minute.¼ cup olive oil, 2 tablespoons garlic paste
- Add in the tomatoes, salt, basil, oregano, and red pepper flakes and simmer for 30 minutes. Occasionally, use a wooden spoon or hand masher to help break down the tomatoes.2 (28 oz.) cans whole San Marzano Style tomatoes, 1 teaspoon kosher salt, ½ teaspoon dried basil, ½ teaspoon dried oregano, ⅛ teaspoon crushed red pepper
- Add onions to a separate pan with a tablespoon of olive oil and cook over medium heat until translucent, about 4 to 5 minutes.1 tablespoon olive oil, ½ yellow onion
- Add ground beef to the onions and cook until browned all over. Drain and transfer the beef and onions into the tomato sauce mixture.1 pound ground beef
- Add in the Parmesan cheese rind and simmer for another 15 minutes. Remove the soft rind before using the sauce. This should yield around 10 cups of sauce.1 Parmesan rind
- Combine the ricotta, egg, salt, and pepper in a medium bowl and set aside.16 ounces ricotta cheese, 1 large egg, 1 teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- In a separate bowl, combine the shredded parmesan and mozzarella and set aside.1 cup finely grated parmesan, 2 cups shredded mozzarella
- Preheat the oven to 350°F and grease a 9×13-inch pan with cooking spray.
- Layer the bottom of the pan with a thin layer of sauce, about 1 cup.
- Top the sauce with a layer of ravioli, about 20 ravioli.40 ounces cheese ravioli
- Top the ravioli with a layer of sauce, about 2 cups.
- Top the sauce with half of the ricotta mixture then 1 cup of the shredded cheese mix.
- Layer on another 2 cups of sauce, then another layer of ravioli, then another 2 cups of sauce.
- Add the remaining ricotta mixture and top with another cup of the shredded cheese mixture.
- Add a layer of sauce, then the remaining ravioli, then another layer of the remaining sauce, and then sprinkle the last of the shredded cheese mixture over the top. These last layers are optional depending on size, see recipe notes.
- Cover the pan with aluminum foil and bake for 30 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for an additional 15 minutes or until the top is golden and bubbly.
Notes
- San Marzano is the best variety of tomatoes to use for this recipe, so please try and use them! These tomatoes are grown near Mount Vesuvius in volcanic soil which gives them a sweet flavor with low acidity. You can use Cento brand, or if you’re trying to keep the recipe more budget-friendly, try Hunt’s San Marzano Style tomatoes. Both are delicious in this recipe and much more flavorful than standard whole peeled canned tomatoes. If you can’t find these tomatoes, you can use regular but you might have to add a bit of sugar to make up for the sweetness. Add to taste.
- This amount of red pepper flakes do not make the sauce spicy, but it does help build on the amazing flavor, so don’t skip them!
- Don’t try to speed up the prep time with high heat or food processors. Because while they might help you get the desired consistency faster, you’ll miss out on a lot of flavor if you don’t let it build!
- You “can” cook the onion and ground beef in the pan you make the sauce in by cooking those first, but in testing, we felt that the meat and onions were too overcooked by the time the sauce was ready and preferred cooking it separately and adding it in at the end.
- We usually use Giovanni Rana Ravioli when we make this. We get 2 family-sized bags which allows us to do 3 layers of ravioli, but if you’d don’t need to make a huge batch, you could definitely just do one bag and only 2 ravioli layers.
- If you only do two layers of ravioli, use all of the shredded cheese in the first two cheese layers (make sure to end with a cheese layer). And you can reserve your remaining sauce for an easy dinner another night. Just store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
- Feel free to use ravioli with your favorite filling, we like this with Spinach and Ricotta or just Cheese.
- I do not recommend using frozen ravioli because it contains additional water content which the recipe doesn’t account for and could impact the final results.
- You can make this vegetarian by omitting the ground beef, just note that this will yield less sauce and you’ll only have enough for the smaller 2-layer lasagna.
- If you want to make a lazy ravioli lasagna, you can substitute the homemade sauce with 48 ounces of jarred marinara sauce, just add it to the beef and onions when they are done and simmer for 15 minutes.
Nutrition
Calories: 630kcal | Carbohydrates: 42g | Protein: 33g | Fat: 36g | Saturated Fat: 15g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 11g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 133mg | Sodium: 1279mg | Potassium: 192mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 395IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 301mg | Iron: 11mg
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