But I wanted to add a spooky element to the dish. 

Wait til you see what I did.

Today was our Halloween Luncheon at the office.  It is an annual tradition.  We decorate, dress in costumes, and feast. 

I made a ginormous lasagna and {Shared the Love} with my work-family.  This Classic Lasagna is layered with a rich meaty sauce, plenty of cheese and and lots of love.

Making lasagna is simply a layering process. 

I found it’s best not to be too focused on specifics, just use good ingredients alternately until you build as tall as your pan can stand. 

I will say, you do want to start with a base of sauce and finish with a layer of cheese. 

Oh, and assembly is so much easier when you have all of your ingredients prepared and close at hand.

Assembly

Our Classic Lasagna assembly went something like this:

• Meaty Marinara to cover bottom of lasagna pan
• Layer of lasagna noodles (pre-boiled until al dente)
• Layer of ricotta/egg/parmesan mixture
• Generous sprinkle of shredded mozzarella
• Light layer of béchamel sauce
• Repeat 3-4 more times.
• Finish with shredded mozzarella

The Spooky Effects

While the lasagna baked, I got busy creating my spooky effect. 

I wanted to create the feel of a haunting face rising out of the top of the lasagna.  Hee hee, have I told you how much I love Halloween?!!

I made a double batch of our Italian Meatballs recipe and formed it into Scream’s Ghostface.   Muaaahhhh…..

I baked our giant face-meatball, so that it was fully cooked. 

On it’s own it was pretty spooky, but I had a grand-plan for this guy.

I placed the baked face on top of the baked lasagna, then filled the eyes, nose, and mouth with marinara sauce.  Slightly melted mozzarella cheese to encase the face. 

Then back into the oven to heat through. 

The finished result….

While the ‘raw’ face showed more Scream similarity, this guy delivered enough creepy to be worthy of our annual Halloween Buffet. 

Our Classic Lasagna {with Spooky Effects} was just one of many fabulous dishes shared today.  Two Halloween Buffet tables this year, beautifully decorated by the uber talented Jennica.

As for the costumes.  Always brilliant.  Here are a few standouts and a link to our work Delaney Facebook Page.  We’re a fun group if you’d like to follow along.

Who else loves/hates the movie The Shining.  Gives me shivers.  These two nailed it.  “Come play with us Danny.  Forever….and ever…and ever.”

Don’t forget to follow us @LemonyThyme on Instagram, TikTok and Facebook!

And me.  Fun day at the office.

All my best,
xo Libby

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Classic Lasagna

This classic lasagna is layered with rich meaty sauce, loads of cheese, savory sauce and an element of spooky fun!

Author Libby with Lemony Thyme

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 boxes lasagna noodles 20 noodles

For the meaty sauce layer…

• 120 ounces marinara sauce
• 2 lbs. ground beef
• 1 lb. sweet Italian sausage

For the ricotta layer…

• 1 32- ounce tub ricotta cheese
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup parmesan cheese
• 1 tsp. dried basil
• 1 tsp. dried oregano
• 1 tsp. garlic & herb seasoning

For the Béchamel sauce…

• 5 Tbl. butter
• 4 Tbl. flour
• 4 cups milk
• 2 tsp. salt
• 1/2 tsp. freshly grated nutmeg

Instructions

For the meaty sauce layer…

• Brown ground beef and Italian sausage (casings removed). Drain; combine with marinara sauce.

For noodle layer…

• Cook lasagna noodles according to package instructions.

For ricotta layer…

• Whisk together ricotta cheese, parmesan cheese, eggs and seasoning.

For Béchamel layer…

• Heat milk in a saucepan to just boiling. Melt butter in a medium sauce pan. Whisk in flour; cook for 3 minutes. Add hot milk 1 cup at a time, stirring constantly until incorporated. Bring to a boil, then reduce to simmer for 10 minutes. Season with salt and nutmeg.

To assemble…

• Cover bottom of lasagna pan with sauce; then lasagna noodles. Spread ricotta layer; sprinkled with mozzarella cheese and ladle or two of béchamel sauce. Repeat 3-4 more times. Top with mozzarella.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Bake lasagna for 1 -1 1/2 hours until hot & bubbly. May need to tent loosely with foil if cheese begins to brown. Allow to stand 30 minutes before serving.

For spooky face layer….

• See our Italian Meatball post and get your creative happy on.

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