A perfect marriage between my two favorite Italian dishes: caprese salad & pasta! 🍝 This dish is guaranteed to be a crowd pleaser! Make it vegetarian or add Italian cold cuts for the meat lovers in your life!

Ingredients:

1 box lasagna noodles

2 jars basil marinara sauce

2 cups whole milk ricotta (I love Galbani brand)

2 eggs, lightly beaten

Salt

Pepper

2 cup shredded mozzarella, divided evenly

1 cup freshly grated pecorino romano

5-6 firm Roma tomatoes, sliced about 1/2 inch thick & halved

Fresh basil leaves, rolled together and sliced into ribbons

Thinly sliced salami (optional)

Olive oil

To Make:

Preheat oven to 350

Boil lasagna noodles according to package instructions in a large pot of salted water. Add a drizzle of olive oil to prevent noodles from sticking.

Once noodles are cooked, strain & set aside to cool.

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together ricotta, eggs, pecorino romano & 1 cup mozzarella.

Add about a pinch of salt & fresh grated pepper.

Lay lasagna noodles flat on wax or parchment paper.

Use a large spoon or spatula to evenly spread the ricotta mixture on each noodle.

To assemble, lay 3 slices of salami on each noodle spaced evenly apart (if making vegetarian, skip this step).

Next, lay slices of tomatoes on each salami slice.

Finally, add basil on top of the tomatoes.

Add fresh cracked pepper over each noodle & gently roll them up.

Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil to a 9×13 baking dish

Pour 1 jar of marinara on the bottom of the dish.

Layer the rolled up noodles over the sauce, leaving some room between each noodle.

Once all your noodles are all assembled in your dish, pour the 2nd jar of marinara sauce over the noodles. Be sure to fully cover the noodles so they don’t dry out while baking.

Spread the remaining cup of mozzarella over the top.

Cover with foil & bake 45-60 minutes depending on your oven. Remove foil during the last 10 minutes of baking to ensure the top layer of cheese is melted & bubbly.

Remove from oven & allow to rest for 10 minutes. Garnish with fresh basil & parmesan cheese.

Gustare! 🍷 🥖 🍝