This easy Ravioli Lasagna recipe aka Lazy Lasagna is a delicious baked ravioli casserole. It features meat sauce layers and plenty of gooey Italian cheese, real Italian comfort food without the fuss. A yummy easy family dinner with just 4 ingredients! It's a lazy dinner idea that the entire family will love, even the kids!
The lazy lasagna is made with frozen ravioli which is much easier to assembles and to cut than traditional lasagna noodles. The cheese ravioli also already contains the ricotta mixture for the easy lasagna bake too.
Lazy Lasagna with Ravioli
An easy lasagna made with ravioli rather than a regular Italian lasagna noodles type of casserole with ricotta cheese layers. You still get all the cheesy favor and elements of regular lasagna, just way less fuss. This is comfort food pasta dish your family will love and request you to make the recipe again and again!
Frozen cheese ravioli are laid out in layers with shredded mozzarella cheese, ground beef or sausage and marinara sauce. Yes, the ravioli go right into this easy lasagna casserole frozen. There is no need to thaw them!
Not only is this baked ravioli casserole easy to make it only requires 4 ingredients! Shopping for this recipe could not be simpler.
Get the kids to assemble the lazy lasagna, then simply pop the dish in the oven to bake.
The layers of ravioli are a great substitute for both the lasagna noodles and the ricotta cheese or bechamel sauce in a traditional lasagna. The ravioli lasagna is easier to portion out too, as the grid of the square shaped ravioli makes a great guide. Just line up your knife or spatula between the lines!
Baked Ravioli Lasagna
This is an easy and hearty weeknight dinner option. Serve with the meal with a simple green salad with a vinaigrette, Italian breadsticks with flavored olive oil or garlic bread, and a sauteed veggies dish on the side. This makes a complete Sunday supper that the whole family will adore! You will love this recipe, due to ease.
How to Make Ravioli Lasagna
Let's walk through the process of making this cheesy easy lasagna, complete with pictures. No worries, it's easy. Even those new to cooking can handle this recipe. Printable recipe card is below, if you just need that.
The recipe makes 8 servings.
Prep Time: 15 mins | Cook Time: 35 mins | Total Time: 50 mins
Ingredients Needed for Ravioli Lazy Lasagna:
- lean ground beef (feel free to use ground Italian sausage if you prefer)
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon Italian seasoning or dried oregano
- jar of marinara sauce
- frozen square cheese ravioli or spinach ravioli (no need to boil or thaw package of ravioli)
- shredded mozzarella cheese or Italian Blend cheese
You will also need a 9x13 inch baking dish (preferably glass) and non-stick spray.
Preparation
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. TIP: Spray interior of your baking dish with cooking spray. It makes for easier clean-up later.
In a medium to large skillet, crumble and brown the ground meat over medium heat until completely browned. Drain off the excess fat.
Season with Italian herbs or dried oregano and garlic powder after you drain the grease. Also add minced onion, salt and black pepper if you like.
Reserve ¾ cup of the spaghetti sauce; set aside. Add the remaining pasta sauce to the skillet with the ground beef. Stir well then cover and simmer over medium-low heat for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Start with a layer of sauce at the bottom of your prepared baking dish. Spread ¼ cup of the reserved tomato sauce into the bottom. Then make a layer of ravioli by arranging one third of the ravioli in rows the pan over the pasta sauce.
Top the ravioli in the pan with half of the ground beef mixture. Sprinkle ⅓ cup of the mozzarella cheese over the meat.
Place another ⅓ of the frozen ravioli in a single layer over the meat sauce and cheese. Top this ravioli layer with the rest of the ground beef sauce and another ⅓ cup of the shredded cheese.
Place the remaining ravioli on top of the casserole. Top with the remaining marinara sauce. Sprinkle with the rest of the shredded cheese.
Cover with aluminum foil and bake the casserole at 350 degrees F for 20 minutes to 30 minutes. Uncover and bake another 10 minutes. When the cheese is melted and beginning to bubble and crisp around the edges, it is done.
Rest for 15 minutes before serving.
Serving with grated or shredded Parmesan cheese and torn fresh basil on top is ideal. A splash of marinara sauce would really complete the dinner.
Vegetarian Lazy Lasagna
For those of you looking for a vegetarian Ravioli Lasagna option, that is easy to do.
I would substitute meat with a package of vegetarian crumbles. To fill it out I'd add some mushrooms, a few julienne carrots and a cup of diced zucchini. Of course, a simple saute of mushrooms and spinach would also make a great filling for the ravioli bake.
Just saute in a skillet, then mix in marinara sauce like in the original recipe. Then simply assemble it the same way with ravioli and cheese. It makes a great hearty Meatless Monday meal.
Q&A
Yes, you absolutely can make this in the crock pot. Simply follow the steps as above, then layer inside the crockpot. Cook on low for 3-4 hours.
Tip: coat the interior with nonstick cooking spray or use a liner for easy clean up.
Yes, you can freeze this meal if it has been baked already. I suggest cutting it into serving size pieces and freezing individually to avoid drying it out while reheating.
I don't suggest putting this in the freezer prior to baking. The mix of frozen and hot or room temp ingredients are not well suited to freezing. This could potentially create health concerns from bacterial growth.
Yes, ground sausage is an excellent choice. You can skip the herbs and garlic when using sausage if you wish, as it is already seasoned. Vegetarian meat crumbles, ground chicken or turkey are also some healthy choices.
While you could, cook time would have to be adjusted considerably. Packages of fresh are typically smaller and also more costly.
Casserole Family Dinners
Here are a few more easy comfort food family dinners you can bake right in a casserole dish or lasagna pan.
- Philly Cheesesteak Casserole
- Italian Chicken and Veggie Ravioli Bake
- Eggplant Parmesan Casserole
- French Chicken Pot Pie Casserole
- Spiced Roast Chicken Breasts and Potatoes
Ravioli Lasagna Recipe
Equipment
- 9x13 glass casserole dish
Ingredients
- 1 pound lean ground beef or ground Italian sausage
- 24 ounces marinara or choice of pasta sauce
- 25 ounce frozen cheese ravioli square shaped (no need to thaw)
- 1 ½ cups shredded mozzarella cheese divided
- ½ teaspoon Italian seasoning ***optional***
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon Italian seasoning or dried oregano
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350F degrees. Optional*** coat interior of pan with non-stick cooking spray.
- In a medium skillet, crumble and brown the beef over medium heat until completely browned. Drain off the excess fat. Mix in seasoning and garlic powder after draining the meat.
- Reserve ¾ cup of the spaghetti sauce; set aside. Add the remaining spaghetti sauce to the skillet with the browned meat. Stir well then cover and simmer over medium-low heat for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Spread ¼ cup of the reserved spaghetti sauce into the bottom of a 9x13 inch glass baking dish. Arrange one third of the frozen ravioli in a single layer in the pan.
- Top the ravioli in the pan with half of the ground beef mixture, then sprinkle with ½ cup of the shredded cheese.
- Place another ⅓ of the frozen ravioli over the meat sauce and cheese. Top with the rest of the meat and another third of the cheese.
- Place the final ⅓ of the frozen ravioli on top of the casserole. Top with the remaining ½ cup of the spaghetti sauce. Sprinkle with the remaining cheese.
- Cover the casserole with aluminum foil and bake at 350 degrees F for 20 minutes-30 minutes, remove foil and bake another 10 minutes until the cheese is completely melted and beginning to bubble around the edges.
- Allow to rest for 15 minutes before slicing out servings.
Sheila says
This was excellent! Thanks for the recipe.