Lidia Bastianich’s Skillet Lasagna Is ‘the Dish to Make When You’re Craving Lasagna on a Weeknight’

PBS culinary star Lidia Bastianich has the recipe you need when you’re wanting a homey, hits-the-spot lasagna … on a weeknight. No casserole pans needed here.

Bastianich’s new cookbook is about making food enjoyable — and easy

As the Lidia’s Kitchen host says in her latest cookbook’s introduction, “Sometimes, you just want to cook something that doesn’t leave you with a pile of dishes.” That thought embodies the spirit behind Lidia’s A Pot, A Pan, and a Bowl: Simple Recipes for Perfect Meals. Co-written with her daughter Tanya Bastianich Manuali, the collection of recipes is geared for home cooks regardless of their level of experience.

“In many ways, making a one- or two-pot meal is cooking at its basic level, but also at its most diverse,” she writes. “Some dishes take time—like soups, braising tougher cuts of meat, or cooking root vegetables—but there are many quick one-pot dishes that are just as delicious and that can be prepared much faster.”

What you’ll need to make Lidia Bastianich’s Skillet Lasagna

Bastianich writes of the ways you can vary this Skillet Lasagna: “This is the dish to make when you’re craving lasagna on a weeknight. You can add additional vegetables to this if you like. Try browning some mushrooms—or, for heartier appetites, a few crumbled links of Italian sausages—in the olive oil before adding the sauce, or add a few handfuls of baby spinach to each layer.”

For this recipe, Bastianich suggests using a large, nonstick skillet (“one,” she says, “with a heavy bottom and an oven-safe handle”). You’ll need for the recipe: olive oil, three and one-quarter cups of marinara sauce (either homemade or store-bought is fine), one cup each ricotta and shredded mozzarella cheese, one half-cup grated Grana Padano, one egg, a half-cup frozen peas, two tablespoons chopped fresh Italian parsley, salt, crushed red pepper flakes aka peperoncino, and 12 sheets of no-boil lasagna noodles.

How to make her Skillet Lasagna

To start, the oil and marinara sauce are placed in the skillet “to make a thin film.” Add three of the no-boil noodles to the sauce. Add a “dollop” of the ricotta, half of the mozzarella and Grana Padano, the egg, peas, and parsley, all combined. Season with salt and red pepper flakes. Spread the ricotta mixture evenly over the noodles. Follow that with about a quarter cup of sauce. Repeat the layers of noodles, ricotta mixture, and sauce. Cover with the last of the mozzarella and grated cheeses.

Now the skillet can be covered and the dish can simmer “until the pasta is al dente.” The chef recommends testing it with a knife at the center. If the noodles are soft, your lasagna is ready. Allow it to cook for about 25 minutes.

While it simmers, heat up your broiler. When the lasagna noodles are al dente, place the uncovered skillet in the oven for a minute. Allow the top to brown. Remove the skillet carefully from the oven and allow it to sit for about 10 minutes.

Enjoy your weeknight Skillet Lasagna, courtesy of Lidia Bastianich.

‘Lidia’s a Pot, a Pan, and a Bowl: Simple Recipes for Perfect Meals’ is available now wherever books are sold.