Description
Beef and Swiss Lasagna is a creamy, cheese-packed twist on the classic pasta dish—featuring layers of Gruyère, cottage cheese, and tender beef in a luscious white sauce. It’s a delicious make-ahead meal that’s perfect for family dinners and holiday leftovers.
Ingredients
1 lb lasagna noodles
1 tsp kosher salt (for pasta water)
1 qt whole milk
6 Tbsp butter, divided
8 oz mushrooms, sliced
1 cup diced sweet onion
1 Tbsp minced garlic
½ cup all-purpose flour
1 tsp kosher salt, divided
1 tsp white pepper, divided
½ tsp dry mustard
A few grinds fresh nutmeg
4 cups thinly sliced beef (about 1½ lbs), divided
32 oz cottage cheese
2 eggs + 1 egg yolk
1 cup grated Parmesan
12 oz shredded Gruyère cheese, divided
¼ cup chopped parsley
2 cups shredded mozzarella
Instructions
- Prep: Butter or spray a 9×13×4 inch baking dish. Preheat oven to 375 °F (190 °C).
- Cook noodles: Boil water with 1 tsp kosher salt. Add noodles and cook for only 5 minutes—they’ll remain stiff but pliable. Drain and rinse with cold water; keep until using.
- Heat milk: Warm 1 qt of milk in a saucepan until hot, but don’t let it boil.
- Sauté mushrooms: In a separate saucepan, melt 2 tablespoons of butter over medium-high heat and add the mushrooms to cook.
- Sauté onions & garlic: Add remaining 4 Tbsp butter to the same pan. Sauté onions for ~4 minutes until translucent, then add garlic and cook 1 more minute.
- Cook roux: Sprinkle in the flour and stir continuously for about 3 minutes to form a smooth roux.
- Add milk: Gradually whisk hot milk into the roux in three stages—first a thick paste, then smoother, then a creamy sauce. Reduce heat to low.
- Season: Mix in ½ tsp kosher salt, ½ tsp white pepper, dry mustard, and a few grinds of nutmeg. Remove from heat.
- Layer base sauce: Pour 1 cup of white sauce into prepared pan.
- Finish sauce: Stir mushrooms into the remaining sauce.
- Combine filling: In a large bowl, mix half the beef, all cottage cheese, eggs + yolk, Parmesan, half the Gruyère, parsley, remaining ½ tsp white pepper, and remaining salt (omit if beef is salty).
- Assemble—first layer: Drain noodles again. Layer 4 noodles over base sauce, overlapping. Spread half the cottage-cheese mixture, then another 4 noodles.
- Second layer: Spread 1/3 of the remaining sauce, half remaining beef, and half remaining Gruyère on top. Add 4 more noodles.
- Third layer: Spread rest of cottage-cheese mixture, top with another 3–4 noodles (reserve 4 for top), then another 1/3 sauce, remaining beef, remaining Gruyère, and top with final 4 noodles.
- Top it off: Spread last of the sauce over noodles, then sprinkle shredded mozzarella evenly.
- Bake: Bake for 40 minutes. Remove from oven and let rest for 20 minutes after baking to allow it to firm up for easy slicing. Cut into 3×4 grid for 12 servings
Notes
Undercooked noodles finish baking in the oven, absorbing sauce perfectly. Resting before slicing is key to clean portions.
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 40 minutes
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 slice (1/12 of pan)
- Calories: 583
- Carbohydrates: 32g
- Protein: 32g