This classic lasagna filled with a meaty sauce and all the cheese is the perfect freezer friendly meal. This recipe makes for 6 Individual Freezer Lasagnas.
Freezer Friendly Mini Lasagnas
So recently a friend of ours got into a minor accident and with the new addition of an arm sling on him, grocery shopping and cooking aren’t exactly something he can easily do. So to help him out, I made him some individual meals that he can pop into the oven for dinner so he’s not stuck eating TV dinners. They’re similar to what I prepped for another friend who was pregnant and thought that I should put it on the blog so if anyone wants to do some freezer prep, they can follow along!
Why You’ll Love These Freezer Lasagnas
- They’re easy to make: it really didn’t take me that long to make. As long as you’re good at multitasking, this recipe will be a breeze.
- They freeze so well: nothing freezes better than pasta! These mini lasagnas freezes so wonderfully. I usually have them within 4 months of being frozen.
- They’re simple to reheat: just into the oven they go, straight from frozen! No thawing needed.
- You can easily scale up: make a larger batch for more individual lasagnas or get a larger container so you can get 2-4 servings per lasagna.
What You’ll Need
For the lasagnas, I froze mine in aluminum pans as to make it easier for him to reheat directly in and not have to wash dishes/return anything to me. The exact measurements of the pans I used are 6.6 inches x 4.6 inches x 1.7 inches. I couldn’t find the exact ones online but here’s the closest one I saw on Amazon.
For the Meat Sauce
- ground beef
- ground pork
- salt and pepper
- onion
- shallot – this isn’t 100% mandatory but I like the addition of shallots just so there’s a little more variety
- garlic
- dried basil
- tomato paste
- canned crushed tomatoes
For the Lasagna Noodles
- lasagna noodles – I used a mix of regular lasagna noodles and spinach lasagna noodles as a way to get some greens in.
- salt
For the Ricotta Filling
- ricotta cheese
- parmesan cheese
- eggs – room temperature
- shredded cheese – your choice. I did a mix of mozzarella and cheddar.
- salt
- dried basil
How To Make Freezer Lasagnas
- In a large non-stick pan on medium heat, add in the ground beef and ground pork. Let the meat brown for a minute on one side before breaking it up into smaller pieces with a wooden spoon or spatula and seasoning with salt and pepper.
- After 3-4 minutes, add in the onions, shallots, and garlic. Saute until the onions has softened.
- Add in the dried basil and stir to combine.
- Add in the tomato paste, stir, and then add in the crushed tomatoes.
- Lower the heat to medium-low and let simmer for 30 minutes, stirring every couple of minutes.
- While your sauce simmers, bring a salted pot of water to a boil to cook your lasagna noodles. Check the box for the al denta time and cook just 1 minute under it. Drain and set aside when done.
- To make your cheese filling, combine the ricotta, parmesan, eggs, salt, and shredded cheese. Mix until fully combined. Set aside until ready to use.
- Once the sauce is done, coat the bottom of each individual pans with a layer of meat sauce. Next, add in two lasagna noodles, a layer of ricotta cheese mix, meat sauce, noodles, ricotta cheese mix, meat sauce, noodles, and top with extra shredded cheese.
- Let cool before covering and storing in the freezer.
- If eating immediately, bake at 375F for 20-25 minutes.
How to Cook Frozen Mini Lasagnas
Here’s how to reheat these mini lasagnas for one from frozen:
- Heat oven to 350F.
- Cover the top of the pan with foil to prevent the cheese from burning.
- Bake for 45 minutes.
- Remove the tin foil and bake for another 15 minutes or until the middle has heated through.
Tips For Making Lasagnas for One
- You can break your lasagna noodles in half before or after boiling them. I find it easier to just cut them in half when they’re cooked as I can’t always break the noodles evenly.
- While I didn’t write the date of these freezer meals (as he was only getting 2 batches on the same day), I recommend you write down the dates, especially if you have many freezer meals you want to rotate through.
- Don’t over fill the lasagna containers as it’ll be difficult stacking it in the freezer.
Recipe Variations
- Try these lentil lasagna noodles instead of spinach.
- You can do full beef or full pork if you prefer. Or use a different ground meat like turkey or chicken.
- Add some red chili flakes to add some heat to it.
- You can use fresh herbs instead of dried. 1 tablespoon fresh herbs = 1 teaspoon dried herbs.
- Best Beef Recipe has an easy Instant Pot Lasagna version if you’d like to try that as well!
Individual Freezer Lasagnas
Ingredients
For the Meat Sauce
- 1 lb ground beef
- 1 lb ground pork
- salt and pepper, to taste
- 1 sweet onion, diced
- 2 small shallots, sliced thinly or diced
- 3 tbsp minced garlic
- 1 tbsp dried basil
- 4 oz tomato paste
- 28 oz can crushed tomatoes
For the Lasagna Noodles
- 18 lasagna noodles, I used a mix of regular lasagna noodles and spinach lasagna noodles
- salt, for the water
For the Ricotta Filling
- 500 grams ricotta cheese, around 2 cups
- 1 cup parmesan cheese
- 2 eggs, room temperature
- 2 cups shredded cheese, plus extra for topping
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tbsp dried basil
Instructions
- In a large non-stick pan on medium heat, add in the ground beef and ground pork. Let the meat brown for a minute on one side before breaking it up into smaller pieces with a wooden spoon or spatula and seasoning with salt and pepper.
- After 3-4 minutes, add in the onions, shallots, and garlic. Saute until the onions has softened.
- Add in the dried basil and stir to combine.
- Add in the tomato paste, stir, and then add in the crushed tomatoes.
- Lower the heat to medium-low and let simmer for 30 minutes, stirring every couple of minutes.
- While your sauce simmers, bring a salted pot of water to a boil to cook your lasagna noodles. Check the box for the al denta time and cook just 1 minute under it. Drain and set aside when done.
- To make your cheese filling, combine the ricotta, parmesan, eggs, salt, and shredded cheese. Mix until fully combined. Set aside until ready to use.
- Once the sauce is done, coat the bottom of each individual pans with a layer of meat sauce. Next, add in two lasagna noodles, a layer of ricotta cheese mix, meat sauce, noodles, ricotta cheese mix, meat sauce, noodles, and top with extra shredded cheese.
- Let cool before covering and storing in the freezer.
If Eating Immediately
- Bake at 375F for 20-25 minutes.
If Baking From Frozen
- Heat oven to 350F.
- Cover the top of the pan with foil to prevent the cheese from burning and bake for 45 minutes.
- Remove the tin foil and bake for another 15 minutes or until the middle has heated through.
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Brandy
What size pans do you use?
Carmy
The pans are listed in the post:
“For the lasagnas, I froze mine in aluminum pans as to make it easier for him to reheat directly in and not have to wash dishes/return anything to me. The exact measurements of the pans I used are 6.6 inches x 4.6 inches x 1.7 inches.”
Sabrina
I feel like I missed how to cook it after you freeze it?
Carmy
In the blog post, there’s a section titled “HOW TO COOK FROZEN MINI LASAGNAS” right before the photo that shows what I write ON the lasagna so I know how to cook them from frozen when I pull them out of the freezer. Does that show up on your end?
Carmy
Hi again Sabrina! I just updated the recipe card to include the instructions if that helps :)
Avril
Hi there! Love this! It’s so easy. I’m prepping them for lunches and was wondering if the instructions for cooking/temps are the same for Toaster Ovens?! I don’t want to mss it up. Just made this and had it for dinner though. I added a bit more seasoning on the spicy end and added half the meat as hot italian sausage and it was a great extra little kick!
Carmy
Hi Avril, I haven’t tried reheating these in a toaster oven but I would just lower the temp a tiny bit and maybe shorten the time by 5 to 10 minutes? Since the toaster ovens are so much smaller! Let me know how it goes :)
Caroline
I needed a lasagna recipe that wouldn’t leave us eating leftovers all week and this was perfect! I was fed up of meh store bought frozen lasagnas. The portions were perfect to share between my hubby and me. I didn’t have ground pork but had a bunch of veal so i subbed it and it tuned out great. Thank you so much for sharing this. I will for sure double the recipe next time!
Carmy
I am so happy to hear you found this helpful!