Rachel Roddy’s lasagne with three cheeses, tomato and tiny meatballs. Photograph: Rachel Roddy/The Guardian View image in fullscreen Rachel Roddy’s lasagne with three cheeses, tomato and tiny meatballs. Photograph: Rachel Roddy/The Guardian A kitchen in Rome Food Rachel Roddy’s recipe for lasagne with three cheeses, tomato and tiny meatballs A deep and ingredient-busy take on the classic, constructed with four layers of pasta and a little geometric thinking
Rachel Roddy Thu 1 Oct 2026 07.00 CEST Share Prefer the Guardian on Google B earing in mind that lasagne is a construction, it pays to start with some easygoing geometry. That is, think about the size of the dish you want to fill in relation to the size of the sheets you are using and the number of layers you want the lasagne to have. For four to six servings, I use a particular ceramic dish, because its 20cm x 29cm proportions mean that, broadly speaking, two fresh sheets of shop-bought egg pasta or four dried ones make a single layer (homemade pasta can be rolled and cut with scissors to whatever size you like, so is less relevant here).
Having calculated how many sheets are needed for each layer, the next question is: how high do you want your lasagne building to be? Height depends on the density of the filling, which, in the case of this week’s recipe, includes sausagemeat rolled (using wet hands and speed) into small, grape-sized meatballs that act like height-boosters in shoes. This elevation, along with tomato sauce and three cheeses, means that, even with just four layers, this lasagne has depth and cuts into satisfying squares. All this emphasis on the dish is also fitting because the word lasagne seems to derive from the Latin lasanum (cooking vessel), which in turn derives from the ancient Greek λάσανον, which signified either a cooking vessel or a tripod set over a fire.
Back to 2026, though, and this busy, joyful lasagne borrows from both the Neapolitan lasagne di carnevale , with the inclusion of very small meatballs, tomato sauce and mozzarella, and a Sicilian lasagne in the use of ricotta loosened with a little milk (so it has a soft, spreadable texture) in place of bechamel. A four-layer lasagne is also convenient in that all the other components are split into quarters, then spread, splattered or arranged on each of the layers. I suggest using fresh pasta, but dried works, too, although that will need a more liquid tomato sauce to cook through. I also recommend a 30-second pre-boil, which starts to cook and firm the sheets, although please disagree and do otherwise.
Leave the lasagne to rest for at least 30 minutes, so the flavours can settle and the whole thing firms up, before serving in geometric squares.
4 tbsp olive oil 1 small garlic clove , peeled and gently bashed so it’s broken but still intact 250g sweet cherry tomatoes , chopped 1 400g tin plum tomatoes , crushed or passed through a food mill 1 pinch red chilli flakes Salt 1 small handful basil 4 pork or vegetarian sausages 250g ricotta Milk , as required 300g mozzarella , drained for at least 12 hours 75-100g parmesan 8-12 sheets fresh lasagne , depending on the size of the sheets and your dish
Working in a deep frying pan or saucepan on a low heat, warm the olive oil and garlic for a minute or two. Add the fresh and tinned tomatoes and the chilli, stir, then raise the heat so the tomatoes simmer in a lively way for about 20 minutes, mashing them with the back of a spoon to break up any lumps. Once…