Main dishes

Make-Ahead Chili & Cheese Lasagna

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Make-Ahead Chili & Cheese Lasagna recipe

photo by:kraft

Here's everything you love in a beefy, cheesy make-ahead lasagna—and everything you love in a beefy, cheesy chili too!

time

prep:

30 min

total:

1 hr 40 min

servings

total:

12 servings

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What You Need

lb. lean ground beef

cloves garlic, minced

jar (24 oz.) spaghetti sauce

1/4

cup water

can (15 oz.) black beans, rinsed

green pepper, finely chopped

3/4

cup TACO BELL® HOME ORIGINALS® Thick 'N Chunky Salsa

Tbsp. chili powder

tsp. ground cumin

lasagna noodles, cooked

1-1/2

cups BREAKSTONE'S or KNUDSEN 2% Milkfat Low Fat Cottage Cheese

pkg. (8 oz.) KRAFT Mexican Style Shredded Four Cheese with a TOUCH OF PHILADELPHIA

Make It

BROWN meat with garlic in large skillet. Add next 7 ingredients; stir. Simmer 5 min., stirring occasionally.

SPREAD 2 cups meat sauce onto bottom of 13x9-inch baking dish sprayed with cooking spray; cover with layers of 3 noodles, 1/2 cup each cottage cheese and shredded cheese, and 2 cups of the remaining meat sauce. Repeat layers twice. Top with remaining shredded cheese. Cool. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap. Freeze up to 2 months. Refrigerate overnight to thaw.

HEAT oven to 375°F. Remove plastic wrap from baking dish; cover with foil. Bake 1 hour 10 min. or until heated through, uncovering after 1 hour. Let stand 10 min. before cutting to serve.

TACO BELL® and HOME ORIGINALS® are trademarks owned and licensed by Taco Bell Corp.

Kraft Kitchens Tips

Serving Suggestion

Serve with a mixed green salad tossed with your favorite KRAFT Dressing.

Note

If you only have 1 (13x9-inch) baking dish and want to free it up for other uses, line the empty dish with foil, with ends of foil extending over sides. Assemble lasagna in prepared dish; cover with plastic wrap. Freeze until firm. Use foil handles to lift lasagna from dish; wrap tightly with plastic wrap. Freeze up to 2 months. When ready to serve, unwrap lasagna and place in 13x9-inch baking dish sprayed with cooking spray; cover with foil. Thaw overnight in refrigerator, then bake as directed.

Variation

Prepare using extra-lean ground beef and KRAFT Mexican Style 2% Milk Finely Shredded Four Cheese.

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elizh

posted:1/27/2013

This was a lot of work for a "not terrible but not good" recipe. It was better as leftovers than it was the day I made it, but still, I will not make it again.

STACYK1958

posted:1/15/2013

After one try, had to make for all neighbors & friends. Used smaller foil pans from dollar store to make two out of one normal recipe. Try Kraft's Mexican Lasagna recipe too, easier to make using tortilla's instead of noodles and just as tasty.

gjm02

posted:12/17/2012

This dish is delicious! Will make again and again. Did not bother to freeze, baked it as soon as I prepared it.

AbigailElizabeth

posted:10/14/2012

I loved this recipe with a few adjustments!! Turned out great with 28oz enchilada sauce (instead of marinara & water), 1 can fire roasted tomatoes (instead of salsa) and ricotta cheese (instead of cottage cheese). LOVED it!!!! If you like your lasagna cheesy -- double the amount of ricotta. Will make again soon! :)

Vickiz119

posted:10/13/2012

I couldnt wait, so this was not "make-ahead" for me! This was REALLY good. I did do a couple things differently. I added a cup of water to the meat sauce so I didn't have to cook the noodles beforehand. Also, I am a cheese-a-holic, so I used two bags of cheese. You really can't have too much cheese. :). But with that being said, the recipe was delicious, and I will definitely make it again!

a cook

posted:10/9/2012

This was absolutely a 5-star recipe. It was scrumptious. I am Italian and have been making regular lasagna for years. This has a special Mexican flavor to it and makes it an entirely different lasagna dish. It was absolutely wonderful. I'm so glad I made it. My daughter and her family all loved it as well. I made a double batch and we ate it for two dinners and one lunch. We looked forward to eating it all three days.

marybeth0610