Italian Lasagna Pasta Sheets - Homebody Eats (2024)

Are you ready to learn how to make homemade Italian lasagna pasta with only 4 main ingredients? Check out this super simple recipe that takes you step-by-step through making traditional fresh pasta sheets to level up your homemade lasagna.

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I can definitely say I’ve made my fair share of homemade pasta. After studying at culinary school in Italy, I learned the traditional method, proper technique, and all the helpful tricks for making delicious pasta from scratch.

Lasagna comes from Emilia Romagna, a region in the northern part of Italy. In the northern regions of Italy, the pasta is made using egg, versus in the south where it is traditionally just flour and water.

In this recipe, I will walk you through the process of making delicious pasta sheets for homemade lasagna. If you don’t have a pasta machine, don’t worry, I’ll show you how to make these lasagna sheets both with and without a pasta machine.

Of course, there’s no point in learning how to make lasagna pasta unless you are going to make lasagna. This recipe also covers the best way to assemble a delicious authentic Italian lasagna.

What You'll Learn In This Recipe

• What kind of pasta is used in authentic lasagna.
• Helpful tips and tricks for ensuring perfect lasagna sheets.
• The importance of using certain types of flour.

If you love this lasagna sheet recipe and want to learn more about Italian cooking, sign up for my free series that teaches you everything you need to know about extra virgin olive oil.

Ingredients You Need

Northern Italian pasta dough is super simple, requiring just 4 basic ingredients.

00 soft wheat flour: This is my number one recommendation for flour. 00 flour has a smaller grain size compared to other flour. This will result in a light and tender pasta. Don't use all-purpose flour.

Eggs: This pasta will require both whole eggs and egg yolks. You can buy egg yolks in a carton or separate the yolks yourself. Save the egg whites for breakfast or a different recipe.

I heavily suggest using a digital food scale to weigh out the eggs. When measuring the whole eggs, whisk the whites and the yolks together before adding more or removing excess.

Check out this easy technique for how to separate an egg yolk from the white without breaking it.

Salt: Give your pasta sheets some flavor with a small amount of fine sea salt. Do not use large granules, otherwise, it will not distribute evenly throughout the pasta.

Semolina flour: Semolina flour is used to keep the pasta sheets from sticking to one another. Semolina flour is ground in very large granules, allowing it to coat the pasta sheets without being absorbed into them.

How To Make This Recipe

Follow along closely to learn exactly how to make perfect Italian pasta sheets.

1. Begin by mixing the whole eggs and the egg yolks together. In a separate mixing bowl, combine the flour and the sea salt.

2. Add the eggs to the mixing bowl and, using clean hands, mix the ingredients together until a very shaggy dough forms.

3. Pour the dough onto a clean surface where you have space to work the dough. Gently knead the dough and pat the excess flour into the dough until one solid dough is formed.

4. When kneading the dough, be patient with it and try not to overwork it. If you feel that the flour is not absorbing the egg yolk, or you can’t quite get the dough ball to take shape, cover the dough and let it rest for 10 - 15 minutes before returning to work.

This will give the flour time to absorb more liquid from the eggs and allow the dough to rest so it can be worked again without issue.

5. Shape the formed dough into a rough rectangle.

6. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and let this rest for 35 - 45 minutes.

During this resting period, the flour will absorb more of the egg and the dough will become more cohesive. Additionally, resting the dough will allow you to work with it without the dough resisting.

7. The best way to test that the dough is ready is by gently poking the dough with your finger. If the dough bounces back, it is not ready. If the dough stays put where you’ve pushed it, you’re ready to move to the next step.

8. Cut the dough into 12 equal-size pieces.

9. Using a rolling pin or your hands, slightly flatten out the dough until it reaches a thickness that can fit into the widest setting of the pasta machine. Dust each side of the pasta with a tiny bit of semolina flour to ensure it doesn't stick to the machine.

At all times during the pasta-making process, do your best to keep the dough in a rectangular shape. This will help guarantee a pretty shaped pasta sheet.

10. Pass the pasta through the widest setting on the pasta machine.

11. Then fold each side of the pasta to the middle.

12. After that, pass the pasta through the widest setting one more time.

If you do not have a pasta machine, you can roll out the pasta by hand with a rolling pin. Just be sure to check that you are rolling the pasta out evenly and you don’t roll the pasta too thin.

13. Turn the pasta machine down one width setting at a time as you continue to pass the pasta through the machine. Keep thinning out the pasta until it has become a thick yet edible-width.

This should be about 1mm thick. For me, this is pasta setting number 4 on my machine. However, every machine will differ. With many machines, you can look up to see how thick each setting makes your pasta.

Don't be tempted to make your pasta sheets thinner than this. Although it may seem a bit thick for pasta, if you roll the lasagna sheets out too thin, they will essentially disappear and melt into the lasagna. Thicker pasta will guarantee you a much better texture in the cooked homemade lasagna.

It is very important to keep an eye on the texture of the dough as you pass it through the machine. If the dough gets sticky, add a light dusting of flour on top to prevent sticking.

14. By the end, you should have a total of 12 long sheets of pasta, each roughly 12 inches (30 cm) long by 3 inches (8 cm) wide. Layer the pasta sheets with a dusting of semolina flour. I recommend placing the pasta on a baking sheet, which can be wrapped in plastic wrap and set aside for later.

15. Finally, let's assemble the lasagna. Spread ½ a cup (120 grams) of béchamel in a 13” x 9” (33 x 23 cm) baking dish. Top the béchamel with a layer of lasagna sheets.

It is likely that the lasagna sheets will be too long at first to fit in the baking dish. Carefully measure and cut the pasta so that it fits within the baking dish.

16. Top the pasta with a bit of bolognese ragu sauce, and then more béchamel. Repeat this process 2 more times, for a total of 3 layers. Be sure all the pasta sheets are covered with the bolognese and béchamel so they fully cook.

Spread a layer of parmesan cheese over the top before covering the baking dish with aluminum foil. Cook for 45 minutes. Then, remove the foil and cook for another 15-20 minutes or until the top is bubbly and brown.

Let the lasagna rest for 15 minutes before serving to allow everything to come together. If you cut the lasagna immediately, the sauce will spread out.

Expert Tips

• You can store leftover lasagna in an airtight storage container for up to 7 days in the refrigerator.
• You can make the pasta dough ahead of time before it has been made into lasagna sheets. Wrap the pasta dough in plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator for 1 day. Then, allow the dough to come to room temperature before rolling out the pasta. This will not work if you have already rolled the pasta out into lasagna sheets.
• Making pasta is both simple and tricky at the same time. Take your time and pay attention to the dough as you are working with it. Some things to keep an eye out for are:
  • Sticky/moist dough: If the dough feels a bit sticky or moist as you’re working with it, add a light dusting of flour.
  • Flaky dough/dough not coming together: For starters, make sure you have used all of the eggs that you measured out. If you do that and still have a dough that won’t form, let the dough rest for 10 - 15 minutes before working with it again.
• Use a silicone spatula to scrape all of the egg mixture into the flour. This will help ensure there is enough liquid to fully hydrate your dough.

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