Lasagna is something that always leaves my family’s taste buds satisfied.

As far back as I can remember, when my grandmother graced us with her presence, she also graced us with her extraordinary cooking skills. Her specialties included tamales, enchiladas, brown sugar baked beans with bacon and an array of Christmas cookies, but her lasagna has always been one dish that stood out.

My grandma would add something different to her lasagna every time she made it, which could have been hard boiled eggs or carrot slices. Each bite was always full of flavor.

Over the years, I would never be one to turn down a slice of lasagna even if it wasn’t made by my grandma. While some lasagnas are better than others, my grandma’s will always have a place in my heart. Since my grandmother’s lasagna was the first I ever tasted, all other lasagnas will forever be compared with hers.

Aside from the perfect combination of pasta, meats and dairy, lasagna is incredibly easy to make and all ingredients cost less than $20. All of the products can be found at all grocery stores or places like Target or Wal-Mart.

The list of ingredients is just as easy: nine lasagna noodles, two eggs, one pound of lean ground beef or Italian sausage, one jar of any pasta sauce, two 15-ounce containers of ricotta cheese, two cups of shredded mozzarella cheese, 1 ½ cups of grated Parmesan cheese and about 1 teaspoon of dried parsley or basil. The lasagna should be made in a 13-by-9-inch pan.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. While the oven is heating up, it’s time to cook up the meat in a large, nonstick skillet on medium heat and the noodles in a large pot with six cups of water.

While the meat and noodles cook, make the cheese mixture. In a medium bowl, empty both containers of ricotta cheese, 1 ½ cups of the mozzarella cheese and one cup of the Parmesan cheese. Add the two eggs – lightly beaten – to this mixture and stir it all up.

The noodles should take about 15 minutes to boil. Once they are soft, pour the pot into a strainer and lay the noodles on a large plate to cool.

When the meat is cooked and browned, drain the fat from the pan. This can be a little messy, but be sure to pour the fat into a can or cup and not your sink. After the fat is dumped, add the jar of pasta sauce into the skillet as well, then mix it up and let it simmer on the stove on low.

Once the sauce has heated through, the fun part has arrived. In the 13-by-9-inch, oven-safe pan, take 1 ½ cups of the meat sauce and spread it on the bottom of the pan. Then, top the sauce with 3 lasagna noodles. Evenly spread about 2 ½ cups of the cheese mixture on top of the noodles.

Lastly, top the lasagna with one cup of the meat sauce. Repeat this step one more time and decorate the very top with sprinkle of cheese and a dash of the spices.

After the masterpiece is created, put it in the oven for 65 minutes. The baking process may seem a little long, but it will be well worth it in the end. I highly suggest letting the lasagna cool for 10 minutes before cutting yourself a slice – unless you like molten cheese mouth burns. Once time has passed, grab a knife and fork and dig in.

Now you have made a fabulous dinner and you’re probably set for lunch and dinner for the next few days, too, because – let’s be honest – we are college students.

Candice DeVries can be reached at [email protected]