Lasagna Burger
I thought it would be fun to make a lasagna inspired burger, so I looked at what versions were out there already, but I wanted the burger to embody the true spirit of lasagna, a big stack! I alternated between beef and sausage patties, and put a lasagna noodle in between each. Of course there was lots of sauce and cheese in there as well. What really brought it all together was the bun. I used a small ciabatta and treated it like garlic bread with a little butter and garlic powder on each side.
I streamed this recipe last week and you can watch the video here! The lasagna burger actually ended up falling apart in the video, but I recreated it with a few tweaks and it was much more stable. I let the sauce dry slightly on the pasta, allowed the burger to cool a bit before slicing, and most importantly, I made sure the burger patties were super thin, flat, and a bit wider than the buns. If the patties plump up in the center and end up being too small for the bread, that is when it will really be unstable.
Make the thin smash burgers
Roll the meat into a ball and cook one minute on one side. Then flip and smash as thin as you possibly can. The lasagna burger has two beef patties and one sausage patty in between.
Make the ciabatta garlic bread bun
I usually make these with just garlic powder, oregano, salt, and butter. This time I had some roasted garlic around so I added it to the butter. That is why it’s brown in the photo. The recipe below is just the garlic powder but feel free to make it your own with as much garlicky goodness as you can handle!
Prep the lasagna noodles
Boil the noodles then cut them into the same general shape as the buns Keeping everything the same size and shape will help the lasagna burger not fall apart. Then add them to the simmering sauce.
Build the lasagna burger
Bun first, then the first burger patty, then a noodle with sauce and ricotta. Repeat with the sausage patty, then again with the beef patty!
Serving the lasagna burger
This thing is epic and delicious. Serve it with lots of napkins and maybe a fork in case it falls apart half way.
This is the burger of my dreams. I love burgers and lasagna and garlic bread and this gave me all of that in a burger format.
And just to prove that it didn’t fall apart, here is the cross section!
Twists on this recipe
Obviously this lasagna burger would be more manageable and practical with two layers instead of three. I really wanted it to be stacked to emulate lasagna. Feel free to just do a beef layer and a sausage layer if you would rather.
Ciabatta buns can also be controversial so swap the bun out if you want!
For more unique burger ideas, check out my pork belly grit burgers, corn tortilla smash burgers, or these shrimp chimichurri burgers!
Lasagna Burger
Ingredients
BREAD
- 1 ciabatta bun
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon italian seasoning
SAUCE
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- black pepper
- 14 oz canned crushed tomatoes
- salt red pepper flakes, oregano
OTHER
- 1/3 pound ground beef split in half
- 1/4 pound hot Italian sausage
- 1 lasagna noodle boiled and drained
- 3 slices mozzarella cheese
- 1 tablespoon ricotta cheese
Instructions
- These directions are for a single burger, but the sauce is enough to make at least 5
- Cut the bun in half and spread the butter on each side. Top with the garlic powder and seasoning. Broil on high for a few minutes until golden.
- Make the simple sauce by cooking the garlic in the oil on low heat. Add in some pepper. Cook about 3 minutes but don’t let it brown. Add in the tomatoes and stir to combine. Add in the salt, crushed peppers, and oregano. Simmer 10 minutes.
- Cut the lasagna into 3 pieces and add it to the sauce.
- Form balls from the beef and sausage. Get a cast iron pan super hot and add some peanut oil or other high heat oil.
- Add the balls of meat to the pan and cook 1 minute. One by one, flip and smash the balls into the pan as flat as you can. Cook one minute, flip, and add the cheese.
- Remove the lasagna noodles from the pan with the sauce and allow to cool on a plate for a minute.
- Start with the bottom bun and add on the first burger. Top with a piece of lasagna, and then a tablespoon of ricotta. Next add the sausage patty, then the lasagna and ricotta. Finally top with the last burger and noodle and ricotta. Top with the top bun. Allow to cool for a few minutes before serving to help it hold together.