Why You Should Always Make Extra Sauce For Lasagna

There's a reason lasagna is Garfield's favorite food. Lasagna is one of our favorite Italian dishes with its combination of comforting noodles and cheese, zippy tomato sauce, and succulent meats and vegetables. It's a crowd pleaser — even amongst cartoon cats.

Lasagna has been around for centuries with the first lasagna recipe coming from Ancient Greece. While lasagna regularly appears on Italian restaurant menus, there's something satisfying about doing it yourself at home. It can also be a fun activity to do with kids.

One of the main challenges when baking lasagna yourself is controlling the perfect level of moisture. According to Bon Appétit, you want to make sure the noodles don't dry out, but you also don't want them to get soggy. They suggest covering the dish while baking and adding a béchamel sauce, but if your lasagna still comes out a bit dryer than you'd like, here's a trick to add some moisture back in.

The ingredient that makes today's lasagna different from its Ancient Greek predecessor is the tomato sauce. Per Italy Magazine, the very first tomato sauce-based lasagna recipe dates back to 1880s Naples. The Neapolitans are also said to have invented pizza (via Scott's Pizza Tours), so we have a lot to thank them for.

In fact, it's Neapolitan's saucy invention that is your secret weapon in combatting dry lasagna. Now, if your lasagna comes out of the oven a lacking moisture, there's no reason to panic. Real Simple recommends serving the dish with a side of extra marinara sauce. If someone at your table likes a really saucy bite, they can add even more sauce to taste. Plus, you can use the extra sauce to help reheat your leftovers later, according to Pantry and Larder.

While there are plenty of delicious marinara sauces on the market, give this Heirloom Tomato Sauce recipe or one of these five takes on a classic red sauce a go; they're sure to help you make a dish that even Garfield would approve of.