I’ve been wanting lasagne for a while, but I want a good one, not the generic recipe found on the back of the pasta box.
I’m not worried about whether it’s a vegetarian recipe or not - I’ll take either one, as long as it’s good. I have had a good lasagne in the past that was made with italian sausage, but I’ve also had a good veggie one. I just don’t have either recipe.
Any dopers want to help me out?
I’m big in to quick dinners.
9X13 pyrex dish
jar of sauce
no boil lasagne noodles
1/2-1lb of italian sausage -browned
1/2 cup of parmesan cheese
1/2 cup of cottage or ricotta cheese
2 eggs (beaten)
1 cup of mozarella cheese-shredded
Mix:
the parmesan, cottage or ricotta cheeses, and eggs in a bowl
maybe add some pepper or “italian spice” from your generic spice rack if you want to feel fancy, and depending on how you like it.
put a layer of sauce (almost half the jar) on the bottom of the dish.
layer of noodles
layer in the egg and cheese mixture
layer in the sausage
layer of noodles
the rest of the sauce on top
the mozarrella on top of that
cover with aluminum foil and bake in the oven at about 400 degrees till all bubbly (like 45 minutes, maybe longer)
For veggie: substitute sausage for:
sautee in butter, garlic powder, and pepper the following:
Red, yellow or orange bell pepper (not green cause it’s gross), diced, about 1/4 cup
mushrooms, sliced, about 1/3 cup to 1/2 cup
fresh spinach, chopped, make more than you think cause it shrinks alot
maybe some red onion if you really want good breath.
so in this order: onions, bell peppers at the same time, let them cook a little, then mushrooms, then the spinach.
use that as your “meat” layer.
Cottage cheese does NOT belong in lasagna. I know that many people substitute it for ricotta, but ricotta is readily available now, so there’s NO EXCUSE. I have Spoken.
A couple of years ago I sent OpalCat my lasagna recipe. I still use the same recipe. Everyone who’s tasted my lasagna has loved it, and wanted more.
Dang it! I’m not gonna mess with that link any more!
1 lb. ground meat. I use beef or 2/3 beef, 1/3 pork sausage, but you could also use ground poultry. Some people put Italian sausage in here, too.
1 large onion, diced
1/2 to 1 large green bell pepper, diced
6 large fresh mushrooms, sliced, or one 4.5-6 ounce jar of them. Fresh is better.
3 cloves minced garlic, or the equivalent in garlic powder
1 16 oz. box of lasagna noodles
1 16 oz. container of ricotta 1 16 oz. bag of “pizza cheese” (contains mozzarella, provolone, parmesan and romano cheeses, already grated)
A couple of tablespoons of chives or parsley
1 or 2 30 oz. jars of spaghetti sauce. I prefer Ragu Old World Marinara. You can use whatever suits your fancy, but you don’t really need a chunky sauce because there’ll be enough veggies already.
All measures are approximate, and ovolacto vegetarians can skip the meat and use more veggies.
Saute all this stuff in your skillet, breaking up the meat as it cooks. The onions and garlic should be well cooked, but not blackened. Most people probably will want to start with one garlic clove. If you’re not going to use the meat, cook the veggies in a little olive oil. While you’re doing that, boil the lasagna noodles, keeping a close watch on them. Don’t let them get very done. Remember, they’ll cook some more in the oven, and they’re hard to handle when they’re overdone. So check the package to see how long to cook them. Mix the cheese and herbs together with your third hand. Some people like to put an egg into the mix. I don’t. My daughter likes to eat this mix by itself on crackers, as a snack.
I THINK that my lasagna pan is about 9X13, not sure…anyway, put down a thin layer of sauce, arrange noodles to fit over that, then sprinkle with the meat/veggie mix, then drop spoonfuls of the cheese mix over that. Don’t worry about spreading out the cheese mix, it will melt and spread out on its own. Then put on more sauce, and continue layering the stuff until you run out. It’s best to end with sauce/noodle/sauce, in my opinion, but that’s just me. If you don’t come out even, it’ll probably get eaten anyway. I put it in a 350 degree F oven until it’s done, and I start checking it about half an hour after I put it in there. You can also cook it in a microwave, if you’ve put the lasagna in a microwave proof pan. Make SURE to cover it properly if you use the microwave, though. It’s done when the cheese is all melted and gooey.
Serve with garlic or herb bread.
Herb bread:
Good quality bread, preferably in a French or Italian loaf Mrs. Dash’s Garlic and Herb seasoning Butter, margarine, or olive oil Parmesan cheese (optional)
Melt the butter or margarine, unless you’re using the oil. Cut the bread into 1/2 thick slices and spread the fat over it. Sprinkle with the seasoning, and the cheese, if you’re using that. Warm it up in the microwave or oven. You can also fry the bread in a skillet, if you prefer.
Note: This is approximately the recipe that’s on the Fathom site. However, it’s MY recipe, and I’ve never relinquished copyright on it, so I feel OK in reposting it here.
1 Can pasta sauce
Noodles
1LB ground beef - browned and drained.
Add 1 Package Spinach -thawed and drained
Add favorite seasonings-garlic, basil, oregano
Lots of nutmeg
A bit of lemon
stir in 4oz of Ricotta and heaps of parmesan…and some provolone
Crack an egg into it when it is a bit warm–makes it nice and creamy.
Layer with sauce and mix. 400 for 40 minutes
I like this one because you can keep things in the freezer and whip it up really quick.
Infidel!!!
First Zenster, then you! Bottled spaghetti sauce? Am I hallucinating here? What’s so hard about starting with tomato paste?
Another challenge/question: Where’s the salt? Don’t you salt your ground beef while cooking it? Salt added during the cooking process really brings out the taste of meat.
Believe me, I’m no cook, but bottled Ragu??? Sheesh!
Please direct me to where I suggested using “bottled” sauce? I specifically mention using “1-2 Pints Marinara sauce.” No mention of any bottled sauce.
Yes, I will most definitely use bottled sauce on occassion. Whipping up lasagna should not be a day-long affair. To be fair, you did use the singular of “infidel” but I’m still a little bewildered as to why you have dragged me into your tirade. Personally, I find tomato paste to be way too sweet for my tastes.
If you want to make a quick sauce…
1 28 ounce can of diced tamatas (tomatoes for the non-Italian)
Drain out the juice into a sauce pan (big enough to fit everything)
PLace the tamatas on a rack under the broiler to roast
Boil the juice with the trinity of seasonings-Oregano, Basil and Garlic.
You can add meat or whatever you like to it, a little heavy cream makes a nice tamata cream sauce…
When the tomatoes are nice and roasted…burned is better IMHO.
Stir together and Yum.
Freezes well to for quick meals.
NO BOIL NOODLES!? That’s got to be as bad as “Pasta to Go”
If I ever brought such a thing into my house, I believe my relatives would spin in their graves fast enough to alter the Earth’s rotation.
Traditionally, one does not pre-cook lasagne pasta. The pasta is supposed to (and usually does) fully cook in the liquid of the sauce. To use the runny sauces that most people put into lasagne with pre-cooked pasta makes for gooey and runny lasagne. Now, my mother’s lasagne recipe does have the pasta pre-cooked, but her sauce is lower-moisture, too.
Of course, my mother’s lasagne is the best on earth. That is how it should be.
Lasagne has always been my specialty.
Lasagna noodles (I boil mine ahead of time)
Cottage cheese mix:
2 beaten eggs
24 oz lg curd cottage cheese
1/2 cup grated fresh parmesan cheese
Salt
Fresh ground black pepper
1 lb mozerella cheese (sliced)
Sauce:
olive oil
1 small onion
1 - 1.5 lbs italian sausage
3 or 4 cloves fresh garlic (more or less to taste)
1 lg can diced tomatos
12 oz tomato paste
Fresh chopped oregano
Fresh chopped basil
Fresh chopped parsley
Sautee onion in olive oil, brown sausage (I use the spicy kind, but it’s up to you), add the rest of the sauce ingredients, allow to simmer.
Boil noodles.
Beat eggs in bowl, add the rest of the cottage cheese mixture.
Layer half noodles, then cottage cheese mixture, then mozzerella, then sauce. Repeat for a second layer.
Bake at 325 for 1/2 hour, allow to cool for 15 minutes after baking.
I use as much fresh spices as possible and always grate my own parmesagn instead of using the shaker kind. I also never measure my spices, its’ more of a knack.
To answer Lynn, I find Ricotta cheese has too strong a flavor. It tends to overwhelm the taste of the sauce. That’s why I never use it. Plus I don’t like the texture very much.
This lasagna also tastes just as good microwaved for a snack or lunch the next day.
We all like bottled Ragu. What’s more, I’m sure that my Grandma Bodoni would have used bottled sauce if she’d found one that she liked. Grandma was pretty smart.
Grandma also didn’t preboil her noodles, but I’ve never been able to get mine to turn out just right without preboiling them. However, Grandma DID make her own noodles from scratch, which probably had something to do with this.
Thanks y’all.
I’m planning on cooking this Saturday evening. How far in advance can I make it and refrigerate it. Does it make a difference if I use an egg in the ricotta mixture or not (I am going to have some people over and I don’t want to make them sick).
I work all day Saturday (well, 10-6), and it would be far easier if I could have it ready to go in the oven around 6:30 or 7:00 after I get home. Could I prep it Friday evening, or would I be better prepping it Saturday morning?
Prepping it Friday evening is fine. The egg will cook completely during the baking. I don’t know why some people add one to it, I’ve personally never been able to taste the difference.
I stand firm on ricotta vs. cottage cheese.
You don’t need to use lasagna noodles, by the way. You can use ANY sturdy pasta shapes. I like to use bowties, wagon wheels, shell, or rotini. You won’t get the neat effect of lasagna layers, but you don’t have to worry about broken noodles, either. Just mix everything up like a casserole. Bake til the cheese melts nicely.
You can also stuff the cheese mix into manicotti or giant shells and cover it with the chunky sauce. Sprinkle with more grated cheese and bake til the cheese melts.
A Friday night prep shouldn’t hurt a thing. I’ll second Lynn on the ricotta cheese. It has a much different (and more authentic) flavor than cottage cheese. I also pre-boil my noodles because I tend to use rather thick sauces. I hate having to ladle out my lasagna. You should be able to lift out the squares with a spatula. If you want a slice of heaven, try making your lasagna with freshly rolled pasta, there is nothing like the fluffy and light texture of home made noodles. Get yourself one of those little Atlas Italian hand cranked pasta machines and go to town. You’ll never want to buy boxed noodles again.
You can absolutely prep it early, my mom does this all the time. She freezes the lasagna and takes it on family trips, comes out great. A night in the fridge should be no problem at all.
She has the magic touch with lasagna. Pre boiled noodles, mix of beef and sausage, homemade sauce, the ricotta-egg mixed cheese, basically everything you’ve seen in these recipes (no mushrooms, though, dad doesn’t like 'em). Important tip, you must let it rest before serving, otherwise it will be a runny mess. At least 15min to let the cheeses firm up a bit.
[wild cheering and applause]
Bravo sir, you have managed to point out one little fact missed by the others (including myself). Allowing the entire casserole to “rest” after cooking does everyone a huge favor.
I’m still curious about the egg mixed in with the cheese. I’ve never heard about this and I used to have a first generation Italian American girlfriend. I understand how it will tend to bind things up a bit. I just have never seen this before.
[Ike]
Tell him about your 1,000 cookbooks, Zenster. Go ahead.
[/Ike]
Naw, that’s all right, Ike. No need to this time.
I’m pretty sure that Grandma Bodoni used to use an egg in the cheese mix, and she immigrated from Palermo. She also kept chickens (in the city!) so maybe she just put eggs in anything that would be ruined by an egg.
Word of your vast and most impressive library of cookbooks–rumored to exceed 1,000 volumes, I dare say–recently wended its way here via the London Times-NY Times-LA Times food critics’ grapevine.
Determined to authenticate the existence of such an impressive collection, the steering committee of the Gastronomy Council of Greater Burbank (GCGB) suggested I gratuitously goade you, with the expectation that your response would contain a passing reference to your fine collection.
Back to the Ragu…