Lasagna: eG Cook-Off 52

[Argol]

My first lasagne was from Julia Child, Lasagne à la française (From Julia's Kitchen), and I have used variations of it ever since. I make béchamel and tomato sauces and sautée eggplant, mushrooms and spinach for the layers. I generally forgo the ricotta--I don't think it adds much more than calories. No meat, you notice, but it is a big hit whenever I serve it. As for the pasta, I either make it or use commercial dried, 2 or 3 sheet in boiling water for a few minutes, then onto towels.

[Darienne]

Dare I even mention the following: a friend on a low-carb diet made both 'spaghetti' and 'lasagna'...in quotation marks to signify some distance from the real thing...using cabbage in place of pasta. It's not all that bad...if you don't think pasta while you are eating it. Well, it's not that good either.

Today I am making a 'lasagna' using cabbage leaves, a tomato and meat sauce and cheeses: ricotta, mozzarella and Parmesan. Don't hate me because I am undeserving of being called a paesana.

We've had company for the last few days and I have eaten myself into a weight I thought I had left behind. Time for a short low-carb path.

[David Ross]

For my lasagna I combined the traditional layering method of lasagna with a bechamel and meat filling that I use for a savory cannoli. I've been using the recipes for the tomato sauce and the meat filling for years out of the Time-Life series "The Foods of the World." These two recipes come from "The Cooking of Italy," edition.

The meat filling is a mixture of ground beef, chicken livers, onions, garlic, spinach, olive oil, dried oregano, dried marjoram, parmesan and cream-

The tomato sauce includes imported Italian plum tomatoes, diced, juice included, onion, garlic, a bit of sugar, olive oil, fresh basil, salt and pepper and tomato paste. The sauce is pureed in the blender and then simmered over low heat to reduce-

The bechamel is a basic cream sauce of butter, Wondra flour, whole milk, cream, nutmeg, salt and pepper-

The layering began with a thin layer of the tomato sauce on the bottom of a LeCreuset casserole dish-

I admire those of you who have mastered the art of making pasta. I can't say I have those same talents. Nor can I ice cakes or hard-boil eggs, but that's another topic. So being the pasta novice that I am, I reach for the basic dried lasagna noodles--easy to work with and they don't taste too bad either-

The meat sauce-

The bechamel-

The parmesan-

Baked-

The finished Lasagne-

[Chris Hennes]

And? How did it taste?! Were you happy with the dried pasta? And could you sense the chicken livers in the meat sauce? I've never tried including them in it.

[David Ross]

And? How did it taste?! Were you happy with the dried pasta? And could you sense the chicken livers in the meat sauce? I've never tried including them in it.

The lasagne was smooth, (the bechamel), rich, (the meat, the bechamel, the parmesan, the tomato sauce all mingling together), and lush. You can sense the chicken livers but it has just a hint of liver flavor that isn't overpowering. The uninitiated wouldn't even know they are in the meat sauce. I only put in 3 finely diced chicken livers to 2lbs. of hamburger. They really give the meat an added richness that is really something.

I think the dried pasta is actually quite good for this dish. It holds up well during the 45 minutes of baking time and I like the firm texture in terms of the taste of the pasta.

[MartinH]

Dare I even mention the following: a friend on a low-carb diet made both 'spaghetti' and 'lasagna'...in quotation marks to signify some distance from the real thing...using cabbage in place of pasta. It's not all that bad...if you don't think pasta while you are eating it. Well, it's not that good either.

Today I am making a 'lasagna' using cabbage leaves, a tomato and meat sauce and cheeses: ricotta, mozzarella and Parmesan. Don't hate me because I am undeserving of being called a paesana.

We've had company for the last few days and I have eaten myself into a weight I thought I had left behind. Time for a short low-carb path.

Why not substitute cauliflower for the cabbage? It is low in carbs, much more pasta-like in mouthfeel than cabbage, goes wonderfully well with both bechamel sauce and melted cheeses, and unlike some vegetables copes well with longish casserole cooking. True, it isn't leaf-like in shape, but it can still be layered in a dish.

[Darienne]

Why not substitute cauliflower for the cabbage? It is low in carbs, much more pasta-like in mouthfeel than cabbage, goes wonderfully well with both bechamel sauce and melted cheeses, and unlike some vegetables copes well with longish casserole cooking. True, it isn't leaf-like in shape, but it can still be layered in a dish.

Cauliflower??? Well, OK, I will try it.

The lasagna turned out beautifully we both agreed.

[ambra]

I am making lasagne for 12 people this Sunday. The Classic Italian version with meat sauce and bechamel.

I was wondering if you all cold help me with quantities. How much meat and cans of tomato do I need for the meat sauce? And how much fresh pasta?(Bought, not home made.)

I can figure out the bechamel, but not the meat sauce. I asked my mother in law who is used to cooking for that many and she said 1/2 lb of meat and two large cans of tomato (I think they are 28 oz?) should be plenty. That sounds like too little to me.

Anyone? And TIA!

[Darienne]

I am making lasagne for 12 people this Sunday. The Classic Italian version with meat sauce and bechamel.

I was wondering if you all cold help me with quantities. How much meat and cans of tomato do I need for the meat sauce? And how much fresh pasta?(Bought, not home made.)

I can figure out the bechamel, but not the meat sauce. I asked my mother in law who is used to cooking for that many and she said 1/2 lb of meat and two large cans of tomato (I think they are 28 oz?) should be plenty. That sounds like too little to me.

That quantity sounds like enough for two people. Is your M-i-L trying to set you up by any chance? I hope not.

[ambra]

Darienne, LOLOL!!!

It very well could be!!

[Judith Umbria]

I sometimes don't cook it if I've just made it, and certainly when I am trying to be fancy and entrap herb leaves between two thinnest sheets for the top layer it needs to be raw. I tend to like a simple light as air lasagne because it isn't usually "the" dinner but a first course. That said, I have enjoyed other people's kitchen sink lasagne, too.

I'll be making an asparagus lasagne for Easter dinner and trapping nettle leaves in the pasta to make it pretty. It will be about 8-10 thinnest layers with besciamella of asparagus and asparagus tips. I just haven't decided which cheese will serve me best. Rich, yes! But the servings will be small.

[Judith Umbria]

Quote

Dare I even mention the following: a friend on a low-carb diet made both 'spaghetti' and 'lasagna'...in quotation marks to signify some distance from the real thing...using cabbage in place of pasta. It's not all that bad...if you don't think pasta while you are eating it. Well, it's not that good either.

I am on a low carb diet before the tourist and cooking season starts. I just published a dish using cabbage: http://www.judithgreenwood.com/thinkonit/a-nameless-low-carb-dish-that-resembles-lasagne/

and posted the article.

No, it isn't lasagne, but it's really good. I won't call it lasagne and after several tries I find fewer thicker layers are better than a bunch of thin layers for this. After a couple of months of no pasta I have to say I loved this. It isn't really made like lasagne because it is mostly raw when assembled other than the quickie tomato sauce. I'll think about the cauliflower, but I eat it so much on this diet I am not sure I want it in this change of pace, too. Wow, this is a shaky photo. I must have been hungry.

 

[ProfessionalHobbit]

I made lasagna from scratch a few weeks ago, and let me tell you that it was a learning experience.

 

Clockwise from right: 2 pork chops; rack of pork ribs; sweet Italian sausages; jar of lard.

 

 

Melt lard. Brown meats in batches. Remove to a plate.

 

 

3 cloves garlic, smashed; 1 cup cabernet sauvignon; 1 large onion, finely diced. Not shown are 4 cans crushed San Marzano tomatoes and a few sprigs of parsley.

 

 

 

Brown the ribs, then remove to a plate.

 

 

 

After the meats have been browned, add the onion and garlic to the pot. Sweat until softened.

 

 

Return browned meats to the pot (although you may have to transfer everything to a larger pot as you see here). Season with salt and pepper, then add the red wine..

 

 

.and the crushed tomatoes and parsley.

 

Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low. Simmer for 5-6 hours.

 

 

Meanwhile, make the meatballs.

 

Clockwise from center: 1/2 lb. each organic/free-range ground beef and ground pork; 1 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese; 5 tbsp. minced flat-leaf parsley; 3 cloves finely minced garlic; stale bread soaking in milk; 1 egg.

 

 

Combine all ingredients in a large bowl. Season with salt and pepper (remember that the cheese will taste salty so you'll probably want to go easy on the salt). Mix thoroughly. You'll want to use your hands for this one.

 

 

Shape into meatballs using a teaspoon.

 

 

Fry in vegetable oil until browned on all sides.

 

 

 

Lift out with a slotted spoon and place on paper towels to drain.

 

 

 

I added the meatballs to the batch of Sunday sauce and braised them in the sauce during the last hour of simmering.

 

Polpettine.

 

 

Braised pork ribs and pork sausage.  (They were amazing.)

 

 

 

Ricotta cream: 8 ounces ricotta cheese mixed with: two eggs, 1 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, sea salt, black pepper, 2 tbsp. minced flat-leaf parsley and 2 balls of mozzarella cheese that were diced into cubes.

 

 

Sweet (non-spicy) Italian sausage fried in lard.

 

 

 

Lasagna being assembled. 

We stuffed the layers with polpettine, chunks of sausage and braised pork ribs.   First a layer of sauce, then some no-cook lasagna sheets (which I will definitely not be using next time; I think I'll make my own from scratch), then a layer of meats, then sauce, then ricotta cream.  Rinse and repeat, finishing off with any ricotta cream, leftover mozzarella cheese and freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese.

 

 

 

Bake at 350 F for 45 minutes or until the top begins to brown.  Remove from oven and rest for 15-20 minutes.  Serve. 

 

This recipe is sized for 6-8 people.

 

Finished dish:

 

 

Recipe adapted from:  http://memoriediangelina.com/2010/02/14/lasagna/#.V2NJYrsrLq4

 

Edited June 17, 2016 by ProfessionalHobbit (log)

[cakewalk]

Wow. I'm having people over next weekend, and I was planning to make lasagna. But mine is gonna be veggie. I'm almost ashamed to say it after seeing yours. Looks beautiful. Only 6-8 people? It looks like it should easily feed a dozen!

[ProfessionalHobbit]

Oh, that was probably because two of those people could out eat the rest.  LOL.

[JoNorvelleWalker]

 

 

 

 

 

Edited April 5, 2017 by JoNorvelleWalker
site not working right (log)

[Chris Hennes]

I had guests for dinner on Saturday, and lasagne is always a crowd-pleaser. I basically follow the instructions in Bugialli's The Fine Art of Italian Cooking (I see there is an updated edition, but I don't have it), but I make the Bolognese from a 1999 issue of Cook's Illustrated. In particular my meat sauce in this instance was all beef, except for a couple of ounces of pancetta and some dried porcinis sauteed along with the vegetables at the beginning. The Cook's Illustrated technique is in four stages: an initial cooking of the vegetables and ground meat, then a simmer in milk until dry, then a simmer in wine until dry (I used a red in this instance), then a simmer in finely chopped canned whole tomatoes and their packing sauce until it's the texture you want. Call it about five hours of total simmering time. The other layers are a double-thick bechamel seasoned with a hint of nutmeg, and a layer of mozzarella and parmesan. I made plain and spinach pasta and alternated layers, so the finished product, with twelve layers of filling, looks like this (at least, the leftovers I ate for lunch today did!):

 

Edited March 12, 2018 by Chris Hennes (log)

[Smokeydoke]

twelve layers.... TWELVE LAYERS!

 

Congrats. It looks great.

[scubadoo97]

I go at least 12 layers when trying to use up a box of matzah as the noodle ;))

[MetsFan5]

Wow you guys go all out. 

My first generation Italian American mother’s recipe is stupidly simple in comparison! 

[JoNorvelleWalker]

Tonight I made the meat sauce for a batch of Bugialli's lasagne al forno.  I tried to follow the recipe exactly except I added more ground beef than called for, since it needed using up, and omitted the half chicken breast.  The problem is I noticed an inconsistency in the recipe as written that eluded me before:

 

The meats are "ground beef", "ground pork", "chicken breast", and "prosciutto or boiled ham, in one piece".  At one point in the recipe Bugialli says to add the pork, beef, and chicken breast.  Then later he says to: "Transfer the pork and chicken breast to a board and chop them very fine."

 

Here then is the issue:  it is difficult to transfer sautéed ground pork from a sauce to a board to chop it very fine.  Prosciutto is pork and so I figured Bugialli must mean to add the prosciutto at the same time as the other meats in order to remove it later as called for.  But then he says to add the meats back to the pan along with more broth.  However sometime later one is instructed to "...chop the prosciutto, very fine, add it to the sauce, and cook for one more minute.

 

Something does not add up.  Now after I've thought about it I think I've found the problem.  Rather than writing out the instructions for the meat sauce the lasagne al forno recipe directs:  "Make the meat sauce, using the ingredients in the quantities listed, according to the directions given in cannelloni con carne on page 209, omitting the Parmigiano.  Otherwise follow the procedure exactly."

 

Well, that procedure does not work as written!  Lasagne al forno calls for "1/4 pound ground pork".  Cannelloni con carne specifies "1/2 pound pork".  Doubtless it is easier to remove a piece of pork from a pot of sauce and chop it fine than to remove ground pork from a pot of sauce and chop it fine.

 

I'm reasonably sure Bugialli did not intend for me to cook my prosciutto in the sauce before chopping it.  It would have been better for everyone if he had just written the proper procedure in the lasagne al forno recipe.  Worst case it might add a page to a 668 page book.

 

 

[JoNorvelleWalker]

The thought occurred to me that Bugialli's lasagne al forno procedure could be correct and the ingredient list be wrong about the pork.

 

No matter, after some days' delay I finished the lasagne:

 

 

 

I cheated a bit and purchased pre-ground meats, omitted the chicken breast, and had the Cuisinart prepare my dough.  Next time I may ask the Cuisinart to grate the Parmigiano.  Bugialli says (somewhere) he likes to roll his lasagne to the finest setting.  I used 7 on the KitchenAid.

 

 

 

Sat down to dinner at 3:20 am.  This dish is on my last meal list.  Making it undoubtedly hastens the event.

 

Has anyone attempted Bugialli's lasagne all'anitra all'aretina from The Fine Art of Italian Cooking (pp 226-229)?  The duck is cooked in sauce and then discarded rather like a bay leaf.

 

[Okanagancook]

That’s a great book.  That is my favourite lasagna.  Haven’t tried the duck but I bet it’s good.