Lasagne Recipes!

OK ladies ..you got me all excited about your Lasagnes in the other thread ( your best recipes)....but now I am all inspired to do lasagne for my dinner party this weekend I need your recipes ...pweezzeee!.

(cooking for 8people)

ok my lasagne is a meat/bolognaise sauce without bechamel.

Cook up a big batch of bolognese sauce..I normaly do 2 kilos mince, 2 pasta sauce jars, tomatoes, onion, garlic, parsley etc.

I buy the boxes of instant lasagne sheets and the cheap ones work better!

Get a big tray, put some sauce down first, then the sheets, then sauce, then shredded cheese (i use mozarella)

So sheets, sauce, cheese---sheets, sauce, cheese right to the top!

You will probably need to do 2 dishes.

Cover with foil and and put in the oven at 180 for 45 minutes. Then take off the foil and cook for another 15 minutes.

Remove the trays from the oven and put the foil back on, and leave it to rest on the bench for about 15 mins.

The resting is VITAL so it wont be all sloppy.

GL :)

ok here goes

ingredients

1x240grms lasagne sheets

meat sauce
500grms mince
2tbl oil
1 onion finley chopped
1medium carrot, grated
1 stalk celery chopped ( leave this out)
1-2 can whole peeled tomatoes
1 110ml tomatoe paste
2 cloves garlic

cheese sauce
60gms butter or marg
1/3 cup plain flour
2 cups milk
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1 cup grated chedder
3 tbl parmesan

meat sauce

1. cook onion, carrot and celery in hot oil in a large oan
2. add meat and stir over heat to brown
3. add tomatoes, paste, garlic and bring to the boil
4. simmer uncovered until sauce has thickened and meat is well cooked
5. sauce should be fairly thin

cheese sauce

1. melt butter in a pan, add flour and mix until smooth
2. cook for 1 min then gradually add milk and stir over heat until sauce thickens and boils for 1 min
3. add nutmeg and grated cheeses, reserve ome for top. Stir until melted

to assemble
grease a large flat ovenproof dish
fill with alternate layers of meat sauce, lasagne, cheese sauce having 2-3 layers of each finish with a cheese sauce layer top with reserved cheese and uncovered in a mod oven for 45min or until brown :)

enjoy I would maybe double this for 8 people time may need adjusting

Oh yum!!

When ever i make lasagne i always make it to sloppy!!

seriously kim...let it sit on the bench for 15 mins and i promise it wont be sloppy!

the one on the back of the zaffarelli lasgane sheets box is pretty yummy - can't remember it exactly but has a bit of bacon in with tomatoes and mince and tom paste, herbs and sugar in the tomato sauce and then a plain bechamal sauce to go with it.
It also has mozzarella cheese but I usually don't use that cause I don't have it on hand.

I do my normal bolonaise sauce but I only add the pasta sauce and not the crushed tomato's that way its not as sloppy. And I just do pasta bolonaise and cheese sauce....In that order till the pan is full.

Also another tip.......Put a layer of pasta sheets on the bottom of the dish that way that also helps it not to be sloppy.

My mum's friend is Italian, and this is the way she makes hers - really yummy.
Meat sauce for 8 people maybe 700g of mince
1 onion - finely chopped
1 clove of garlic - crushed
1 teaspoon of sugar
4 tablespoons of tomato paste
2 tins of tomato puree

In a large saucepan, fry the onion and garlic until soft, add the mince and brown, then add the sugar, tomato paste, puree and salt and pepper to taste. I also add one can of water and the let it simmer away, until most of the liquid has evaporated. Seems to make it a nice rich sauce then.
White/cheese sauce:
60g butter
1/3 cup plain flour
salt, pepper
pinch nutmeg
2 cups of milk
125g cheddar cheese
3 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese.
(if you like cheesy lasagne you could double the ingredients - if you find you have too much, you can add it to your left overs the next night
Melt butter in a saucepan, add flour, salt, pepper and nutmeg, blend until smooth.
Stir over heat 1 minute, gradually add milk, stir until sauce boils and thickens, reduce heat, cook 1 minute. remove from heat, stir in grated cheeses, stir until cheese melts.

using a large baking dish spoon a little of the meat sauce into the bottom of the dish.
Place instant lasagne sheets on top - may need to trim so none overlap. Top with mince sauce, then cheese sauce and sprinkle some extra grated parmesan cheese over the top. Repeat this process 2 times finishing with the cheese sauce on top - sprinkled with more cheese.
Bake in moderate oven for 40minutes or until top is golden.

Meat Sauce:
1 large tin diced tomatoes
1 clove garlic crushed
1 handful fresh basil shredded
500gm mince
1 tsp salt
pepper
1/2 tsp sugar
2 tbsp tomato paste

(basically... sometimes I add a dash of red wine if we have some open, and sometimes I throw in extra herbs if they are laying around. If I don't have a large tin of tomatoes sometimes I just add some jar of sauce...)

Cheese:

250 gm ricotta
250gm frozen spinach thawed & drained
1 cup grated cheese
1 egg
salt & pepper

I do alternate layers & then on the top I spread some pasta sauce from a jar & put a layer of mozzerella or just grated cheese on top.

Ok, so I'm trying to do something REALLY nice for Shel, as she's been very patient with me while one the TWW and on the Clomid too, so I am going to make her favourite dinner, lasagne, from scratch.

Now, I have a pretty basic idea of how to do it - i make a killer white/cheese sauce, and have some lasagne sheets and mince and tomatoes and onion and garlic all that jazz.

Just wondering... do you have any lasagne secrets you might like to share?
Maybe something like, anything special you put in the mince to make it extra yummy? Or how do you stop the lasagne sheets from staying hard? Thats the only downfall when i've made it in the past... the pasta is still rock hard, or chewy.

So everyone, spill those secret recipies for perfect lasagne!!!!!

I use the fresh lasagne sheets rather than the hard ones and they are always nice and soft. Maybe you could try precooking the lasagne sheets and they wouldn't be as hard.

Good luck - I'm making lasagne this afternoon!

Well- this is from a person who cooks rarely but takes tips from her DH!! He says you make the sauce a bit more watery than you would a spag bol for example because the sheets soak it all up as they are cooking and that way its nice and juicy too!! Everytime I havent made it kind of runny its been a bit dry!
I also add hot salami to the sauce, some grated cheese in with the meat, and also some zuccini, carrot and capsicum!
Hope she enjoys it hun!

I use the fresh sheets but my SIL is Italian (from Venezaula) and she dips the dry sheets in boiling water for a few seconds before cooking to soften them up.
I always put a tea-spoon of strawberry or rasberry jam in my spag bol sauce - I don't know why but it makes it taste yummier.
I also make my white sauce a little runny and put cheese in it for extra cheesieness.

if you buy the instant lasagne sheets (hard but precooked) they should go soft as long as every part of the pasta is covered byt the meat/sauce etc.
Some hard sheets are precooked/instant, others require cooking or blanching before use - this may be why they have stayed hard in the past?

Cant help much more, I have only ever made a vegie version!

When making a ragu, always start with heaps of chopped veg, like zucchini, carrot, celery and onion. I will cook it till it colapses and caramelises. Then I'll take it out, cook the mince (always cook mince in a pan with a high edge so it breaks up with a stirring motion, unless you like chunky mince in which case cook it in a frypan. Then I add herbs, garlic and put the veg back in (I also drain all the fat away before adding veg, which is why I don't add meat to veg otherwise when draining you can loose some veg). Then I'll add tomato paste or passata, tomatoes (tinned roma chopped) and red wine. Cook for at least an hour continually adding water so it doesn't dry out. I normally do a big batch when making spag bog that way I can freeze half and make lasagne another night with the leftover. Also when choosing meats play around, you might like to do half veal half pork or half veal half italian sausage mince. A ragu always tastes great with even 1 or two sausages worth of italian sausage meat added to your basic beef mince. You can also add finely chopped pancetta or prociutto, but I often use it when layering my lasagne as the flavour is better. Don't forget to check for seasoning, which with ragu is salt pepper and sugar ;)

Ok now for the white sauce, mine always tastes better by eye but I normally do equal parts or just a touch more flour than butter, then milk (added slowly and whisk like mad to avoid lumps) then salt & pepper and then at the end I use dried parmesan I find normal parmesan doesn't really break down as easily.

My favourite lasagne is one that i adapted from a Jamie recipe. I make up my ragu with half beef half italia sausage mince (and vegies as well), Using fresh pasta I do layers of fresh pasta, roast pumpkin, cooked proscuito or pancetta slices ragu, white sauce (I like to semi mix in the ragu to the white sauce it tastes better) and repeat :) Then after the last layer of pasta top with white sauce and lots of cheese. It can be done with dry pasta just cook it a little longer, I don't really time it but usually 35-60 mins @ 200C if it starts to burn turn it down, but I find with fresh it shouldn't take longer than 35 mins and with dry just cover it with foil for the first 30 mins then take it off and let it cook for another 30 with the foil off and you'll never have crunch pasta. OH and if cooking fresh make sure the ragu is thick, and if cooking dry make sure the ragu is slightly runny (not watery just not thick) so that the liquid will absorb into the past. And it depends how you like the top coating as to how much white sauce you put on. I like the top layer of pasta to be soft but the cheese to be crunchy so we put LOTS of white sauce on top so that it doesn't go dry and crunchy and then I add cheddar and parmesan, sometimes mozza just depends what I have. But if you like crunchy pasta on top then use less white sauce and more cheese.

HTH's

Cailin, you should open a restaurant. If your food is half as yummy as it sounds you'd be on a winner.

LOL Chloe, I would hate to work in a kitchen... Its too stressful, angsty and bitter most of the time for me!

So instead I have a family restaurant, in which I cook for family and friends... and you wonder why guests always want to comes and stay here LOL! Probably 3 or 4 months out of a year we are guest free ;) But in reality I wouldn't have it any other way.

Oh and for those who don't like bacon'y things like Miss Sarah, you can get other animal procuitto from some specialty delicatessen's, one of my favourites is kangaroo but that might be a bit too scary for some of you ;)

*hugs*
Cailin

I agree, Cailin that sounds delish!!!!

Thanks everyone... Am printing this page as we speak!!!

rayray: I might just need your expertise soon though, my sis is vege (allergic to animal protein), and is coming to stay for a while, and I'd love to cook her something yummy too, she's been an angel to us lately!

Sure thing Alisia. I have lots of vegan and allergy-free recipies.

Cailin, you lasagne sounds great! I can see why you'd have lots of dinner guests.

I have one useful tip!! Put a layer of pasta on the bottom with 4 tablespoons of water then start your layering. The bottom layer helps with serving and it makes it easier!!

Also my god mother always cooks hers a couple of hours before dinner lets in cool in the oven and then cuts it up and re-cooks it!! She said that also helps with serving!! I have never tried it cause I neer know what I am cooking till its to late!! Lol....

Agree with everything Cailin says!

My additional tips are: chicken livers in the ragu.....very finely chopped......gives the ragu an extra creaminess....

And for the bechamal, I always add a good teaspoon of dry english mustard powder as well as a very sharp bitey cheese....

i do my sauce from scratch and always leave it a bti runny, and i cook my lasagne over an hour n a 150c oven and the sheets are always cooked thru.

:D Well, it turned out a treat... thats to all you lovely ladies!!! Not only did she LOVE it, she ate the leftovers the next night for dinner too! Very rare, as she doesn't generally like having the same thing two nights in a row (my girl is a bit fussy! lol!). It was soooooo good!!!!

One tiny problem was that i tried the water in the bottom thing, and unfortunately must have put to much in (lol!), so it was a bit runny the first night, but the sheets were all cooked through... when reheated it was pretty good though!!!

Am making it again this week (at Shel's request), and have bought some fresh lasagne sheets, so I don't really have to worry about the water.

:D thanks everyone!!!!

I always add Curry powder to my bolognniase & let it simmer all day, it's never been the same recipe twice as I grab whatever I have in the cupboard at the time & just wing it!?

Hey :D

I caught this thread a little late - but oh well, maybe it will help for next time :rolleyes:

I always use the Latina lasagne sheets (They're in the cold section where you buy the latina pastas, etc).
They're soft already, and you can just cut them however you need - size and shape, etc. (They freeze and defrost well, too).

My DH is not only Sicilian, but he's an Italian a- la carte chef, so you can imagine how picky he is when it comes to someone else cooking.... especially Italian food!!!;)

My secret ingredient in my lasagne (and its how they do it in Sicily according to my DH & his father - who is also a chef by the way!) is to make it with 3/4 part beef mince and 1/4 part pork mince.

I've made it this way, and with just beef mince, and you can really tell the difference... MUCH better with the pork mince in it.

I make mine with 1kg mince - 750g beef, 250g pork... and I only buy the pork mince from the butcher, as DH wouldn't eat it otherwise!!!

Try it for next time and see - you'll be able to taste the difference!

Its the dish I'm known for with all of our family & friends - Even the staff of FIL's restaurant all like my lasagne better than the one they have to make!!!! (Home made is always better anyway!)

Apart from that, I do add fresh chillies to mine - Only because we're a chilli loving household... I take it out or leave it in depending on whos coming for dinner!!!!

;)hi girls i was wondering if someone can give me a nice LASAGNE recipe ,i had lasagne at a cafe the other day and it had bechamel sauce on the top or something like that it was so yummy
please help as i cant cook for crap:p

This is my recipe:

Meat bit:
500g mince beef
1 tin diced tomatoes
1 tin whole tomatoes
various vegies any or all of fresh tomatoes, capsicums, onion, mushrooms, zucchini
1/2 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt (I usually use less!)
1 clove garlic (I usually use more!!)
spices to taste - I usually use basil, oregano and rosemary

So you cook all that up similar to a bolognaise, and as it's reducing, you cook the:

Bechamel sauce:
melt 60g butter in a saucepan
stir in 4 tablespoons of plain flour
cook that for 1 min
then gradually add 2 cups of milk
then add 1/2 cup grated cheese
then add 1 tablespoon of grated parmesan.
salt, pepper and nutmeg to taste

Then I put lasagne noodles on the bottom of the lasagne dish.
Do a layer of meat
Then a layer of bechamel sauce
Then another layer of noodles
Then another layer of meat
Then another layer of noodles
Then the rest of the bechamel sauce on top, being sure to cover the noodles or I find they burn
Sprinkle the top with parmesan and cook at about 200 for 30 - 40 mins.

Then

Lasagna is easy and you can get it all in jars!!

I make a large one that give 6 large portions so that we have leftovers

What u will need is:

Lasagna Sheets (i use the dry ones) 2 packets (as sometimes u need to break some up and they often have some broken in packets.
Mince (1kg dpends how much u want to make)
Jar of bolognaises sauce (i like spicy peppers one)
Jar of bechamel sauce
Grated cheese (500gram bag)
tim of crushed tomatoes
Onion (1 large)
Garlic (crushed is easiset)
salt and pepper
orgenao
chilli (optional)

Brown the mince and onion and add herbs and garlic.
Add tin of cruched tomatoes and jar of sauce and allow to simmer for aroudn 10 mins.

In pyrex dish (or what ever u plan on making it in) add a teaspoon of water, then lie a layer of pasta sheets, then layer of meat sprinkle with small amount of grated cheese and about 2 spoon of bechamel sauce. Repeat this about 3 times depending on how deep container is and how much meat you have.

After you have layered numerous times put last layer of pasta on and use majority of jar of bechamel sauce and coat the pasta sheets and then cover with grated cheese fairly thikly!
Out in oven for around 45 mins to 1 hr on around 180 degrees

YUMMO

You can grate vegies into mince if you want

;)oh thanks girls ive never made it so going to give it a try.

My secret recipe is basically the same as Manta Rays recipe but leave out the crushed tomatoes and replace with a can of Big Red tomato soup. I do this because I dont eat tomatoes and EVERYONE I cook this for demands the recipe. My other secret weapon is about 4 tbsp of mixed herbs ..... delish!

Smithy, you can try mine at mrsmacs and see if you like it ;)

My instructions are a little vague (as far as measurements, etc) - I just add as I go, so sorry in advance :redface:

1kg mince (I usually do 750g of beef mince and 250g of pork mince)
4 cloves garlic
Italian herbs/spices
lasagne sheets (I use the Latina ones in the cold section where their sauces etc are)
Approx 500g grated cheese
Milk
Butter
Plain Flour
2 x Jars of your favourite Italian sauces that you would use to make pasta with.
(I use the Masterfoods Tuscan Meatball sauce mix - Its a lot richer though)
Tomato Paste (i just add a few spoonfuls as I go!)
Salt/pepper to taste.
Chilli (Optional - if you like it... I'm not adding it for the BB meet up, but I usually cook with it ;))


Cook the mince in a fry pan and drain.
Add garlic, herbs/spices, chilli, salt, pepper, etc.
Add sauce mix and tomato paste until it makes a nice consistency, leave to simmer. The longer you let it simmer, the more the flavour will come through the meat - I usually let it simmer for an hour or two (sometimes longer) if I have the time.

To make bechamel sauce, melt a big chunck of butter in a saucepan, and I gradually add the flour and then the milk while it turns into a paste.
I just add the flour and milk as it needs it until you make as much as you need - I usually make about a half of a medium sized saucepan.

Add handfuls of grated cheese until they melt through - how much is entirely dependant on how cheesy you like the bechamel... we're a very cheesy family in this house ;)
Add salt to taste (I usually use garlic salt to enhance the garlicy flavour)

In a lasagne pan, spoon half the meat, layer with the lasagne sheets and then half the bechamel sauce.
Then add the remaining meat, sheet and sauce.

For the top layer, sprinkle grated cheese to cover - I usually sprinkle parmesan over the top of the tasty cheese - and then I sprinkle a mix of italian herbs over the top of that.

Bake at 180 for approx 45min - 1 hour depending on your oven.

Sorry its so vague!!! Its a bit of a made up recipe... but its very yummy!!! :p

Good luck!

ETA I don't add any veggies in mine, as DH thinks it would be sacreligious (sp?) (He's a Sicilian chef).. and doesn't believe in veggies in his lasagne!!! :rolleyes:
In saying that though - Its not to say its wrong, (nothings wrong - Its your lasagne!).
I've read and tried HEAPS of different recipes with the veggies in it... Its just what he likes, so that how I've made it over the years!!!!

mine is similiar to matarays

if you really want the best one go for the from scratch version the others are nice but OMG!!!!!!! from scratch is divine

I cook my bolognaise sauce (mince, garlic and Leggo's bolognaise sauce) and make the bechamel/cheese sauce.

I also oven roast 1-2 large red capsicums (they shrink heaps) in the oven untill the skin bubbles and darkens/blackens. I then place on a plate and cover with cling wrap. Once cool I peel the skin off and use the capsicum flesh as a layer in my lasagne.

I also use eggplant in mine which I pan fry. So that is also added with the capsicum layer.

So my layers are:

Fresh lasagne sheets (so much more tender and melt in your mouth then dried)
bolognaise sauce
lasagne sheets
very thin layer of cheese sauce or bolognaise sauce (for moisture) topped with capsicum and eggplant
bit more cheese sauce
lasagne sheets
rest of bolognaise sauce
lasagne sheets
then cheese sauce to finish off sprinkled with more cheese.

I cover mine with foil and bake for about 40min on medium heat (200 fan forced) and then I take the foil off and cook for a further 10-15min to brown the top. Yummy!

My DH doesn't like cheese so I use mozarella in mine, so it isn't cheesey.

;)oh thanks everyone im going to try it tomorrow nite as dh is buying me chinese tonight

HOLLY cant wait to try yours hun, and i just cant wait to see you in sydney yay

I have to say I'm with Rach. I love it from scratch. Plus I hate using jar stuff when the boys are eating it due to the salt content. I am sure I make the lowest sodium pastas you can get.

ETA, I should mention the tinned tomatoes I use are the ones with the lowest salt content - the Coles Australian tomatoes ones - just 6mg per 100g.

Plus, I agree that the vegies make it less traditional, but I can't help myself - I take every opportunity to get vegies into the boys. Even though they actually like vegies I also "hide" them when I can to get extras in LOL!!

My DH is the lasagne cook in our house, and he makes the best lasagne EVER!!!!!!

He uses the recipe that in on the back of the San Remo Curly Lasagne Sheets, and over time has made slight adaptations to it, to our taste (more of this, less of that...sorry he is at work, so I don't know what they are, and I can't ask him - but I do know that he adds a bit of chilli flakes, and a good plop of wine*).

His lasagne is absolutely massive, and will fill a large Pyrex baking tray thingy to the top. I reckon we would get at least 12 serves from the one tray.

Anyway, his little tip is to cook it for about 40 minutes, remove from the oven for 30 minutes to rest, and then return to the oven to brown and cook the rest of the way through. Apparently (according to him anyway!), letting it rest allows the whole thing to somehow be a little more solid, and easier to serve, instead of just having a plop of meat, cheese and pasta on your plate.

Yummo!!!

*Me and my technical terminology! My mum taught me to cook with dashes, bits, pinches, pffts, plops and blobs...

I no longer want to buy the dodgy lasagne from the cold section in coles.

Can you please tell me how you make yours (in particular the bechamel cheese sauce) mmmmmm! ;)

I was thinking of putting spinach with it as well.

I googled Lasange recipe and printed the San Remo brands one. Its B E A UTIFUL (said like Jim Carey) but I do substitute the white wine with red but I just love the richer flavour.

ETD - the white sauce is easy I do also add extra cheese and make it super cheesy though the white sauce is part of the recipe - I love cheese

I don't make it often but when I do DH makes an absolute pig of himself.

I began with the San Remo one too, its a good place to start.

I bought the san remo lasgne sheets. I just realised it has the recipe on the back. I assume its the same one you girls are talking about. Will check the website. If it is good will give it a go. :)

Thankyou :)