Lasagne question

Do you put the pasta sheets into the dish first and start layering from there, or do you start off with the mince first?

Thanks :)

I put sheets first cause it makes it easier to serve!!

Yes this is what i normally do, for that exact reason :)

How do you keep the bottom sheets from going crispy/hard? Sometimes the bottom ones are soft but other times they don't cook properly and harden instead.

I put a couple of teaspoons of water in the bottom to keep them moist and they don't stick to the bottom either that way!!

I usually put a layer of sauce first then pasta as this helps it to stop sticking to the bottom. Works for me!

Nikki

I put the mince first too. :D

I always put the sheets down first...I havent had a problem with the hardening, maybe because I make my sauce just a smidge runnier.. :)

I spray the dish with spray first and then lay a sheet first. I use those fresh latina sheets too, they don't stick to the bottom! Yumm...sounds noice

Thanks so much ladies :D

Sounds like I need to try out a few different methods. Since it doesn't happen all the time, it might be that those times it doesn't happen my sauce is runnier... I will try making it a tad moister today and see if that helps.

Thanks again :)

I put the mince down first also - but only a little bit - enought to cover the bottom thinly - stops the sheets from sticking!

I put a small amount of water in first then lasgana sheets.

I then put mince and thin layer bechamel sauce and cheese and repeat with pasta etc.

On top of top pasta i put a thick layer of bechamel sauce and coat in grated cheese!!

Oh so yum and oh so not healthy!!

and all this talk is making me hungry :)

I put mince first too :)

that's it, i'm making it tonight

I mix a teaspoon of mince with some water and put that in the bottom.


Ellie

i will be making it tomorrow night when we get home!

I only bought sheets yesterday! I am making a chicken and vegetable one! YUMMY, thanks for putting the idea into my head!!

I always put a bit of the mince down first, but not much. Just enough to slightly cover the bottom of the dish. Then the sheets don't stick.
I made a curried tuna one the other night & it was great!!

I only make vegie lasagnes and I put down a thin layer of sauce first.... but it probably wouldn't matter if I put the sheets down first. I think the trick is to have a sauce that is runny enough to cook each sheet properly but not too runny. Because gravity helps moisture go downward I often find that it is the top layer that tends to be drier. Have to make sure i cover it totally with bechamel sauce!

For extreme yummy-ness, try a good dollop of cream or double cream in both the mince or vegie sauce and the bechamel (let the bechamel cool a little first), as well as mozzarella in between each layer - mmmm.

I always put a little bit of liquid from the sauce at the bottom, then the pasta, and haven't had any problems with sticking. Cholesterol poisoning, now that's a different matter...

Oooh yummo suse! Sounds delish... will try that next time! I don't shy away from extra cream and/or cheese... I find that even though it is not as "healthy" (although FULL of calcium! ;) ) I find that I eat less than if it wasn't so creamy because it's more satisfying. I only have tiny portions anyhow, might as well make it as yummy as possible!

OMG i am soooooo hungry for lasgana i am going shopping tonight and i am going to buy the stuff for tomorrow night. I find it better if you make it in the morning and put it in the fridge for that night it stays together better. Sorry that does not really make sense i mean cook it at night! sorry:redface:

Nikki

Right on Bathsheba!! I am also one of those who would rather have something small and decadent that tastes good than phaff about with low fat this and no taste that. Some things are just not meant to be approved by the heart foundation!! But then again, I have been craving broccoli for the last couple of days so I think I have a reasonably well working internal monitor...

P.S. I was just reading your post on the "usernames explained" thread - awesome! I'll be thinking of you as Pixies girl from now on! (My DP and I did a remix/cover of 'where is my mind' a couple of years ago).

Sorry for thoroughly hijacking thread...

Makes perfect sense to me... most meals are better cooked early... I find they taste better because you have "forgotten" the cooking smells a bit by dinnertime too.... if THAT makes any sense! LOL

ETAL LOL Suse! Sorry i missed your second post... how funny! Not many people seem to remember The Pixies these days... I wont hijack the thread anymore... wander over to the usernames thread and have a post...

Yes Yes Yes that is me especially when pregnant sometimes i can't eat dinner sometimes cause of the smell made me sick while cooking it. how funny !

Suse: do you know about personal messaging (PM)? I wanted to send you one but you don't have it activated.

Sorry Bathsheba, can't PM yet, because I'm still a newbie, PM won't become activated until I make 50 posts. Admin explained that it is a security measure that they had to implement because to prevent auto-spamming. Hence I constantly have to hijack threads (sorry, doing it again!).

Only 26 posts to go!! Hopefully by the time squishy one is born I'll have made it!

Ahhh of course, I should have remembered about that Suse... nevermind, you'll make it up to 50 in no time! :) Also you might want to read up about the Reputation Function. ;)

Bath, I so know what you mean about waiting til the smell is gone! Sometimes by the time I serve something I'm just so over it before I even eat it LOL.

Yum , I haven't made lasagne for ages! Might have to have it next week.

Back to the OP :) I put a little of the mince first.

Thanks heaps for the suggestions ladies :) I made sure I made the sauce moister, and it turned out great! And the best thing... we have left overs :D

Thanks again :)

mmmmm, leftovers... (LOL)

I put the mince down first, and never had a problem with it - I make it fairly regularly...
I was taught meat, sheet, sauce, meat, sheet, sauce :)