Tuesday, December 2, 2008

Lasagna??

Do you have a tasty recipe for lasagna? I have only made lasagna from my Betty Crocker cookbook. While it is not bad, it does not have a lot of flavor. I would like to try a different recipe. There are so many to choose from so I thought I would ask if you have a favorite that I could try.

Thank you!
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2 comments:

Wendy said...

I found this easy recipe on Kraft Foods and made it a few weeks ago. I add some of my own spices to the sauce to give it more flavor and would use Italian sausage next time, but besides that it was a big hit for our family and has been requested again.
http://www.kraftfoods.com/kf/recipes/simply-lasagna-69196.aspx

December 3, 2008 at 8:32 AM
Devyl Gyrl said...

I'm not sure how I happened across your page, but I think I was looking up the bender ball.

Anyway ... I have several recipes for lasagna, but I do not stick to any recipe exclusively.

If you don't have time to do a long-cooking sauce, I find that starting with a jar or two of sauce, and adding garlic, onion, and white pepper. I also add a pinch or two of brown sugar to cut the acid.

I find what makes the sauce taste yummy (and one of the reasons that jarred sauces are usually good) is when they are able to blend flavors.

One of my favorite sauces is simply to take some onion, sliced or diced (depending on how you like your onions), and sautée in a little olive oil. Add ground sirloin (or chicken or turkey or whatever you like in your sauce; i also use broccoli, carrots, and cauliflower in some of my sauces, depending on who I am feeding). Cut a green pepper in half and drop into the pot to simmer in the sauce (you get all the flavor with none of the side effects). Brown the meat, then add two cans of stewed tomatoes or tomato sauce (depending on if you like the chunks of tomatoes or not), bring to a boil with a couple teaspoons of brown sugar. Add garlic, white pepper (I prefer white pepper to black pepper), and a dash of soy sauce, all to taste. Bring back to a boil, then let simmer for at least an hour, up to three.

When I make lasagna for my family, I use a California blend of vegetables in half the sauce, and meat in the other half. The California blend, traditionally, is broccoli, cauliflower, zucchini, and carrots. Each of these veggies has a mild flavor in the sauce, and blends well. Delicious, if you like veggies!

I use the no-cook noodles that you put into the lasagna pan without having to boil first. I drop them into boiling water for about 5 minutes, though, when I need a little flexibility in them.

I very lightly grease my pan (Pam/butter/oil - whatever you prefer), then put about a quarter cup of water in the bottom of the pan before putting my first layer of noodles down. I put the vegetable sauce on this layer, then a ton of cheese (a five-cheese blend adds more flavor), another layer of noodles, meat sauce, more cheese, a third layer of noodles and tons more cheese on top.

I am not a fan of ricotta or cottage cheeses, so I avoid those layers.

Bake at whatever temp your box of noodles suggests, covered, for all but five minutes of the time. The last five to seven minutes, bake uncovered to get a bit of browning action going on the top.

I love lasagna, and often bring it as my specialty item to gatherings and functions. I haven't yet had leftovers to bring home!

Have fun with your lasagna, and experiment with flavors you like and things you want to try.

white lasagnas are declious too!

Oh, and skip over the onions if you're still having trouble with them!

December 24, 2008 at 12:11 AM

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