Wednesday, December 10, 2014

Lasagna Saga, continued

So today is the day to make the Lasagna I told you about the other day, so here's what I did...

 First, I soaked the pasta in hot water. Although I usually cook the noodles, that's time-consuming, plus it's very awkward working with steaming hot, fragile sheets of pasta. I've heard of people just using them as-is, but I didn't want to do that. So I followed a suggestion I saw online, to soak them for awhile in hot water. (If it looks like a lot of pieces are broken, you're right. This box must have been used for a Thanksgiving football game behind Krogers.)


Next I get my cheeses ready. The mozzarella came shredded (Father Z would scoff at this being called mozzarella, and he's right); the parmesan cheese I shredded/sliced myself (in the measuring cup), and the ricotta -- the creamy mixture on the left -- I prepared myself, using store-bought ricotta, and then I added some nutmeg and, because it was a little thick, some cream. Then (after this shot was taken) I saw the recipe called for some egg and parsley. So I added that, plus some of the parmesan cheese. It should work fine.

The other cheeses you see there? They were some I bought to see if I'd like them. One is a pecorino romano, which I normally like, but this block, not so much; and in the smaller bag is some sort of Tuscan parmesan cheese; too mild.


Meanwhile, I get my sauce out and start heating it up. It doesn't need to be hot, but I do want it not so thick when I spread it. It looks delicious, but if I make it again, I will cut down a bit on the meat.

Next I get my pans ready. The recipe says nothing about oiling the pans, but -- better safe than sorry. (I spread the oil around after taking the picture.)



Next I start layering. Every recipe does it differently, and I wonder, does it matter all that much? The only thing I insist on is cheese on top; I don't know why. This time, it was sauce, noodles, ricotta, mozzarella, sauce, a little parmesan, er...well something like that. Here are the finished pans. Both were wrapped in foil, one went into the freezer; the other I'll cook tonight. 


Finally, I packed up the remaining sauce for use for other purposes. I misjudged the size of my container, but oh well. And how does it taste? Delicious!


In a few minutes, I head over to shrive the schoolchildren, then back here to get things ready for dinner.

We have confessions -- with Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament -- from 6:30 to 8:30 pm, for our high school students. Feel free to stop by!

6 comments:

Jenny said...

So how did it go last night? I bet that lasagna was a hit with your guests!! Looked great...!

Fr Martin Fox said...

It was good but not great. That was my fault, for three reasons:

1. I needed better ricotta.
2. I ought to have used more sauce.
3. The lasagna stayed in the oven about 10 minutes too long.

But we had a good time even so.

And with a little added sauce, it was much better for lunch today.

Unknown said...

Dear father, it's a shame that aunt Louise didn't leave her recipe for lasagna with anyone, instead she took it to her grave, she always had the best lasagna. Take care, Eileen

Kevin Hammer said...

Father, I think you need to sign up for this contest:

http://www.deifratelli.com/holidaygiftbasket-giveaway.html

Paul said...

What's that thing behind the sauce containers with all the buttons and the coil?
Are you saving it for the Antiques Road Show?

ndspinelli said...

I find lasagna comes out better taste and texture wise if you assemble it the day prior, and have it sit covered in the fridge. Learned that from grandma.