Traditional Meat Lasagna (for other lasagna variations, see below)

Lasagne, (la-ZAHN-yeh) the plural form of lasagna, originated in the Emilia-Romagna region of north central Italy. The plural form is correct, as there are multiple noodles in the dish. The wide, flat sheets of pasta were originally made by the Romans, who called them laganum (Tracta). The word comes from lasanum, the Latin word for pot, i.e., the vessel in which this dish was baked. Lasagne later came to refer to the specific layered-type baked dish we know today, with the long flat, pasta sheets alternating with minced meat, cheese and tomatoes. The Romans lacked tomatoes, which originated in Peru and did not come to Italy until the Spanish Conquistadors brought them back from Mexico in the early 16th century.

If you would like to make this in a 9x9 inch pan, use just 70% of the ingredients - actually this was too much cheese filling (2 cups ricotta, 1/3 cup Parmesan, and 2 eggs, I had also added some spinach) and 2/3 pound mozzarella. The proportions seems better the next day. Also note that lasagna noodles are too long to fit in a 9x9 inch pan. You will only need a little more than 2 to cover one layer. For the entire pan, 7 noodles. Actually using just 60% is probably a better conversion. You could also try just cutting the recipe in half (50%).

A better idea: A small batch lasagna recipe, perfectly portioned for 2! Assembled in a loaf pan.

Brown the meat slowly and then drain off the fat. Add the rest of the ingredients for the meat sauce and simmer uncovered for 1/2 hour.

In the meantime, mix all of the cheese filling ingredients together in a bowl, slice the mozzarella cheese, and cooked the lasagna noodles so they are slighly undercooked. They will further cook when the lasagna is baked.

To assemble, place a bit of sauce in the bottom of a 13" x 9" pan. Add a layer of 3 lasagna noodles, a layer of half the cheese filling, and then half the mozzarella cheese slices. Add not quite half the meat sauce, then 3 noodles, the rest of the cheese filling, etc. End with a layer of 3 lasagna noodles and top with meat sauce. Sprinkle with the extra Parmesan cheese.

Bake in a 350 degree oven for 40 minutes or until hot and bubbly. Let set about 10 minutes so that the filling has time to set up.

Serving Suggestion: Good served with a green salad and garlic bread or Italian Olive Oil for bread dipping

12 servings

Cheese & Spinach Lasagna

Follow the recipe above, but omit the meat from the tomato sauce and add 1 pound fresh spinach that has been cleaned, blanched, and roughly chopped to the ricotta cheese mixture. Be sure to squeeze the spinach well—spinach holds a surprising amount of water that will make your lasagna soupy. Layer the same way: sauce in the bottom, lasagna noodles, cheese and spinach filling, mozzarella cheese slices, sauce, repeat (lasagna noodles, cheese and spinach filling, mozzarella cheese slices, sauce), ending with lasagna noodles, sauce and Parmesan cheese.

Vegetable Lasagna

As for the Cheese & Spinach Lasagna, follow the recipe above, but omit the meat from the tomato sauce and add 1 pound fresh spinach that has been cleaned, blanched, and roughly chopped to the ricotta cheese mixture. Be sure to squeeze the spinach well—spinach holds a surprising amount of water that will make your lasagna soupy. Add the following mixture as another layer above the ricotta cheese layer.

2 teaspoons olive oil
1 1/2 cup carrot, thinly sliced and blanched
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups coarsely chopped fresh mushrooms
2 cups coarsely chopped broccoli, slices of zucchini, or eggplant blanched
1/2 cup bell pepper, chopped

Mix the vegetables together in a bowl with the olive oil to coat. Use mixture for the vegetable layer.

Eggplant Lasagna

Follow the recipe above, but omit the meat from the tomato sauce. Add slices of eggplant, that have been salted and let sit to draw out the water, as another layer above the ricotta cheese layer. Frying the eggplant as in Eggplant Parmesan would also be good.