Lasagne - Difficult to make?

[Crush]

I make one for the wife to take to work but replace the pasta sheets with sliced sweet potato. Actually quite nice!

[Sharted]

Simon Rimmer uses cottage cheese.

[HarryFlatters]

Petrol Only said:

White sauce is the easiest bit. No cheese!

Simmer bay leaves and peppercorns in milk for 15 mins or so.

Bechamel sauce tips.

Add the milk to the butter and flour mix little at a time making sure to heat it through each time. Guaranteed lump free silky white sauce.

Or just add the milk while it's still hot from infusing with your aromatics (also use a little garlic and some parsley stalks, other than bay, onion and pepper).

I've never had a lumpy sauce when adding hot milk, and it goes in about ten times faster than cold, with a lot less whisking.

Needs a grate of nutmeg, too.

[Fas1975]

Crush said:

I make one for the wife to take to work but replace the pasta sheets with sliced sweet potato. Actually quite nice!

That sounds fantastic. Will definitely be trying that one

[RizzoTheRat]

How thin do you need to slice the sweet potato?

I had a go at the Hairy Bikers version using leeks sliced in to sheets, but it was a bit of a hassle, sweet potato sounds like a great idea.

[Petrol Only]

HarryFlatters said:

Petrol Only said:

White sauce is the easiest bit. No cheese!

Simmer bay leaves and peppercorns in milk for 15 mins or so.

Bechamel sauce tips.

Add the milk to the butter and flour mix little at a time making sure to heat it through each time. Guaranteed lump free silky white sauce.

Or just add the milk while it's still hot from infusing with your aromatics (also use a little garlic and some parsley stalks, other than bay, onion and pepper).

I've never had a lumpy sauce when adding hot milk, and it goes in about ten times faster than cold, with a lot less whisking.

Needs a grate of nutmeg, too.

Agree always easier to use still hot. Also don't forget to sieve the bay leaves peppercorns etc out. Or you will get a lumpy sauce.

[HarryFlatters]

Petrol Only said:

Agree always easier to use still hot. Also don't forget to sieve the bay leaves peppercorns etc out. Or you will get a lumpy sauce.

Valid point

[don4l]

I made my first lasagne a few weeks ago, and I was very pleased with it.

I agree with most of the comments above, especially about the use of nutmeg.

One thing that I would add is that I cooked the mince at very high temperature at the beginning to burn the outside of the meat. When the meat goes in the pan, it may give off some liquid. This liquid needs to be set aside, and some oil - not olive oil- added.

After a couple of minutes at high temperature the rest of the ingredients can go in.

[HarryFlatters]

don4l said:

I made my first lasagne a few weeks ago, and I was very pleased with it.

I agree with most of the comments above, especially about the use of nutmeg.

One thing that I would add is that I cooked the mince at very high temperature at the beginning to burn the outside of the meat. When the meat goes in the pan, it may give off some liquid. This liquid needs to be set aside, and some oil - not olive oil- added.

After a couple of minutes at high temperature the rest of the ingredients can go in.

When I make a ragu, I have my soffritto sweating in a big stew pan while I'm browning whatever cuts of meat I'm using (normally a mix of pork shoulder, beef shin and oxtails) in another frying pan. Once all the meat has been browned and added to the stew pan, the frying pan gets deglazed with red wine or stock, then that gets added to the now soften veg and browned meat.