Bill's Lasagna and variations

Lasagna al Forno...is there any other kind of Lasagna...Well Yeah...I am still hoping that there will be some other members of the family that will submit other styles of sauce. I have many times heard people call my mother's sauce what is known as Gravy. There as many different sauces as there are towns in Italy. Probably there are more. The sauce makes a big difference in the quality and character of a lasagna. For that matter, it is the same story for every different dish that uses sauce as a component. So the best I can do is tell you to start with my mother's sauce with ground beef or Sausage and plenty of pepperoni as seen elsewhere in the site. A nice marinara is good with the sausage or ground beef layered into the lasagna.

briefly before the assembly:
One package of lasagna about half cooked, drained and soaking in cold water.
One recipe of Sauce with beef and pepperoni. This is even better with beef cooked till it falls apart.

1 pound of ricotta placed in a strainer lined with a coffee filter, cheesecloth or a paper towel.

Parsley
1 1/2 pounds of shredded Mozzarella.
1 egg
1 1/2 cups parmesan or Pecorino Romano finely grated
grated nutmeg
salt and pepper to taste

Mix the drained ricotta, half a cup of parmesan, one egg, and the parsley


Ladle one cup of sauce over the bottom of a lasagna pan.
Lay lasagna noodles the long way in the bottom of the pan, trimming to fit if necessary. Do not overlap.
spread a small amount of sauce over the noodles and then layer them with half of the Ricotta cheese mixture and 1/4 of the mozzarella.
place another layer of Lasagna on top.
lay on a thick layer of sauce and top with 1/4 cup of mozzarella
another layer of noodles
Top with a bit of sauce and a layer of Ricotta and 1/4 of the mozzarella.
a last layer of noodles topped with sauce, Mozzarella and parmesan.

Bake at 375 degrees for 25 minutes covered with foil and 25 minutes without. You may put toothpicks in the lasagna to keep the foil off the surface.

Cool for 15 minutes before cutting and serving.


Vartiations:

Place a half of a cooked sausage in the lasagna where each served square will be.

Layer in breaded fried eggplant and/or zucchini into the center layer of the lasagna.

Replace the noodles with the eggplant or zucchini(recipe elsewhere).

Put a layer of Caponata or Caponatina in the center layer.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Cut boneless chicken breasts horizontally, first removing the tenders.
Pound each slice and tender with a meat hammer to flatten.
Dip each slice in flour to coat.
Dip in beaten egg with a bit of water, salt and pepper.
Fry on both sides at a very low temperature in a mixture of butter and olive oil.
Layer into the center of the lasagna with sauce and cheeze.