What's for tea at your house tonight?

it's just a white sauce

My Italian 'mama' (in FL) just did her lasagne with the red sauce, layering ricotta/mozz/parmesan either with chopped meatballs or a mix of meatballs/Italian sausage mixture -- she usually made one pan of each.  With lots of extra red sauce & grated parm on the side.  Mmmmmmm -- that's Thanksgiving/Christmas/Easter etc... Hee hee.  And then of course -- all the stuff to go with.

The Rec.Foods.Cooking newsgroup hosts an on-going discussion on the ingredients of the perfect lasagna; almost all the recipes proposed feature ricotta as the cheese of choice. Lasagne with ricotta are something I've never had (in Italy) -- not because they're not authentic, but because I live in Florence, and they're not done that way here -- we use béchamel sauce, sugo alla bolognese, and Parmigiano instead. Ligurians, on the other hand, use pesto sauce and serve up their lasagne as a refreshing summer dish. Lasagna with Ricotta Salata is from Calabria, among other places, whereas lasagna with plain ricotta is a sumptuous Neapolitan Carnival dish. This just goes to prove how variable Italian cooking is, and how quick Italian cooks are to adapt recipes to the ingredients they have on hand.

So it really depends on where in Italy you get your lasagne recipe from as to what type of sauce you use.

I like the bechamel sauce, myself. 

So it really depends on where in Italy you get your lasagne recipe from as to what type of sauce you use. 

(I like bechamel too -- it's just not the kind I had before.)  Well she came from Brooklyn > Long Island > Florida...not sure what part of Italy her parents were from?

C

So it really depends on where in Italy you get your lasagne recipe from as to what type of sauce you use.

I like the bechamel sauce, myself. 

I like bechamel, too. I'm not a fan of red/tomato/marina sauce AND I'm a quasi-vegetarian, so I make a white & green lasagne. I use bechamel and pesto and then spinach and any other green veggie I feel like tossing in. I might put some chopped tomatoes in it, but no red sauce.

I like bechamel, too. I'm not a fan of red/tomato/marina sauce AND I'm a quasi-vegetarian, so I make a white & green lasagne. I use bechamel and pesto and then spinach and any other green veggie I feel like tossing in. I might put some chopped tomatoes in it, but no red sauce.

Freak!  No no no no nooooo -- red sauce is king.   I would eat it every day (and sometimes do) if I could.

Freak!  No no no no nooooo -- red sauce is king.   I would eat it every day (and sometimes do) if I could.

LOL! No, seriously, I just don't like red sauce. I don't mind a pink vodka sauce, though, 'cause the harshness of the tomatoes is tempered a little. But I'm just not a fan of plain ol' red sauce. One thing I miss over here is being able to have white pizza -- unless it's homemade.

OK, I have to make a healthy yummy meal tonight for Rich and I.  I have Chicken Breast.  I am going to make those faux mashed potatoes (They are to die for!!!) from the South Beach Diet Cookbook (Which I bought, if anyone wants anything from it!)  But Rich is hard to cook for!  He hates creamy anything, no dairy, no spicy.  Any suggestions?

LOL! No, seriously, I just don't like red sauce. I don't mind a pink vodka sauce, though, 'cause the harshness of the tomatoes is tempered a little. But I'm just not a fan of plain ol' red sauce. One thing I miss over here is being able to have white pizza -- unless it's homemade.

Mmmmm, white pizza.  I LOVE a good white pizza.

The local pizza place we order from will substitute a garlic butter base for the tomato sauce base on their pizzas; which is what my youngest usually goes for.

Mmmmm, white pizza.  I LOVE a good white pizza.

Yey!! White pizza.  My fav. The last time I had a really good one was in the states, I think it was Pizzaria Uno??  Can't really remmeber, it was that long ago.  Best seafood pizza I ever, ever had.

Here I'll buy the galic bread with cheese and add mushrooms and spinich as toppings.  yummy

No, seriously, I just don't like red sauce.

Me too... my bolognese sauce is REALLY beefy, and brown rather than red... if i see or taste a tomato in it, i wont eat it.  I prefer creamy / white/ bechamel... yep, even on pizza!  If i dont have a choice, i will peel the cheese layer off a pizza, wipe all the tomato sauce off with a napkin, and then replace the cheese. 

We ended up with a fry-up.  Rich is a genius making them! 

Still need something to do with chicken.

Parmesan crusted chicken might work for him...melt butter & cook up garlic to taste.  In a separate bowl mix together breadcrumbs and parmesan cheese (grated).  Roll the chicken breasts in the butter then in the breadcrumbs & cheese mix...to make it more healthy you can always just brush the butter on so that you don't use too much...the breadcrumb/cheese mix isn't all that many calories.  Then bake in the oven (US temp 400 degrees)...depending on the oven it can take anywhere from 25 - 40 minutes (just slide fork in to check for 'doneness').

Can you buy breadcrumbs (all ready to go) over here?  (I've not seen them!)  Or do you make your own?  I used to buy 'Italian style bread crumbs' (was kind of herby & maybe some parm in it) in the States -- but haven't seen even plain ones available over here?

C

You can buy breadcrumbs here, at any supermarket.