My nona called her tomato sauce with meat, "gravy", and without meat, "marinara". She was old school Italian and made everything homemade, noodles included. She was almost 100 when she passed and drove a car thru her 80's and had a garden until she well into her 90's. She was 5' tall with heels and wore black for as long as I knew her as she was a widow. Never pants, always dresses too. Loved that feisty old woman. She was amazing as was her lasagna, ravioli, stuffed shells, etc. So good. This reminded me of her lasagna quite a bit. Thanks for sharing Kimmi!
kardiaheart she sounds like she was an amazing lady! How lucky you were to have been the granddaughter of a sassy Italian who can throw down in the kitchen!
My grandmother is exactly the same. She’s in her 80s and still works and drives. She just had her knee replaced and she did it like a 50 year old! I love young at heart grandmas!
Not from an Italian family, but I've never used ricotta in my lasagna.. Only white cheese sauce or cottage cheese... Don't knock it till you've tried it!
Ricotta is so rich and delicious, but an appeal of the cottage cheese is it is cheaper and you can buy it fat free. Lasagna is one of my all time favorite meals, and next time I make it I will try combining 1 part FF cottage cheese and 1 part ricotta in a food processor, then adding in the other cheeses because I do love the flavor and richness, but because we love it so much we need to cut the calories!
Yes it also works for stuffed shells and manicotti. The only thing different I do is add a little water to my sauce .... the noodles will absorb the liquid so you don't end up with a dry product.
I have been using uncooked lasagna when making lasagna for about 20 years. And yes, Kimmy, it does work for meals straight from the oven because I have never frozen mine. Think I might try it though!
I would have placed the freezer lasagne on a cookie sheet when cooking it, both to catch any spillage and to prevent it from twisting and turning, even if it is a stronger aluminum pan.
Perfect timing on lasagna! I just read a funny buzzfeed article about how pasta aisles in grocery stores are completely bare except for the lasagna noodles 😂🤣 Apparently no one wants lasagna during a pandemic but you’ve showed us exactly how to use them! 👍🏻
I make a Crock Pot Lasagna but instead of lasagna noodles, I layer the meat sauce, a layer of cheese ravioli, mozzarella cheese, and repeat the layers until the pot is full. So good!
My family loves lasagna! We started a new Christmas tradition a few years ago where my Mom makes lasagnas and we have that for our dinner so that instead of being in the kitchen fussing over the food/arguing/stressing, we can spend more time together. Some say it's not a holiday without all that, but we do this at Thanksgiving but for Christmas it's a nice treat to slow down and relax. My Mom always freezes the lasagnas and part of her gift to me is bringing me a frozen tray. They heat perfectly fine and we looooove it!! One thing she does different is cook green peppers and onions with the meat, and that pumps the flavor way up. We also use the fat free cottage cheese which has moisture and makes it easier to spread the cheese layer, also keeps calories down. I do feel it is a bit chunky with that, so when I make it again, I might use half cottage cheese but blend it in food processor with 1 part ricotta, then stir in whatever other cheeses. Thanks for the video!
I shared this post just before I watched your lasagna freezer meal video! Hehe. Thanks so much for sharing another great video! xx A Meal Idea- A meal for your freezer. 🙂 I was giving my lasagna recipe to someone on a cooking group I like to read and thought that you might like the recipe. You can swap and or add ingredients to suit your needs e.g gluten free, vegetarian etc. We usually have most of these ingredients on hand in the pantry, fridge and or freezer. It is also a great way to use up left over veggies etc. It is always a hit in our household (our boys approve, yay!). I normally always make a couple of them one at once. One for dinner that evening and one for a freezer meal for a later date. "I usually cook the meat sauce (mince beef, onions, minced garlic, grated or finely diced carrots and grated and or finely diced zucchini, mixed Italian herbs, diced tinned tomatoes and spaghetti pasta sauce) and I also make a bechamel sauce (flour, butter, nutmeg, white pepper, tasty cheese). I then layer a baking dish with some of the meat sauce, white sauce, a layer of noodles (the dry lasagna no cook kind) and the repeat the process until the baking dish is almost full. I top the final layer with the rest of the bechamel sauce and top with shredded tasty cheese and or mozzarella cheese, sprinkled with nutmeg. I then (if we are eating for that evening for dinner I will cook in for approx 30/40 mins @ 180 degrees celsius). Serve with a salad and or garlic bread if so desired. Enjoy! If we are wanting it to put in our freezer for later use. I won't cook it after this. I will let it cool completely. Cover baking dish with foil and label with name of dish, date cooked and date it was frozen. Put it in the freezer. Take it out a day before we want to eat it and place it in the fridge to thaw overnight. The next day I will put it in the oven for approx 35-40mins to heat through. Enjoy! Serve with a salad and or garlic bread if so desired. Hope this helps."
My family doesn't like ricotta cheese so I use this recipe with the white sauce instead. Think I got it from a Rachael Ray magazine long time ago. It's delish.
I have found that the oven ready lasagna noodles in the crock pot sort of disintegrate and turn to mush, so I think you were right to use the regular kind. Your lasagnas all looked great!! Yum!! Now I want lasagna, lol
Yum!!! I haven't finished watching the whole video yet but I had to pause and say I love your free spirit while cooking! "Is it gonna work? I don't know, but we'll see!" I want to be more like that! I have to follow recipes to a T and if I had done something like putting the ricotta layer on last by accident, I would be frantically scraping it off lol! I am going to work on being more of a free spirit cook! ❤️ 😁 😜 😉 Thank you so much for sharing and inspiring!! I wonder if it would be easier to mix the ricotta with the eggs first, to loosen the ricotta up, and then add the seasonings and cheeses? And then putting on plastic gloves to mix with your hands? I might try that :)
This Lasagna was delicious. Thank you so much. I’m so glad I made 3 of these as freezer meals. I just made a salad with garlic toast and dinner was great!! Thank you.
ive made lasagna a few times after finding your video and we love it! we just had this 2 nights ago for dinner (and last night as leftovers) and not having to boil the noodles saves me so much time i no longer dislike making lasagna! so yummy!
A couple years ago I learned the lasagna noodles didn’t have to be cooked. So, I never boil the noodles before I bake my lasagna and it comes out perfect every time. 😁
I used to make this all the time. Before you bake just drizzle about 1/2 cup water along the sides, cover with foil and bake. Now I want to make it again! Thanks for the great videos!
I use a cookie sheet under those pans. I have a tendency to over fill them, cookie sheet catches anything that bubbles over and very easy to handle. I always used provolone slices, mozzarella slices, and swiss slices in between the layers. Cottage cheese in with my sauce and saute vegetable ( mushroom, onions, 3 colored sweet peppers and sliced zucchini) I never dared to try the ricotta cheese as I was always told it was gross...a month ago i see a recipe for stuffed shells using ricotta and gave it a try..OMG turns out i love ricotta cheese and need new friends!! Lol. I definitely will be making my next lasagna with ricotta! The only time I don't mind cooking is for the holidays, otherwise it's freezer meals for me. Love your videos, thanks for sharing. :)
We made lasagna today for the first time and it turned out great! You could spray the aluminum foil before covering the lasagna that way the cheese won't stick to it. Also bake it on a cookie sheet so it's easier to pull out of the oven. Won't hafta worry about almost losing it. That really worked for us.
I love freezing lasagna and manicotti. It is my husband's favorite meal and when I don't have time.... BAM! Here's a good home cooked meal. No need to order out. Thanks for sharing!
I want to thank you for all your tips. I even went back to your 2017 videos because as of today it is getting alittle scary in Ohio. Our schools are closed for 3 weeks. Store shevles are empty etc. My house is very small but I have found places to store food and bought a small but tall freezer for my kitchhen. Thanks to you I learned how to make bread as there is no bread left at my stores. God bless you for all the helpful information that you give us.
I’m so excited to hear about your website! I’m in the process of redesigning mine and I’m using Elementor. It’s so much easier than the first time I designed my site. I’m having fun with it and I hope Derrick is, too! I’m in NY and we are being strongly encouraged to go out for essentials only and to limit trips to the stores. I feel like the most loving thing I can do right now is to stay home and help stop the spread. Stay healthy and safe!
I have never cooked my lasagna noodles when making lasagna. That's how my Mom always did it too. It turns out so yummy and delicious. Plus it's one less step that you have to do. Enjoy and thank you for sharing. ☺
This is like divine inspiration lol. I’ve been wanting to try out and make lasagna but the thought of boiling the noodles first just makes me not wanting to try it. But thank you now I’m gonna definitely try it out one of these days.
Hello Kimmy! Your lasagna’s look delicious 😊. A few things that I do when I make baked ziti (lol, I don’t like lasagna 😂) is, I put a baking sheet under the tray when it’s in the oven. I also put a piece of parchment paper first, then the foil on top to prevent sticking. Enjoy those yummy dinners!!!! 😁👍🏻❤️
This video just saved me a ton of time. The worst part of lasagna is always getting the noodles cooked to be just right and not have them turn out mushy so it's awesome to find out that I don't even have to cook them 🙌. Gonna make three freezer lasagnas today to prepare for baby #3. Thanks for the informative video!
We had lasagne last night for dinner and in all the yrs I've cooked it for my family I have never pre cooked the lasagne sheets before, tbh I don't know of anyone in the uk who does, obvs that doesn't mean ppl don't lol. Maybe when you cook the frozen lasagne pop it on a baking tray 😊 another fab video kimmy. Lisa x
I love taking a nice slice of crusty bread, smear on some whole milk ricotta like a nice layer and top that with some pesto. Makes a great appetizer!! I tried without precooking them and it was dry. I used so much sauce it just seemed to suck up every little bit. I’m old school like my daddy and will preboil them just a little. For the cheese try using a pipping bag or zip lock to make it easier to spread it. That works wonders!
This looked so awesome!!! This is great ideal for everyone specially with staying home a lot more with all that’s going on! You’ve got me so curious to cook it in a crockpot! Now just to buy a crock pot lol!! Thanks so much for all the time you put into your videos to share with all of us! Blessings to you & your family!!!
Looks so yummy! I’ve always added about 1/2 c water to mine after I put it together before I put it in the oven, but this makes me think I don’t really have to!
I hated making lasagna - the boiling of the noodles - it just took so long to make the whole thing but this way is super easy. I will be giving this a try. Thanks for the video.
I have lost a lasagna on the floor before, I was livid with myself.. now I use a cookie sheet under it. Those lasagnas look amazing!!! Definitely going to need to try the crockpot lasagna soon.
I never cook my lasagna noodles ahead. I just add a little water to the sauce and cook a little longer in the pan. Great idea to make multiples for the freezer at the same time. Saves so much time.
I never cook my lasagna noodles. I add a little extra water to my sauce and make the lasagna as usual. Cover and refrigerate for a couple (4-8) of hours or overnight. It turns out perfectly. I am definitely going to make the crockpot lasagna. Thanks for sharing the recipe. Oh , and I have used cottage cheese in mine on occasion.
I think I like your lasagna better than my aunt that passed away her lasagna was good but your lasagna oh my God I can't wait to try it you take care of dear and God bless
I do half hamburger and half sweet Italian sausage. And I add about 1/8 tsp red pepper flakes. At the end of prepping without soaking noodles. I pour a tablespoon of water down each corner. I do not thin my sauce. I also layer in fresh baby spinach or zucchini cut in slabs or both!
That's the first thing I noticed your gravy is nice and thick. I have never frozen lasagna before. My Grandma used to make it with hard-boiled eggs in it. Sometimes I make it that way or 1/2 of it that way because the kids don't like with the eggs. Gravy/Sauce on the bottom, then lasagna ricotta mix, mozzarella then sauce then lasagna again.
I buy the regular lasagna noodles. I don’t mix my shredded with my ricotta. I mix the ricotta with eggs, salt n pepper Italian seasoning and fresh Parmesan. I only use two layers of the ricotta. The other layers get mozzarella mix. The top layer gets sauce for the first 45 minutes of cooking on 400. The I remove the lid add shredded cheese then bake uncovered for about 15 minutes. For home I usually make it in a regular pan but if I use the aluminum pans I always put them on a sheet pan to catch any spillage and for stability when removing from the oven.
Hey Kim, I just got an upright freezer 2 weeks ago!! Scored an awesome deal on Fb! I was sooooooo excited because I havent wanted one for YEARS for my family of 6. The first weekend I cooked all night Saturday and Sunday to fill that baby UP!! Breakfast stuff and dinners. (Your freezer meal videos were a huge help!) I got to thinking how there needs to be an easier way. I dont want to be doing that every single weekend. That would ruin quality time with my man!! Haha! What do you suggest to make it easier? I thought about just doing an extra pan of whatever with regular cooking but also thought it would take too long. HELLLLLP! Signed, Freezer Happy
Walmart has a smaller oven ready lasagna noodles ( I bought them by accident once ) but they work amazing in the crock pot.. also we don’t do meat in the lasagna so I add a bag of frozen peas to my Crocker pot in the layers
Kimmie - what we learned in chef's class at Tri-C College in Cleveland was to assemble the lasagna as you have done but we added fresh chiffonaded (slices ribbons) of sweet basil. Next the rinse your containers of sauce with a little water (1 cup - eye ball it) and then pour it on top before adding your topping. Cover and put it in the refrigerator OVERNIGHT. Put in a 350F preheated oven for an hour to 90 minutes depending on the depth and amount of your lasagna. The water softens the noodles a little overnite.
I have made Crockpot and Oven Lasagna this way for years. I always add a bit of water to my sauce to keep from having a dried out casserole. This same technique works for stuffed shells, manicotti, and baked ziti. Another way to soften the noodles without boiling, is to just place the whole box of noodles into a 9x13 dish. Cover with HOT water. Let stand at room temp for 30 minutes. It kinda pre-boils them so they are soft and you layer your lasagna from there. Another tip is to always put your lasagna pan (whether disposable or not) on a baking sheet. It makes it easier to get in and out of the oven and also provides coverage if the sauce were to bubble over keeping your oven from becoming a huge mess.
Lol I was yelling at the screen to flip the noodles 😂 great idea thanks. My dad always gets the fake frozen lasagna since my Mom died. She was the lasagna maker. This looks easy enough to make him💞
Hello Kimmy! I really love it when you do freezer meals. I also starting to do this but in a different way. I cook a large batch then freeze half of it. How long do they last in the freezer though? Does it matter if it is tomato based?
I have been making this for about 15 years. :) I got it out of a cook book called "5 ingredient meals or less: crockpot" I like to use rotini noodles and small curd cottage cheese. My oldest requested this for his birthday many years in a row. I would cook it extra long on high just because he liked the crispy cheese bits on the sides lol.
I make Crock Pot Lasagna for my family as well and it’s delicious! I use frozen Cheese Ravioli instead of Lasagna Noodles and layer them as you would Lasagna Noodles.
You can make the sauce a bit more liquid, since the pasta drains most of it, for the lasagna don't be too dry also. I really enjoyed this way to do it!
I was so happy to see your video this morning. I've been looking forward to it all night. (I sleep during the day) There is hardly anything on the weekends, especially Sun. The only suggestion I would have would be to go ahead & break the cheese down to two batches so it's not so hard to mix. I was laughing so hard when you kept stacking in the crock pot. I was wondering how you would be able to get a serving spoon down to the bottom to scoop it out. You had no problems. Girl what do I know about lasagne? I've made it twice in my whole life...less than 9 months ago, & I'm 57. No-one in my family ever made it. My mother didn't do recipes & cheese or creams or sauces. She was a meat, veggie, potato, bread woman. I sure don't think she ever made bread herself. There were cookies baked twice growing up & I did it. She didn't bake. When I was in my 40's she made a pecan pie twice. I'm the only one in the 3 women in my family that cooks. I never saw the sense in using prepackaged food when it was easy to make it from scratch. I'll never see the sense in God not allowing me to get married & have children, but oh well, I still cook, ha!
I don't spread my ricotta anymore. I use a smaller cookie scoop and it spreads itself as I make each layer...and more while it melts during baking. So much easier and faster. I started doing it bc as a lasagna mama, I was making up to 10 lasagnas in a week during the pandemic for other families.
Nathalie Leblanc well you were taught very well.both my parent are from different parts of Italy both in the south. And they make their lasagna the exact same way..
@@linabonar1153 i'm so thankful to have had the chance to learn...often those are well kept secrets. When i'm not too lazy i make home made pasta... Not happening too often tho. 😆
Hey Kimmy last night I was watching your old video of “6 chicken crockpot freezer meals” published back on March 11, 2014 and I can see the difference in the vlogging. You were more shy and you looked so different. Was that Cali in the video when she was little? I usually add a little water to the sauce enough for the sauce to be watered down for the no boil lasagna. I’ve done this a couple of times and I like this better than boiling the noodles. I don’t care for ricotta cheese so I use cottage cheese.
I make my lasagna with bechamel and dry (uncooked) pasta. I loooooooove to shake it up and use your version though, family loves it both ways! My only changes, I use a runnier/thin sauce when I plan to freeze as I find it dries out 😩 Also I end with bechamel/cheese sauce topped with cheese. 😋😋 Recipe sharing creates happy tummies 😄
I do crockpot lasagna too and never cook the noodles. My cheese mixture is the same, but I don't use eggs. If I'm really lazy, I use 2 jars Ragu instead of making my own. No one can tell I didn't boil the noodles. 😬 I cook mine on high for 2 1/2 hours or until a fork goes through easily. If you use the foil pans in the oven, put them on cookie sheets. It's a lot safer!
1 tip I started doing with freezing lasagna is not to add the top layer of cheese cuz it has always stuck to my foil (even with spraying the foil). I've done lasagna freezer meals this way many times and it works. I'll have to try the crockpot next. I cook 400 if frozen 375 if fresh or thawed 🤷♀️
Hi Kimmy. I’m one of those Italians who call it sauce. LOL..I’ve come to discover that only Italian Americans call sauce gravy.. no other country calls it that. But anyways I would of thinned out the sauce a bit with water.. and also the ricotta mixture too.. I’m sure it was delicious.but for me it looked a bit dry and heavy.. but your still going to get a big thumbs up from me... great video..
Um Kimmy you said in the end that you wouldn't put the uncooked noodles in if you were making it normal and baking it right then, only if freezing. Just want to point out that you in fact cooked the lasagna right away in the slow cooker with uncooked noodles and they turned out fine. So... you can bake it in oven with uncooked noodles without boiling the noodles. Just saying hon also. Yes you can do manicotti and stuffed shells as freezer meals also. I have also made white lasagna with rotisserie chicken,mushrooms, cheese mixture and alfredo sauce. I have also made the regular lasagna as pizza lasagna adding all the pizza toppings and using pizza sauce. So good. You can also do taco lasagna as a freezer meal with tortilla shells instead of noodles or with noodles. Look them up. So good. Thata a great idea to divide out the pickles. I bet the texture is far better with the toasted English muffins
I am going to try the slow cooker lasagne because it always takes so long to pre and cook, I usually layer ours different ways each time, but not usually your way so I'm going to try that. When I have an aluminium pan to cook out of I found it would flop in the middle when taking it out so I always pop in onto a cooking tray to keep it flat
Hey Kimmy!!! Love the video. Was wondering if you had a video for your egg plant parmesan. If not would you please make one. I love egg plant parmesan and haven't found a recipe i like. Thank you.
Hi Kimmy, I am so surprised that you have NEVER made lasagne without boiling the lasagne sheet. Here in UK, we always make lasagne without boiling because it is time consuming and who has the time to boil it, our best friend is the oven who does all the work. Take care Ashwina
I recently learned the difference between sauce and gravy. My husbands grandma makes ravis and "sauce" for all the holidays and I just got her recipes. its scans of a cookbook with all of grandmas notes that make it her own. haha! the book explains that the gravy is made FROM MEAT and/or meat drippings (think turkey gravy). SO what Kimmy makes (and technically what husbands grandma makes) is gravy (recipes are similar). funny thing is my husbands family still calls it sauce. But if you make a tomato sauce yes its a sauce. And I think probably anything you buy canned/jarred from the store is sauce. Adding meat to sauce doesnt technically make it gravy. it has to be made FROM the meat. I am still team call it whatever you want but found it interesting to learn that little info.
I put all my freezer meals in the freezer UNCOVERED for a couple of hours or just until the tops are frozen solid so nothing sticks to the cover; then I cover them. Also, I buy disposable aluminum pans at Dollar Tree or Party City that have a lid with them so I don't have to use foil. I love making freezer meals because it saves me time later. I always enjoy your cooking videos.
Kimmy have you ever done lasagnas with cream cheese instead of ricotta or mixed in with ricotta? I tried it when I couldn’t find ricotta at my store and my family absolutely LOVED IT with cream cheese. My father who almost never comments on anyone’s food dishes even at restaurants, complimented it multiple times that night even asking at first where “we bought it” (thinking it was a frozen lasagna from some awesome grocery store he’s never been to lol). It froze/thawed perfectly fine too!
victoria googin the same way as you’d prepare a ricotta mixture same ratios and with shredded cheese and egg etc just I heat the cream cheese a bit before mixing so it’s easier to work with smoothing onto the noodles! I’ve even added a splash of milk if it was too thick still
I mix chopped spinach into a mixture of ricotta cheese, Parmesan, and 1 egg. I layer sauce, noodles, cheese mix, and also use a 1 lb bag of frozen crinkle cut carrots split into 2 layers. Topped with mozzarella. We do meat free lasagna
That looks delish! I bet you can do the same with eggplant parm? I know Trader Joe's sells frozen pre-breaded eggplant slices, just throw it all in the crockpot similarly and voila!
We do lasagna cheese mix with cottage cheese, ricotta, buttermilk, seasonings, and eggs. Layering is sauce, noodles, meat mix (tomato sauce and meat), cheese mix, shredded cheese (mozzarella and parmesan), and repeat. I'm gonna have to give the crockpot version a go!
Definitely need to try crockpot lasagna - looks delicious! Ricotta all the way!! Top layer is always cheese - lots of it (e.g. so you can't see any red from the sauce!!).
I never precook my lasagna noodles. I just layer them in like you did and they are perfect everytime. I use a mixture of ricotta and cottage cheese mix that with the sauce and layer as usual. And yes I put eggs in mine too.
I don’t know if the pasta/noodles are made differently here in the uk but I have never cooked mine before making a lasagna and it always works out fine x
My nona called her tomato sauce with meat, "gravy", and without meat, "marinara". She was old school Italian and made everything homemade, noodles included. She was almost 100 when she passed and drove a car thru her 80's and had a garden until she well into her 90's. She was 5' tall with heels and wore black for as long as I knew her as she was a widow. Never pants, always dresses too. Loved that feisty old woman. She was amazing as was her lasagna, ravioli, stuffed shells, etc. So good. This reminded me of her lasagna quite a bit. Thanks for sharing Kimmi!
kardiaheart she sounds like she was an amazing lady! How lucky you were to have been the granddaughter of a sassy Italian who can throw down in the kitchen!
My grandmother is exactly the same. She’s in her 80s and still works and drives. She just had her knee replaced and she did it like a 50 year old! I love young at heart grandmas!
Coming from an Italian family, I find it so strange when people put cottage cheese in their lasagna. I’m glad to see you use ricotta cheese!
Not from an Italian family, but I've never used ricotta in my lasagna.. Only white cheese sauce or cottage cheese...
Don't knock it till you've tried it!
My family is Italian and my grandmother used cottage cheese in her lasagna. I can't imagine it any other way
We mix it with ricotta
I prefer ricotta but since my husband refuses to eat ricotta, if I want lasagna I have to use cottage cheese.
Ricotta is so rich and delicious, but an appeal of the cottage cheese is it is cheaper and you can buy it fat free. Lasagna is one of my all time favorite meals, and next time I make it I will try combining 1 part FF cottage cheese and 1 part ricotta in a food processor, then adding in the other cheeses because I do love the flavor and richness, but because we love it so much we need to cut the calories!
Yes it also works for stuffed shells and manicotti. The only thing different I do is add a little water to my sauce .... the noodles will absorb the liquid so you don't end up with a dry product.
Yes I have done make ahead manicotti for years that way!
I mix my Ricotta cheese and eggs together first then I add everything else it makes it easier to stir in!
I never boil my regular noodles even when cooking in the oven! As long as it’s all covered in sauce, it turns out perfect every time❤️
I have been using uncooked lasagna when making lasagna for about 20 years. And yes, Kimmy, it does work for meals straight from the oven because I have never frozen mine. Think I might try it though!
I would have placed the freezer lasagne on a cookie sheet when cooking it, both to catch any spillage and to prevent it from twisting and turning, even if it is a stronger aluminum pan.
Same here!
Same here
Same here too
Same here😄
We do the same here too!
Perfect timing on lasagna!
I just read a funny buzzfeed article about how pasta aisles in grocery stores are completely bare except for the lasagna noodles 😂🤣
Apparently no one wants lasagna during a pandemic but you’ve showed us exactly how to use them! 👍🏻
All the pastas are gone. :(
I found the last 2 boxes of lasagna noodles today and am trying this uncooked noodles trick right now! Wish me luck! 🙏😁
I make a Crock Pot Lasagna but instead of lasagna noodles, I layer the meat sauce, a layer of cheese ravioli, mozzarella cheese, and repeat the layers until the pot is full. So good!
My family loves lasagna! We started a new Christmas tradition a few years ago where my Mom makes lasagnas and we have that for our dinner so that instead of being in the kitchen fussing over the food/arguing/stressing, we can spend more time together. Some say it's not a holiday without all that, but we do this at Thanksgiving but for Christmas it's a nice treat to slow down and relax. My Mom always freezes the lasagnas and part of her gift to me is bringing me a frozen tray. They heat perfectly fine and we looooove it!! One thing she does different is cook green peppers and onions with the meat, and that pumps the flavor way up. We also use the fat free cottage cheese which has moisture and makes it easier to spread the cheese layer, also keeps calories down. I do feel it is a bit chunky with that, so when I make it again, I might use half cottage cheese but blend it in food processor with 1 part ricotta, then stir in whatever other cheeses. Thanks for the video!
Omgoodness we do the same in my family for Christmas 🥰
I shared this post just before I watched your lasagna freezer meal video! Hehe. Thanks so much for sharing another great video! xx
A Meal Idea- A meal for your freezer. 🙂
I was giving my lasagna recipe to someone on a cooking group I like to read and thought that you might like the recipe. You can swap and or add ingredients to suit your needs e.g gluten free, vegetarian etc. We usually have most of these ingredients on hand in the pantry, fridge and or freezer. It is also a great way to use up left over veggies etc. It is always a hit in our household (our boys approve, yay!). I normally always make a couple of them one at once. One for dinner that evening and one for a freezer meal for a later date.
"I usually cook the meat sauce (mince beef, onions, minced garlic, grated or finely diced carrots and grated and or finely diced zucchini, mixed Italian herbs, diced tinned tomatoes and spaghetti pasta sauce) and I also make a bechamel sauce (flour, butter, nutmeg, white pepper, tasty cheese). I then layer a baking dish with some of the meat sauce, white sauce, a layer of noodles (the dry lasagna no cook kind) and the repeat the process until the baking dish is almost full. I top the final layer with the rest of the bechamel sauce and top with shredded tasty cheese and or mozzarella cheese, sprinkled with nutmeg. I then (if we are eating for that evening for dinner I will cook in for approx 30/40 mins @ 180 degrees celsius). Serve with a salad and or garlic bread if so desired. Enjoy! If we are wanting it to put in our freezer for later use. I won't cook it after this. I will let it cool completely. Cover baking dish with foil and label with name of dish, date cooked and date it was frozen. Put it in the freezer. Take it out a day before we want to eat it and place it in the fridge to thaw overnight. The next day I will put it in the oven for approx 35-40mins to heat through. Enjoy! Serve with a salad and or garlic bread if so desired. Hope this helps."
My family doesn't like ricotta cheese so I use this recipe with the white sauce instead. Think I got it from a Rachael Ray magazine long time ago. It's delish.
I have found that the oven ready lasagna noodles in the crock pot sort of disintegrate and turn to mush, so I think you were right to use the regular kind. Your lasagnas all looked great!! Yum!! Now I want lasagna, lol
I love how Paige is being a great little kitchen helper and is ready to clean up whatever falls on the floor...lol
I did not know you could make lasagna in the crockpot that is awesome. Thanks for sharing. Have a blessed day Kimmy and Fam💗
Yum!!! I haven't finished watching the whole video yet but I had to pause and say I love your free spirit while cooking! "Is it gonna work? I don't know, but we'll see!" I want to be more like that! I have to follow recipes to a T and if I had done something like putting the ricotta layer on last by accident, I would be frantically scraping it off lol! I am going to work on being more of a free spirit cook! ❤️ 😁 😜 😉 Thank you so much for sharing and inspiring!! I wonder if it would be easier to mix the ricotta with the eggs first, to loosen the ricotta up, and then add the seasonings and cheeses? And then putting on plastic gloves to mix with your hands? I might try that :)
This Lasagna was delicious. Thank you so much. I’m so glad I made 3 of these as freezer meals. I just made a salad with garlic toast and dinner was great!!
Thank you.
ive made lasagna a few times after finding your video and we love it! we just had this 2 nights ago for dinner (and last night as leftovers) and not having to boil the noodles saves me so much time i no longer dislike making lasagna! so yummy!
A couple years ago I learned the lasagna noodles didn’t have to be cooked. So, I never boil the noodles before I bake my lasagna and it comes out perfect every time. 😁
Angi Thompson cool girl wish I knew about that tip
Even if it’s not a freezer meal you don’t have to boil them?
I used to make this all the time. Before you bake just drizzle about 1/2 cup water along the sides, cover with foil and bake. Now I want to make it again! Thanks for the great videos!
We just made 1 of ours since freezing back in June after watching this video. Soooo good! We put a baking pan underneath.
I use a cookie sheet under those pans. I have a tendency to over fill them, cookie sheet catches anything that bubbles over and very easy to handle. I always used provolone slices, mozzarella slices, and swiss slices in between the layers. Cottage cheese in with my sauce and saute vegetable ( mushroom, onions, 3 colored sweet peppers and sliced zucchini) I never dared to try the ricotta cheese as I was always told it was gross...a month ago i see a recipe for stuffed shells using ricotta and gave it a try..OMG turns out i love ricotta cheese and need new friends!! Lol. I definitely will be making my next lasagna with ricotta! The only time I don't mind cooking is for the holidays, otherwise it's freezer meals for me. Love your videos, thanks for sharing. :)
We made lasagna today for the first time and it turned out great! You could spray the aluminum foil before covering the lasagna that way the cheese won't stick to it. Also bake it on a cookie sheet so it's easier to pull out of the oven. Won't hafta worry about almost losing it. That really worked for us.
I love freezing lasagna and manicotti. It is my husband's favorite meal and when I don't have time.... BAM! Here's a good home cooked meal. No need to order out. Thanks for sharing!
I want to thank you for all your tips. I even went back to your 2017 videos because as of today it is getting alittle scary in Ohio. Our schools are closed for 3 weeks. Store shevles are empty etc. My house is very small but I have found places to store food and bought a small but tall freezer for my kitchhen. Thanks to you I learned how to make bread as there is no bread left at my stores. God bless you for all the helpful information that you give us.
I’m so excited to hear about your website! I’m in the process of redesigning mine and I’m using Elementor. It’s so much easier than the first time I designed my site. I’m having fun with it and I hope Derrick is, too! I’m in NY and we are being strongly encouraged to go out for essentials only and to limit trips to the stores. I feel like the most loving thing I can do right now is to stay home and help stop the spread. Stay healthy and safe!
I'm literally drooling watching this video
Your gravy looks perfect! I need to look back in the videos to see how you made it! ♥️💯
I’ve never cooked my lasagna sheets it works out every time. Thanks for another great vlog, take care and god bless x
No matter how you layer lasagna it’s delicious. I never do it the same! Looks so good!
I have never cooked my lasagna noodles when making lasagna. That's how my Mom always did it too. It turns out so yummy and delicious. Plus it's one less step that you have to do. Enjoy and thank you for sharing. ☺
This is like divine inspiration lol. I’ve been wanting to try out and make lasagna but the thought of boiling the noodles first just makes me not wanting to try it. But thank you now I’m gonna definitely try it out one of these days.
Hello Kimmy! Your lasagna’s look delicious 😊. A few things that I do when I make baked ziti (lol, I don’t like lasagna 😂) is, I put a baking sheet under the tray when it’s in the oven. I also put a piece of parchment paper first, then the foil on top to prevent sticking. Enjoy those yummy dinners!!!! 😁👍🏻❤️
Donna . that’s exactly what I do..
This video just saved me a ton of time. The worst part of lasagna is always getting the noodles cooked to be just right and not have them turn out mushy so it's awesome to find out that I don't even have to cook them 🙌. Gonna make three freezer lasagnas today to prepare for baby #3. Thanks for the informative video!
We had lasagne last night for dinner and in all the yrs I've cooked it for my family I have never pre cooked the lasagne sheets before, tbh I don't know of anyone in the uk who does, obvs that doesn't mean ppl don't lol. Maybe when you cook the frozen lasagne pop it on a baking tray 😊 another fab video kimmy. Lisa x
I love taking a nice slice of crusty bread, smear on some whole milk ricotta like a nice layer and top that with some pesto. Makes a great appetizer!!
I tried without precooking them and it was dry. I used so much sauce it just seemed to suck up every little bit. I’m old school like my daddy and will preboil them just a little.
For the cheese try using a pipping bag or zip lock to make it easier to spread it. That works wonders!
These look great! I put mine on a cookie sheet. It makes it easier to take out of oven. Thanks for the tips!!
Looks yummy! When I make things in those disposable pans I always put them on a cookie sheet for stability.
Thank you Kimmy, this is how I make my lasagna in the oven but I never tried it in the crock pot or from frozen. I'm looking forward to trying both.
This looked so awesome!!! This is great ideal for everyone specially with staying home a lot more with all that’s going on! You’ve got me so curious to cook it in a crockpot! Now just to buy a crock pot lol!! Thanks so much for all the time you put into your videos to share with all of us! Blessings to you & your family!!!
Looks so yummy! I’ve always added about 1/2 c water to mine after I put it together before I put it in the oven, but this makes me think I don’t really have to!
I hated making lasagna - the boiling of the noodles - it just took so long to make the whole thing but this way is super easy. I will be giving this a try. Thanks for the video.
I have lost a lasagna on the floor before, I was livid with myself.. now I use a cookie sheet under it. Those lasagnas look amazing!!! Definitely going to need to try the crockpot lasagna soon.
Thanks for sharing this video. I needed to get my mind off the craziness of what's going on in the world--and this really really helped!!
I never cook my lasagna noodles ahead. I just add a little water to the sauce and cook a little longer in the pan. Great idea to make multiples for the freezer at the same time. Saves so much time.
My mom uses the regular lasagna noodles in the oven when she makes it without freezing it first! It always turns out just fine for her!
I do mine exactly like yours, only use cottage cheese, as my family does not like ricotta.🤨 I love ALL YOUR VIDEOS.❤️
I never cook my lasagna noodles. I add a little extra water to my sauce and make the lasagna as usual. Cover and refrigerate for a couple (4-8) of hours or overnight. It turns out perfectly. I am definitely going to make the crockpot lasagna. Thanks for sharing the recipe. Oh , and I have used cottage cheese in mine on occasion.
I think I like your lasagna better than my aunt that passed away her lasagna was good but your lasagna oh my God I can't wait to try it you take care of dear and God bless
You have such a great personality! Love just hearing you talk
I do half hamburger and half sweet Italian sausage. And I add about 1/8 tsp red pepper flakes. At the end of prepping without soaking noodles. I pour a tablespoon of water down each corner. I do not thin my sauce. I also layer in fresh baby spinach or zucchini cut in slabs or both!
That's the first thing I noticed your gravy is nice and thick. I have never frozen lasagna before. My Grandma used to make it with hard-boiled eggs in it. Sometimes I make it that way or 1/2 of it that way because the kids don't like with the eggs. Gravy/Sauce on the bottom, then lasagna ricotta mix, mozzarella then sauce then lasagna again.
I always do my lasagna in the oven.I DO LASAGNA SOUP IN MY CROCKPOT AND IT IS SO GOOD.
I buy the regular lasagna noodles. I don’t mix my shredded with my ricotta. I mix the ricotta with eggs, salt n pepper Italian seasoning and fresh Parmesan. I only use two layers of the ricotta. The other layers get mozzarella mix. The top layer gets sauce for the first 45 minutes of cooking on 400. The I remove the lid add shredded cheese then bake uncovered for about 15 minutes. For home I usually make it in a regular pan but if I use the aluminum pans I always put them on a sheet pan to catch any spillage and for stability when removing from the oven.
Hey Kim, I just got an upright freezer 2 weeks ago!! Scored an awesome deal on Fb! I was sooooooo excited because I havent wanted one for YEARS for my family of 6. The first weekend I cooked all night Saturday and Sunday to fill that baby UP!! Breakfast stuff and dinners. (Your freezer meal videos were a huge help!) I got to thinking how there needs to be an easier way. I dont want to be doing that every single weekend. That would ruin quality time with my man!! Haha! What do you suggest to make it easier? I thought about just doing an extra pan of whatever with regular cooking but also thought it would take too long. HELLLLLP!
Signed,
Freezer Happy
Walmart has a smaller oven ready lasagna noodles ( I bought them by accident once ) but they work amazing in the crock pot.. also we don’t do meat in the lasagna so I add a bag of frozen peas to my Crocker pot in the layers
Scrumptious!
Kimmie - what we learned in chef's class at Tri-C College in Cleveland was to assemble the lasagna as you have done but we added fresh chiffonaded (slices ribbons) of sweet basil. Next the rinse your containers of sauce with a little water (1 cup - eye ball it) and then pour it on top before adding your topping. Cover and put it in the refrigerator OVERNIGHT. Put in a 350F preheated oven for an hour to 90 minutes depending on the depth and amount of your lasagna. The water softens the noodles a little overnite.
I have made Crockpot and Oven Lasagna this way for years. I always add a bit of water to my sauce to keep from having a dried out casserole. This same technique works for stuffed shells, manicotti, and baked ziti. Another way to soften the noodles without boiling, is to just place the whole box of noodles into a 9x13 dish. Cover with HOT water. Let stand at room temp for 30 minutes. It kinda pre-boils them so they are soft and you layer your lasagna from there. Another tip is to always put your lasagna pan (whether disposable or not) on a baking sheet. It makes it easier to get in and out of the oven and also provides coverage if the sauce were to bubble over keeping your oven from becoming a huge mess.
Lol I was yelling at the screen to flip the noodles 😂 great idea thanks. My dad always gets the fake frozen lasagna since my Mom died. She was the lasagna maker. This looks easy enough to make him💞
This will be perfect for my sons graduation party!!!
Hello Kimmy! I really love it when you do freezer meals. I also starting to do this but in a different way. I cook a large batch then freeze half of it. How long do they last in the freezer though? Does it matter if it is tomato based?
I have been making this for about 15 years. :) I got it out of a cook book called "5 ingredient meals or less: crockpot" I like to use rotini noodles and small curd cottage cheese. My oldest requested this for his birthday many years in a row. I would cook it extra long on high just because he liked the crispy cheese bits on the sides lol.
Looks very yummy! Yes, definitely put on a cookie sheet next time 😊❤️👍
I sure will
Brilliant! You make it look so easy and forgiving. 375 degrees
I make Crock Pot Lasagna for my family as well and it’s delicious! I use frozen Cheese Ravioli instead of Lasagna Noodles and layer them as you would Lasagna Noodles.
You can make the sauce a bit more liquid, since the pasta drains most of it, for the lasagna don't be too dry also.
I really enjoyed this way to do it!
We cook everything on 350 "till its done" in my house
OMG yasssssss 🤣🤣🤣
"Until bubbly nice" here!
Haha my kind of house rule lol
I have done this! Usually a three layer does it and like you said lots if sauce I always shake water into the sauce I think it helps
I was so happy to see your video this morning. I've been looking forward to it all night. (I sleep during the day) There is hardly anything on the weekends, especially Sun. The only suggestion I would have would be to go ahead & break the cheese down to two batches so it's not so hard to mix. I was laughing so hard when you kept stacking in the crock pot. I was wondering how you would be able to get a serving spoon down to the bottom to scoop it out. You had no problems. Girl what do I know about lasagne? I've made it twice in my whole life...less than 9 months ago, & I'm 57. No-one in my family ever made it. My mother didn't do recipes & cheese or creams or sauces. She was a meat, veggie, potato, bread woman. I sure don't think she ever made bread herself. There were cookies baked twice growing up & I did it. She didn't bake. When I was in my 40's she made a pecan pie twice. I'm the only one in the 3 women in my family that cooks. I never saw the sense in using prepackaged food when it was easy to make it from scratch. I'll never see the sense in God not allowing me to get married & have children, but oh well, I still cook, ha!
I can't wait to make this in my crockpot. Looks delicious. Thanks for sharing. Much Love From Indiana. 😍
I always put mine on a baking tray they are definitely not safe with out some support....looks super good. TFS
When using those aluminum pans ,put them on a baking sheet. Makes it more sturdy, plus sometimes those pans have tiny holes and will leak.
I don't spread my ricotta anymore. I use a smaller cookie scoop and it spreads itself as I make each layer...and more while it melts during baking. So much easier and faster. I started doing it bc as a lasagna mama, I was making up to 10 lasagnas in a week during the pandemic for other families.
Our schools are closed for 2 weeks! So freezer meals sounds great!
Looks amazing!
When making lasagna, i put chopped mortadella slices and hard boiled eggs passed through a Sieve between layers.
Pretty darn good.
Nathalie Leblanc You must be 100% Italian ,because that’s how I make mine too.
@@linabonar1153 i'm not but i learned it from an Italian lady. Lol
Nathalie Leblanc well you were taught very well.both my parent are from different parts of Italy both in the south. And they make their lasagna the exact same way..
@@linabonar1153 i'm so thankful to have had the chance to learn...often those are well kept secrets.
When i'm not too lazy i make home made pasta... Not happening too often tho. 😆
Nathalie Leblanc I also make my own pasta when I have the time. Because it’s a lot of work.
Hey Kimmy last night I was watching your old video of “6 chicken crockpot freezer meals” published back on March 11, 2014 and I can see the difference in the vlogging. You were more shy and you looked so different. Was that Cali in the video when she was little? I usually add a little water to the sauce enough for the sauce to be watered down for the no boil lasagna. I’ve done this a couple of times and I like this better than boiling the noodles. I don’t care for ricotta cheese so I use cottage cheese.
I make my lasagna with bechamel and dry (uncooked) pasta. I loooooooove to shake it up and use your version though, family loves it both ways! My only changes, I use a runnier/thin sauce when I plan to freeze as I find it dries out 😩 Also I end with bechamel/cheese sauce topped with cheese. 😋😋 Recipe sharing creates happy tummies 😄
I do crockpot lasagna too and never cook the noodles. My cheese mixture is the same, but I don't use eggs. If I'm really lazy, I use 2 jars Ragu instead of making my own. No one can tell I didn't boil the noodles. 😬 I cook mine on high for 2 1/2 hours or until a fork goes through easily. If you use the foil pans in the oven, put them on cookie sheets. It's a lot safer!
1 tip I started doing with freezing lasagna is not to add the top layer of cheese cuz it has always stuck to my foil (even with spraying the foil). I've done lasagna freezer meals this way many times and it works. I'll have to try the crockpot next. I cook 400 if frozen 375 if fresh or thawed 🤷♀️
Hi Kimmy. I’m one of those Italians who call it sauce. LOL..I’ve come to discover that only Italian Americans call sauce gravy.. no other country calls it that. But anyways I would of thinned out the sauce a bit with water.. and also the ricotta mixture too.. I’m sure it was delicious.but for me it looked a bit dry and heavy.. but your still going to get a big thumbs up from me... great video..
I do lasagna, stuffed shells, manicotti, stroganoff etc and freeze. They work great
I never pre cook my lasagne sheets n always turns out fab x💖x
Um Kimmy you said in the end that you wouldn't put the uncooked noodles in if you were making it normal and baking it right then, only if freezing. Just want to point out that you in fact cooked the lasagna right away in the slow cooker with uncooked noodles and they turned out fine. So... you can bake it in oven with uncooked noodles without boiling the noodles. Just saying hon also. Yes you can do manicotti and stuffed shells as freezer meals also. I have also made white lasagna with rotisserie chicken,mushrooms, cheese mixture and alfredo sauce. I have also made the regular lasagna as pizza lasagna adding all the pizza toppings and using pizza sauce. So good. You can also do taco lasagna as a freezer meal with tortilla shells instead of noodles or with noodles. Look them up. So good. Thata a great idea to divide out the pickles. I bet the texture is far better with the toasted English muffins
I am going to try the slow cooker lasagne because it always takes so long to pre and cook, I usually layer ours different ways each time, but not usually your way so I'm going to try that. When I have an aluminium pan to cook out of I found it would flop in the middle when taking it out so I always pop in onto a cooking tray to keep it flat
Hey Kimmy!!! Love the video. Was wondering if you had a video for your egg plant parmesan. If not would you please make one. I love egg plant parmesan and haven't found a recipe i like. Thank you.
Hi Kimmy, I am so surprised that you have NEVER made lasagne without boiling the lasagne sheet. Here in UK, we always make lasagne without boiling because it is time consuming and who has the time to boil it, our best friend is the oven who does all the work. Take care Ashwina
I am definitely trying that recipe! The lasagna looks soooo gooood :)
I recently learned the difference between sauce and gravy. My husbands grandma makes ravis and "sauce" for all the holidays and I just got her recipes. its scans of a cookbook with all of grandmas notes that make it her own. haha! the book explains that the gravy is made FROM MEAT and/or meat drippings (think turkey gravy). SO what Kimmy makes (and technically what husbands grandma makes) is gravy (recipes are similar). funny thing is my husbands family still calls it sauce. But if you make a tomato sauce yes its a sauce. And I think probably anything you buy canned/jarred from the store is sauce. Adding meat to sauce doesnt technically make it gravy. it has to be made FROM the meat. I am still team call it whatever you want but found it interesting to learn that little info.
I never cook the pasta first but I make a bechamel cheese sauce instead of just cheese. Turns out perfect every time!
I put all my freezer meals in the freezer UNCOVERED for a couple of hours or just until the tops are frozen solid so nothing sticks to the cover; then I cover them. Also, I buy disposable aluminum pans at Dollar Tree or Party City that have a lid with them so I don't have to use foil. I love making freezer meals because it saves me time later. I always enjoy your cooking videos.
Stacey Nelson, plastic and aluminum are both recyclable, if you so choose.
Kimmy have you ever done lasagnas with cream cheese instead of ricotta or mixed in with ricotta? I tried it when I couldn’t find ricotta at my store and my family absolutely LOVED IT with cream cheese. My father who almost never comments on anyone’s food dishes even at restaurants, complimented it multiple times that night even asking at first where “we bought it” (thinking it was a frozen lasagna from some awesome grocery store he’s never been to lol). It froze/thawed perfectly fine too!
Mmmm I love me some cream cheese! Not a huge fan of ricotta. How do you prepare the CC?
victoria googin the same way as you’d prepare a ricotta mixture same ratios and with shredded cheese and egg etc just I heat the cream cheese a bit before mixing so it’s easier to work with smoothing onto the noodles! I’ve even added a splash of milk if it was too thick still
I mix chopped spinach into a mixture of ricotta cheese, Parmesan, and 1 egg. I layer sauce, noodles, cheese mix, and also use a 1 lb bag of frozen crinkle cut carrots split into 2 layers. Topped with mozzarella. We do meat free lasagna
Try 8oz of mascarpone to every 32 oz of ricotta. It is excellent. I tried it for the first time a few months ago.
That looks delish! I bet you can do the same with eggplant parm? I know Trader Joe's sells frozen pre-breaded eggplant slices, just throw it all in the crockpot similarly and voila!
We do lasagna cheese mix with cottage cheese, ricotta, buttermilk, seasonings, and eggs. Layering is sauce, noodles, meat mix (tomato sauce and meat), cheese mix, shredded cheese (mozzarella and parmesan), and repeat. I'm gonna have to give the crockpot version a go!
I like to use a meatloaf mix of beef,pork,veal in my sauce. My father in law always did this. He was a chef.
Definitely need to try crockpot lasagna - looks delicious! Ricotta all the way!! Top layer is always cheese - lots of it (e.g. so you can't see any red from the sauce!!).
I never precook my lasagna noodles. I just layer them in like you did and they are perfect everytime. I use a mixture of ricotta and cottage cheese mix that with the sauce and layer as usual. And yes I put eggs in mine too.
And always cook at 350°
Where did you purchase the huge stainless steel bowls?
I don’t know if the pasta/noodles are made differently here in the uk but I have never cooked mine before making a lasagna and it always works out fine x
I was thinking the same. I'm in UK too and I've always out them in the oven uncooked. Maybe we don't have the pre cooked kind at all?? Xx
Caz Paterson I’ve seen a few people in America cook it first and was a bit confused why but I think your right it could be different x