Lasagne
Lasagne are wide, flat-shaped pasta, and possibly one of the oldest types of pasta. The word "lasagne" and, in many non-Italian languages, the singular "lasagna", can also refer to a dish made with several layers of lasagne sheets alternated with sauces and various other ingredients.
Lasagne originated in Italy, traditionally ascribed to the city of Naples, where the first modern recipe was created and published in Liber de Coquina, and became a traditional dish. Traditional lasagne is made by interleaving layers of pasta with layers of sauce, made with ragù, bechamel, and Parmigiano-Reggiano. In other regions and outside of Italy it is common to find lasagne made with ricotta or mozzarella cheese, tomato sauce, various meats, miscellaneous vegetables (e.g.,
spinach,
zucchini,
mushrooms) and typically flavored with wine,
garlic,
onion, and
oregano. In all cases the lasagne are oven-baked.
Traditionally, pasta dough prepared in Southern Italy used semolina and water and in the northern regions, where semolina was not available,
flour and
eggs. Today in Italy, since the only type of wheat allowed for commercially sold pasta is durum wheat, commercial lasagne are made of
semolina (from durum wheat).
