Are you a fan of pasta dishes, especially irresistible lasagna dishes? Then you might want to try this recipe hack of the lasagna of a local pizza place.
What Is Greenwich-Style Lasagna
If you visit Greenwich, lasagna isn't normally what you're there to eat. Normally, it's the pizza that one is after or is craving. The good news is that even if you're dragged there without a pizza craving, you have delicious options to sate your appetite. One of the best items on the Greenwich menu is its lasagna.
The Greenwich lasagna is a deceptively simple layered pasta dish that sees a meaty tomato sauce between pasta sheets topped with a melted layer of an extra creamy cheese sauce. One can argue that it's the creamy cheese layer on top that makes this so irresistible and memorable but there are also those who appreciate the alternating meaty tomato sauce and pasta layers. It's simple yet bolstered enough with tomato sauce and meat to make it hearty with each bite.
How To Serve Greenwich-Style Lasagna
Lasagna is best served while it's piping hot because the cheese is melted, gooey, and creamy. Since every bite is a rich one, garlic bread is served on the side to help remove the umay factor.
How To Cook Greenwich-Style Lasagna
The lasagna starts off like many lasagna recipes: cook the pasta sheets. You can use instant lasagna sheets but if you have the time, you'll know the textural as well as taste difference between instant or no-cook pasta noodles compared to the cooked version.
While the pasta simmers in water until al dente, the two kinds of pasta sauces can be done at the same time. (Just set a timer so you don't overcook the pasta.) The first sauce is the meaty tomato sauce that is placed in between the layers of pasta. The second is the creamy, cheesy topping. Both are relatively easy to make but we do recommend seasoning the beef the night before for maximum flavor even before you cook the ground meat. (Btw, you can totally use another kind of ground meat! Try pork or even chicken next time!)
Once you have your sauces and pasta ready, preheat the oven. You'll only need a few minutes to assemble the lasagna!
To start, you'll need a thin layer of the meaty sauce so your pasta doesn't stick to the bottom of your baking dish. Don't be too generous with this first layer; use just enough to very thinly cover the bottom. Then add a layer of pasta. Top this with a more generous amount of the meat sauce . Repeat with the layers until you reach the top of your baking dish. End with the pasta so you can spread on the cheese sauce and grated cheese on top.
Then bake it until the cheese has melted on top and the entire dish is bubbling hot! (You should see the bubbling cheese and meat sauce at the edges of the lasagna!)
Give this a few minutes to cool off out of the oven (It'll be piping hot!) before slicing and servings with your choice of side dish.
Tips To Make Delicious Greenwich-Style Lasagna
When making this lasagna recipe or other lasagnas in general, keep these tips in mind to make a delicious pasta meal:
- • Short on time? Feel free to grab and use premade spaghetti meat sauce and cheese sauce! These work great as delicious substitutes.
- • Remember to cook the pasta to al dente stage only. This is because the pasta will be cooked again and when cooked until soft on the stove, it might end up gummy when cooked again.
- • Switch out some (or all!) of the creamy quick-melting cheese with mozzarella for that signature cheese pull!
- • No matter how much you love the meaty sauce, don't go overboard and add too much sauce between layers. You might end up making the layers slide off each other when ready to serve.
How To Store Greenwich-Style Lasagna
We're not sure you will need to store any leftover lasagna but just in case you can foresee it happening, remember to use serving utensils when serving. Then when ready to store, wrap the entire baking dish in plastic wrap so it doesn't absorb odors in the refrigerator and it won't make other food taste like lasagna either.
You can also transfer the lasagna to another container if the baking dish is too big. This recipe also easily freezes well. Before baking, wrap it up in plastic wrap and foil before placing it in the freezer. This is a great idea if you're planning on cooking this ahead of time to bring to a party or gathering.