??s for stocking up homemade lasagna?

[Pinoikoi]

Ok, I have a 6yo that LOVES lasagna. LOVES it. The 6 piece size one at the store is usually 7.99 here, and the "family" size is 15.99. I usually get the 6 piece and put big salads on the sides- there are no leftovers at this point with my boys, and they love it, but I would prefer to make my own in big batches and freeze them myself.

I have a food sealer.

So how can I do this economically and what materials would I need and how much should I expect to spend? I assume it is cheaper to make my own, but I want to compare.. I expect most of you make them in the tin foil pans and reuse them? What size freezer bags do you put them in? Will that pan fit in the gallon size? If I want to make 6 pans of lasagna at once how much materials do I need to do that? I usually stock up on spaghetti sauce when it is on sale, but I haven't made lasagna from scratch in years (actually we went without lasagna for a very long time, and I was surprised when ds announced that he liked it so much!) so I am not even sure how many boxes of noodles that would be, although I do recall that the last time I made it I had leftover noodles that I ended up throwing into a pot of chicken soup..

If I add spinach leaves to a layer, will they freeze well, or should I stick to different ingredients?

Any advice/instructions is appreciated!

[Pinoikoi]

Well, I found this for manicotti and lasagna

http://docs.google.com/gview?a=v&q=c...er&hl=en&gl=us

BUT, it recommends using uncooked noodles (which seems like even after you thawed it and baked it they would still be a bit crunchy unless I used those no boiling required ones, but then wouldn't that increase my overall cost?), and doesn't say anything about the pans used.. it just says to stick the lasagna in a freezer bag? Huh?

[stacim]

I have no suggestion on how much you would need to prepare that much or how much it would cost, but here's a suggestion for the pan as long as you are not opposed to aluminum foil...

Line your lasagna pan with aluminum foil, assemble the lasagna in the pan, and then freeze it, while still in the pan. Once it is frozen take the lasagna out of the pan still in foil, after which time, you could use your sealer to make sure it is good and tight. When you are ready to cook it, you unwrap it from the foil and put it in the original pan you used to freeze it in. That way, you aren't tying up you pans in the freezer and it will take up a bit less space as well.

As for the uncooked noodles, they are not my personal favorite method, but it does work okay as long as you have plenty of sauce and a little extra water to soften the noodles. A couple of alternatives are to soak the noodles for a bit before layering or cook them slightly. If you do decide to cook them first, make sure you do not cook fully or they will turn to mush.

HTH some!
~Staci

[Pinoikoi]

Originally Posted by stacim

As for the uncooked noodles, they are not my personal favorite method, but it does work okay as long as you have plenty of sauce and a little extra water to soften the noodles. A couple of alternatives are to soak the noodles for a bit before layering or cook them slightly. If you do decide to cook them first, make sure you do not cook fully or they will turn to mush.

HTH some!
~Staci

That's good to know! I think we might end up using the "no boil" type noodles. I have seen them at our grocery store before. Perhaps that is the compromise, although I think they are a bit more expensive.

I am not opposed to tin foil, but I think if I get the tin foil pans then I wouldn't need to freeze them in a pan and then move them.. and I am pretty sure that i could reuse them. Not my favorite idea, but I don't see how it is any worse than buying the ready made lasagna since they usually come in tin foil pans also.

[stacim]

You might want to try the no boil noodles in a single batch first. I have used them and do not like them as well.

Disposable aluminum pans would definitely work as well, if you don't mind the extra expense and have the space. The other method saves a little room, but really not that much if your pans are pretty full!

Oh, and you might check out some of the once-a-month cooking sites for recipes and quantities to make big batches.

A big batch of lasagna is one of the things I'd love to do as well, but never seem to get around to. Maybe I will finally do it before our new babe arrives in January.

~Staci

[luv-my-boys]

I make and freeze lasagnas to use later on. I use regular old noodles, whatever is on sale so some of them are lasagna casseroles. I do however undercook the pasta a bit so that once I do cook they will not turn to mush. I add spinach all the time and whatever other veggies (DS LOVES veggie lasagna) I use those tin foil pans ( in fact I wash and reuse them for other casseroles/lasagnas...one day I'll have enough glass pans) I buy the large "family size" pasta sauces and ricotta cheeses and shredded cheese when they are on sale and that is one I make some to stock up my freezer. I typically take them out the night before and let them defrost some in the fridge for dinner the next day. It really is pretty simple, I would add whatever your family likes to them. I have used grilled onions, tomatoes, ground beef, spinach, squash,assort cheeses, I even made a chicken lasagna from left over shredded chicken.

[tbone_kneegrabber]

I never cook my lasagna noodles. I always just get the regular ones and make overly saucy lasagna

When I make it to take it somewhere I use those aluminum pans, you get them 3 for a $1 at alot of dollar stores and then I just use foil on top

[annethcz]

Depending on what you're putting in your lasagna, it may NOT be cheaper to make your own. If you use conventional dairy and meat, it's more likely that you'll break even vs. buying premade from the store.

I do cook my noodles ahead of time, it never seemed like a big deal. I don't use those disposable aluminum foil pans, they just don't seem sturdy. I usually make my lasagna in a large pyrex (glass) pan. I've also made it in cake pans or corningware, but I've found that pyrex works best for me.

So much of lasagna is personal. Do you want your lasagna STUFFED and full of meat and cheese and tons of noodles, or is a more sparse lasagna okay? I find that *I* overeat when I make huge lasagnas, so I tend to make mine on the less-stuffed side. I can add a ton of veggies, but I use only a small amount of meat (if any), only 3 noodles per row (so the noodles are touching but not overlapping), and sparing amount of cheese. So costs are going to depend on how much you're putting in your lasagna. A dish made with 1/2 lb. of meat and 2 cups of cheese is going to be a lot less expensive than a dish made with 2 lbs. of meat and 2 lbs. of cheese. I think this is one of those things you just need to experiment with.

[Pinoikoi]

Originally Posted by annethcz

Depending on what you're putting in your lasagna, it may NOT be cheaper to make your own. If you use conventional dairy and meat, it's more likely that you'll break even vs. buying premade from the store.

I do cook my noodles ahead of time, it never seemed like a big deal. I don't use those disposable aluminum foil pans, they just don't seem sturdy. I usually make my lasagna in a large pyrex (glass) pan. I've also made it in cake pans or corningware, but I've found that pyrex works best for me.

So much of lasagna is personal. Do you want your lasagna STUFFED and full of meat and cheese and tons of noodles, or is a more sparse lasagna okay? I find that *I* overeat when I make huge lasagnas, so I tend to make mine on the less-stuffed side. I can add a ton of veggies, but I use only a small amount of meat (if any), only 3 noodles per row (so the noodles are touching but not overlapping), and sparing amount of cheese. So costs are going to depend on how much you're putting in your lasagna. A dish made with 1/2 lb. of meat and 2 cups of cheese is going to be a lot less expensive than a dish made with 2 lbs. of meat and 2 lbs. of cheese. I think this is one of those things you just need to experiment with.

You've made some good points that I will have to think through.. I think we are going to get most of our supplies at costco, so probably buy one of the big things of hamburger meat, cook it and then divide evenly among however many lasagnas we make.. so I am not sure if they will come out stuffed or not..

When you add veggies do you blanch them first for freezing? I read somewhere that blanching is best for veggies headed for the freezer, and I would like to add a layer of spinach leaves with sauce to my lasagna.. a layer of cottage cheese and a layer of meat with sauce.. not sure what else to add?