Hey… that’s a good idea for a dish that is dairy free and GF.
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Thanks to all who replied to the thread.
I did go with the lower calorie/fat version that calls for cottage cheese. One guest, who is on a glp-1 drug said that he was actually a little fearful of eating it because some things cause him immediate GI distress, but he was very relieved to find he was able to eat it/enjoy it. He has not taken well to the medicine in some respects (has lost 100 lbs and blood sugar has improved vastly, but he lives in a low grade GI misery a good deal of his day-hard to imagine it’s worth it, but that’s not for me to decide) so when he can enjoy a meal like that, he’s very happy.
My takeaway was this: I made the sauce from scratch. I spent HOURS on it, the recipe calling for using a food processor to make the meat and sausage a little finer in texture, almost pureeing carrots and green peppers, hand mashing tomatoes, etc. What I found was that the sauce, while certainly tasty, was NO BETTER than a high quality jar sauce added to basic ground beef and sausage. I will never again make sauce from scratch as I could not tell any discernible difference from the far less work intensive jar sauce.
As to the cottage cheese, I found a brand at a local store that actually had the look and consistency of ricotta. I couldn’t believe it when I opened the container. Many of the guests went back for seconds, though, so I don’t know if the calorie savings worked out in practice, ha ha.
Making it the day before turned out to be a great thing, and as many of you said, set the casserole in terms of flavor and texture. I set the table a few days in advance, and it looked beautiful with my family china and crystal. Had I done it all in one day, I think I would have been exhausted by the time I got the meal onto the buffet (we have a floating cabinet in our dining room that is perfect for serving buffet style meals).
Our supper club is designed such that each couple hosts only 2-3 times a year, so we are off the hook for a few months. I might be back asking for help for our next turn, as the CC crowd is always full of creative ideas borne of vast experience!
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Same. And also layered with slices of mozzarella.
I prefer sliced mozzarella from the deli for lasagna, one pound works perfectly.
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So did you make and bake it the day before or just put it together the day before - and then bake it the day after?
Good to know on the sauce. If you like the process of homemade, go for it. If not, store shelf brands can be just fine!
I can make a quick marinara in 20 minutes, but I also always have emergency bottles of rao’s in the house.
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My friend, who is a great cook, started doing this because she didn’t know you were supposed to cook them and just never did.
So when I use normal lasagna noodles, I do add 1/2c water to the sauce. Originally this tip was from a microwave lasagna recipe, but I’ve done same in oven.
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I followed a suggestion to cook the noodles for just a few minutes less than package instructions, assembled it, then baked the whole thing for about 20 minutes, cooled it, then refrigerated it. The next evening I took it out of the fridge, cut it as suggested here, let it sit for about 45 minutes, then baked it.
It turned out really well in terms of being really well set, and tasted very good.
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Sounds like a great plan! Glad it worked.
Question for the Lasagna experts: Do you put any sauce down under the first layer of noodles? I do so when I use uncooked noodles (with extra water in sauce). Can’t recall if that was directed in recipes, before I started making it by memory.
Absolutely, thin.
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I always put sauce first.
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Glad it worked out well for you
I finally had the chance to try out this technique and it was terrific for slicing/serving. Not convinced it made any difference to the taste, though.
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No matter how you do the noodles, I really think refrigerating sets it nicely. The last time I baked it guests wanted to know if it was store bought due to how well it looked on the plate.
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No, I don’t see how it would affect taste. It just made it easier for serving.
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I had two male friends for dinner last night . Baked ziti, Caesar salad, fruit and apple fritters. Easy and tasty.
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I call baked ziti “poor man’s lasagna”! 
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I finally remembered to cut it before baking it and it worked so well! What a great tip!
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I made a baked ziti in the crockpot for a supper buffet. Since there was a vegan in the group, I omitted the cheeses (ricotta, mozzerella) I’d normally use. Instead I used a lot of sautéed vegetables. On the side as optional toppings I had mozz, parmesan and sauteed meatballs (from TJ). It was a big crowd, so I also baked up frozen lasagna and mac/cheese from Costco…. surprisingly good after my disappointment about not finding Stouffer’s there.
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