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[BigDave83]

I guess I am doing Thanksgiving dinner for the GF's family. there will be I believe 12 of us.

I gave her some options. My Thanksgivings have been different cooks since Man dies in 99 and Woman being in an out if the hospital constantly for years until she passed in 08. I usually do a chuck of salmon or shrimp maybe a baked potato and one or two other things. Pretty easy and simple for myself.

I gave her Salmon, a Turkey breast roulade, or Lasagna. She said the family would not eat the salmon, didn't know what the turkey was until I told her, decided on the lasagna. Probably make some bread for garlic bread also.

Probably doing a full steam pan, thinking 4 to 5 layers.

Thinking that would probably take at least 6 jars of bought sauce, till it cooked down some maybe more. Can't imagine it would be that much more work to buy a #10 can of puree some tomato paste and sauce and  make a sauce.

Ideas on this, point me to a great sauce recipe, I have been looking at a few for the most part they seem to be very similar.

Also while you are here. Filling, Ricotta, Cottage cheese or a combination of the two. Growing up it was always cottage. I have made it with ricotta in the past, other than it being a bit dryer, either are good for me.

[Hank D Thoreau]

In the "olden days" we made it from scratch (except using canned tomato sauce and paste). Now you can find bottled sauce that is really good. We start with bottled sauce and add to it.

This way you get your own customized sauce in less time since you can cut down on the simmering time.

The bottled sauce serves as a good starting point, rather than starting from scratch.

As far as cost, the biggest cost for me the last time I made lasagna was the cheese. I found that using bags of pre-grated cheese was cheaper than buying blocks and grating myself.

It is probably a lower quality than block but it tasted fine to me. I used mozzarella, ricotta, romano and parmesan. (We had a friend who used cheddar in their "famous" lasagna recipe. Please don't !!!!)

I have never used cottage cheese. That sounds like something you would use if you do not have access to regular Italian cheeses (or perhaps it's someone's "famous" family recipe).

I used to layer the cheeses on assembly. The last time, however, I mixed the cheeses in a big bowel (per a suggestion from a recipe I found). It worked out better since I could spread the cheese more easily.

It is difficult to spread ricotta on top of another cheese. You end up dropping clumps instead. It also made sense since I was using grated mozzarella. In the past I would slice the mozzarella and make a layer.

I used my largest baking pan and it cost me about 70 to 80 dollars. I remember the cost because I did a special trip to the market to buy the ingredients.

[Bar-B-Lew]

I can't help other than to say that I do not eat lasagna with ricotta and/or cottage cheese.  I am a combo hamburger/ground sausage, red sauce, and pizza type cheeses that are shredded and added per layer.  Sorta like Stouffer's style.

[02ebz06]

Can't help much either. Always buy pasta sauce.
Never liked cottage cheese, yogurt, or buttermilk (except in buttermilk pancakes).
Always had Ricotta cheese in Lasagna.

[Bentley]

If you have no problem with the sugar and salt in the store bought, they seems to have good flavor to me.  For me, real lasagna demands, ricotta mixed with raw egg and spinach!

[urnmor]

Only one way "Make It".  It is super simple and you can add what ever you want to the sauce in terms of spices

[SmokinHandyman]

I start with jar and add more to it.

[BigDave83]

I think on the cottage cheese, it was probably a financial thing as well as cottage was familiar to the farmers and if you liked it it was always in your fridge.

A lot of store bought sauce mentions, I am surprised at that. I do have some jarred sauces I use for spaghetti and such that I like. Probably still need to cook it down some. From a cost stand point I am not sure there is a lot of difference, unless jarred sauce prices have gone up. What I buy at was usually 2 for 5 bucks.

Planned on the eggs in the ricotta, probably not spinach, again I would eat it but the masses would be leery unless I really cut it up fine.
 

[Bentley]

Always cooked and chopped on the spinach when I mix!

[Fire708]

If you have no problem with the sugar and salt in the store bought, they seems to have good flavor to me.  For me, real lasagna demands, ricotta mixed with raw egg and spinach!

This is how my mom taught me! Ricotta, whipped by hand with egg and chopped spinach.
For the sauce go with what taste good to you. If you have a jar sauce you like run with it.

[elenis]

I think on the cottage cheese, it was probably a financial thing as well as cottage was familiar to the farmers and if you liked it it was always in your fridge.

A lot of store bought sauce mentions, I am surprised at that. I do have some jarred sauces I use for spaghetti and such that I like. Probably still need to cook it down some. From a cost stand point I am not sure there is a lot of difference, unless jarred sauce prices have gone up. What I buy at was usually 2 for 5 bucks.

Planned on the eggs in the ricotta, probably not spinach, again I would eat it but the masses would be leery unless I really cut it up fine.
 

Growing up when we did get to have lasagna it was always cottage cheese. I think I may like it better that way, but I normally mix cottage cheese and ricotta and some egg so it helps hold together. My favorite brand of spaghetti sauce is made by a company called Mid's. They have a meat sauce that has enough meat in it that you barely need to add ground beef or anything to your spaghetti, but that would be an expensive sauce for your lasagna. It would have the thickness I think your looking for. I would imagine cost wise you would just want to buy a bunch of cans of Hunts pasta sauce. It's less then a dollar a can and just gives you a nice base to do what you want with it. When we were tighter on money I usually bought it and would doctor it up until it was really enjoyable. Mostly I would just dice and cook up some onion and garlic as well as salt and pepper and a nice quality Italian seasoning to get the flavor I was looking for. Before my wife and I had kids we used to eat a lot of spaghetti. Now I have kids that don't like red sauce, my daughter to the point she won't eat pizza that has sauce on it.

[Hank D Thoreau]

I was really stumped with the cottage cheese on lasagna, so I looked it up. This article calls cottage cheese lasagna a classic mid-west noodle casserole. The article does a great job of explaining the rationale behind it.

https://foxeslovelemons.com/lasagna-cottage-cheese/

Sorry, but I'll stick with the Italian cheeses.

[Kristin Meredith]

Hmmmm, I lived in California for 50 years and So Cal for 30 and knew lots of folks who used cottage cheese in lasagna instead of ricotta.  Never thought of it as a mid-west kind of thing.

[BigDave83]

I grew up and still live in the mountains of SW Pennsylvania. Not really midwest. Could be the writer of the article/recipe is the same she grew up there and figured it was just how it was made in that area.

[Bentley]

In my even cheaper days in California I used Cottage Cheese in place of ricotta man times, it is OK, just not as good for me as the mix!