got a new girlfriend who doesnt like getting drunk, so a valentines day meal seems the quickest route into her nickers

i once had to make a lasagna for a group of people containing a vegetarian so i found a veggie lasagna recipe. it had some layers of spinach leaves as well as the usual layers of pasta and whatever it was i used instead of meat in it. i've since copied that idea in proper meat lasagnas and its very nice. it also works quite well if you do a layer of spinach with a very thin layer of mozarella or something on top of it in the middle of the lasagna

they put something red in the lasagnas in the canteen at uni. they are fucking amazing and i cant work out what vegetable/fruit/thing it is, must have bought pretty much every red thing i can find in the local tesco. its sort of like a chilli or a red pepper but its not chilli or pepper.

obviously the usual spices and different varieties of tomatoes and cheese and all that jazz too, anybody got anything specific and strange that they like to use?

what's everyones thoughts on letting it cool then reheating it to let the flavours infuse? does the baddness of reheating counteract the goodness of letting it infuse?

anybody make their own pasta from scratch? i have done it once before but was bog standard flour+egg mashed together until it looked like pasta with no other ingredients or any special techniques to make it super good. tbh it wasnt really any different from the standard lasagna sheets you can buy own brand from any supermarket so probably not worth the hassle without something special to add to it

anybody had any amazing jarred sauces that they reckon would beat anything i could make? i've never cooked anything pasta-wise using a jarred sauce so i know nothing about them. what's all your favourites? i quite like the idea of starting with one and then fucking about with it in the style of one of those famous french chefs who taste it with a tiny spoon and decide what to add.

sorry to ask lots of questions, am hoping my previous experience helps some people in return for any other advice people have. i'm off to have a google around the recipe sites just now to see if i can find any stories about brilliant ones

the quest for the perfect lasagna will hopefully be ended and it will hopefully be ended by twoplanks!