The New Lasagna Cookbook: A Crowd-Pleasing Collection of Recipes from Around the World for the Perfect One-Dish Meal (Hardcover)

by Maria Bruscino Sanchez (Author)
Key Phrases: fresh egg pasta, additional pecorino, top with noodles, Béchamel Sauce, Romano Noodles, Bolognese Sauce (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
While the trend of single-subject cookbooks continues, one might still question an entire volume dedicated to the seemingly simple dish, lasagna. Luckily for home cooks, this title isn't just gimmick. Bruscino Sanchez, owner of Sweet Maria's bakery in Connecticut and author of multiple Sweet Maria's cookbooks, goes beyond sugar and flour in her latest collection. Straightforward, well-organized recipes are divided into easy-to-follow numbered steps (most fewer than 10), guiding even the amateur through a hearty one-dish meal. The Classic Lasagnas chapter includes just what it promises with crowd-pleasing selections such as Lasagna Bolognese and Vegetarian Lasagna. While the New Flavors chapter showcases creative gems (Asparagus, Goat Cheese, and Lemon Lasagna, and Lobster Lasagna with Roasted Red Pepper Sauce), international flavor–inspired dishes such as Chinese Pork and Scallion Lasagna, and Middle Eastern Lasagna, and a surprising Breakfast Lasagna feel like a bit of a stretch, trying to cover all flavor bases. Short, yet worthy, chapters on Starters, Salads and Dressings and Desserts make it possible to create a balanced, three-course meal from this concise and upbeat title. (Sept.)
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From School Library Journal
Sanchez, the owner of Sweet Maria's bakery in Waterbury, CT, and the author of Sweet Maria's Italian Desserts and two other baking books, here switches to savory dishes, with 75 recipes for lasagna and variations on the theme, as well as appetizers, salads, and a few desserts. The lasagna recipes are grouped into "classics" and "new flavors," but some of them don't really seem like lasagna: Bacon, Egg, and Cheese Breakfast Lasagna, for example, made with bread instead of noodles, seems more like a strata. Some of the recipe instructions are a bit confusing, and the recipes for starters and salads are fairly ordinary. An optional purchase.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 176 pages
• Publisher: St. Martin's Press (September 16, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312367821
• ISBN-13: 978-0312367824
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 7.5 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #352,951 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3.0 out of 5 stars Not worth the price of admission, April 10, 2009

By	R. Walker "pseudo-savant" (Houston, TX) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I love lasagna, and I wanted to love THE NEW LASAGNA COOKBOOK. That's why I don't enjoy giving this book a mediocre rating. I just don't find many inspiring lasagna recipes in the book. I've had this book several months, and it is not one of those cookbooks I reach for when I want to try something new and delicious. For that matter, it's not a cookbook I reach for when I need help with a delicious classic, either.

The book jacket states there are recipes for 75 "lasagna variations," which is a bald-face, uh, inaccuracy. There are 51 lasagna recipes, several of which are actually not lasagna. For example, a baked rigatoni recipe named "Lazy Lasagna" is counted as lasagna as are several non-lasagna casseroles. (I guess if you name it "lasagna," you can include it in your lasagna cookbook regardless of the ingredients.) There are three fresh pasta recipes and five recipes for various sauces and fillings that are used repeatedly in the lasagna recipes. The remaining recipes have nothing to do with lasagna (that's about one-fourth if you're keeping count. And I did. :-) ) Several of the non-lasagna recipes look delicious; I'm just noting that they are not lasagna!

The book includes one of my least favorite cookbook tactics. There are only eight pictures (all color), and they are grouped together in the middle of the book. It's hard to believe that they did this for cost savings because one of the biggest strikes against this book is the value. It actually cost me more than several other cookbooks I own that contain dozens more recipes and color pictures.

For me, the most interesting recipe in the book is actually a family salad dressing recipe. In fact, a quick search on the term "lasagna" on any of my favorite free recipe Web sites delivered better results (in quantity and interest) than this book provides, unfortunately. It just isn't worth the cost. Lesson learned: no more single-subject cookbooks.

4.0 out of 5 stars Nice new flavor combos, April 3, 2009

By	Snowshoe (Delaware, USA) - See all my reviews

I like this book because it showcases some new and inventive flavor combinations. The prep on most recipes is easy and pretty quick. Have made several recipes and they have all been wonderful.