Same sheet, different dish: how to use up excess lasagne sheets

"The first thing to say is there's no immediate rush, he adds: It sounds obvious, but you can keep the boxes for a long time. Fortunately for Jemma and her shopping mishap, however, lasagne sheets are also flexible, and their shape doesn't have to dictate what you do with them. With this in mind, soupy things are good to get on the weekly dinner rotation, be that pasta e ceci or minestrone, the latter being the go-to of choice for Mattie Taiano, chef and co-owner with Ravneet Gill of Gina's in Chingford, Essex: Just bash up the lasagne sheets with a rolling pin and chuck in all the bits."

"Theo Randall, chef-patron of Cucina Italiana at the InterContinental London Park Lane, meanwhile, would break the pasta lengthways and cook it in boiling salted water: Add that to a ragu-like sauce with some of the pasta cooking water and a generous knob of butter. Just make sure you cook the pasta and sauce together for at least three minutes, so they combine in texture and flavour."

"Ezra King and Randall's next port of call would be the delicate silk handkerchiefs of Liguria in north-western Italy. If you were to make the pasta yourself, you'd essentially be making lasagne sheets anyway, Ezra King says. Traditionally, these pasta squares are layered up with pesto for mandilli de sea, for which Randall cooks lasagne in boiling salted water before lifting them into a large frying pan with a ladleful of the cooking water."

Dried lasagne sheets keep for a long time and require no immediate use. The sheets can be repurposed by breaking, bashing or boiling to suit many dishes. Soupy recipes like pasta e ceci or minestrone can incorporate crushed sheets. Break or cook sheets lengthways for ragu-like sauces, finishing by cooking pasta and sauce together for at least three minutes. Use sheets as mandilli de sea with fresh pesto, cooking lasagne then tossing with pesto, pasta water, parmesan and pepper. Sheets can also be stuffed and rolled into cannelloni, offering flexible options beyond traditional lasagne layering.

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