FOOD
This looked and smelled very tasty. had plenty ofcheese on top and was ofa good consistency. First on the fork, it was subjected to the full flow ofseveral imaginations: “This tastes like food‘. ‘not bad actually‘. ‘1‘“ need to have a bit more‘. ‘nice and rich and tomatoey‘. ‘rather bland. no individual flavours‘. ‘I can taste nutmeg‘.
I St Michael's Vegetable Lasagne 283g; £1 .35.
You could really taste the different chunks of vegetable in this one — green pepper. carrots. mushrooms and what‘s more you could see them. ‘I like the fact that it has got aubergine in it‘. ‘it has got that inevitable M & S taste‘. ‘it‘s nice for what it is‘ (from a die-hard meat eater). ‘this is a classy lasagne‘.
I Sainsbury’s Lasagne Vegetali 300g; £1.35.
‘This looks as though it has still got cling film on it’. ‘it clings to the roof ofyour mouth‘. ‘unimaginative‘. ‘this white sauce tastes soapy‘. ‘not enough cheese‘. ‘quite good for a TV dinner‘.
I Findus Dinner Supreme 30(lg;£1.54 at Safeways. £1 .39 at Savacentre. ‘Looks unappetising‘. ‘looks good‘. ‘a lot ofcream sauce and loads of pasta‘. ‘not enough cheese or herbs or garlic‘. ‘doesn‘t taste like meat‘. ‘strange tanginess — tastes like packet soup‘. ‘aren‘t you being a bit harsh. you‘re still eating it‘?‘
I Sainshury's Frozen Lasagne Verdi 300g; £1 .25.
‘This looks very nice — the deep bowl helps the process of ingratiation‘. ‘plenty ofmeat. looks like meat‘. ‘good rich colour‘. ‘I like the green pasta. you can really taste it‘. ‘nice cheesy taste‘. ‘very greasy". ‘really sloppy‘. ‘best so far for me. my lasagnes are deliberately runny — would you rather have one of these stodgy wedges?‘
I Spaghetti House frozen ‘Gartield’ Lasagna Verdi 300g; £1.49.
‘The classic custard pie with a dollop of tomato sauce on top‘. ‘tastes horribly processed‘. ‘school dinners‘. ‘the meat is like soya but worse‘ (it isn‘t though). ‘after this. Sainsbury‘s frozen is delightful!‘.
I St Michael’s Long-Lite Lasagne 4()0g;£1.49.
‘Tastes real‘. ‘mmm‘. ‘tomatcey. cheesy. rich very thick sauce‘. ‘glutinous‘. ‘I don‘t like this one. some artificial flavour‘. ‘meatballs‘. ‘not Italian at all. but nice‘. ‘like canned ravioli‘. ‘yes— I love that‘.
I Sateways Long-Lite Lasagne 300g; £1.39.
‘Very strange orange colour‘. ‘Almost lemony flavour. sharp like citric acid‘ (contains several strange things. but this is not listed). ‘very strange. not nice‘. ‘really unpleasant after-taste‘. Actions speak even louder than words — nobody could be persuaded to finish this one.
I Cosmo’s lresh lasagne £1.75; portion quite generous.
A huge bayleaf proved that this one was ‘home-made‘; it had probably the best flavour. the only one whose
FOOD
combination of herbs and tomato tasted really Italian. However. it was very heavy. almost solid pasta with very little meat or sauce. ‘This is the most filling of all‘. ‘can I have some more?’
I Prewett’s Long-Life Vegetable Lasagne 300g; £1 .68.
A vegetarian lasagne not pretending to have a béchamel sauce or cheese. ‘Lots of oregano in it‘. ‘tastes like a dried herb shop smells‘. ‘nice texture — proper vegetables.‘ Personally. I would choose this one rather than the more dubious meaty ones every time. One ‘taster‘. not knowing what this was. commented. mouth watering at the prospect: ‘this looks like solid meat!‘
In retrospect. there was almost unanimous preference for Sainsbury's frozen lasagne. which. interestingly enough. has by far the highest meat content at 22% minimum (next best. Findus at 17%). and is the cheapest of this selection. Presumably their fresh version would be even better. good value at £1 .99 for 510g. Marks and Spencer's fresh lasagnes came in second, and thereafter opinion was
divided.
GIN-354
Ubiquitow Chip Wine Shop
Glnrgow’t Independent Wine and Spirit merchant
5001
SCOTLAND'S BEST SELECTION OF
MALT WHI
AT VERY COMPETITIVE PRICES
8 nthton lnnc,GlntgowG|2
SKIES
RECIPE FOR LASAGNE This recipe is Iikelytotake 1 hour and 40 minutes to prepare. It feeds six and will cost about £4.50 to make. The ingredients for the bolognaise sauce are 802 of lean minced beef. 4oz ofchicken livers. 302 of uncooked ham. Icarrot. 1 onion. 1 small piece ofcelery. 3 tablespoons ofconcentrated tomato puree. 1 wineglass ofwhite wine. 2 wineglasses ofstock or water. butter. salt and pepper. nutmeg.
Cut the bacon or ham into small pieces and brown them gently in a small saucepan in about 1/;oz of butter. Add the onion. the carrot and the celery. all finely chopped. When browned. put in the raw minced beef. and brown evenly. Add chopped chicken livers. and after a few minutes the tomato puree. and then the white wine. Season with salt. pepper. and nutmeg. Add the meat stock or water. (.‘over the pan and simmer for 30—40 minutes.
To make the bechamel take l/2oz of butter. 2 tablespoonfuls of flour. 11/4 pints ofmilk. salt. pepper. nutmeg or bayleaf.
Melt the butter and add sieved flour before it turns brown. Stir gently until thick and creamy. Add a little ofthe heated milk (infused with bayleafor nutmeg). Stir vigorously. and as soon as it is absorbed by the flour add more. and go on adding gradually until it is all used up. Cook for 15 minutes. add salt and pepper.
Boil lasagne strips for 10— 1 5 minutes. drain and immerse in salted water. Butter large. ovenproofdish and layer the ragu. bechamel and lasagne with a final generous coating ofgrated parmesan cheese. Bake for 30 minutes in a moderate oven.
VIVA
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“UM/182 .VoPGn lv‘ASALlA Ct‘ Cken out»: a tr sweet LKBUCL", .il‘i.‘ - Open noon—2.30pm and 5.30pm—midnight
129a Rose Street Precinct, Edinburgh (opp Kenilworth Bar) Telephone: 031 226 2862/225 3649
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LUNCH — 12—230an EVENINGS —— 6—11pm (last orders 10.30pm)
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Dr.
EKYLL’S
Coffee
open IO am - 4 pm Monday to Saturday
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House
I EDINBURGH
The List 31 August 13 September 199087