Ricotta vs. Cottage Cheese

Yes, you can use either one, I prefer ricotta.  Perhaps its a regional thing?   I'm thinking back over my years, of all the lasagnas I've had, I've always assumed it was made with ricotta and never could tell the difference or question the difference.
 
I am eating Paneer lately, what a wonderful white cheese!!!!!  It cooks wonderfully in a curry sauce.  That might be fine for a lasagna too!

Sounds good, fab!I find ricotta dry, so mix in cottage cheese for wetness.

I grew up with using Ricotta, my mom made a great lasagna using Ricotta. I am wondering where the idea of using Ricotta came from, they don't use it in Lasagna in Italy. I think the Italians feel the Ricotta makes the Lasagna to heavy. When they make it in Italy, they use a Bechamel sauce, this cream sauce when baked in the lasagna makes it lite and airy. If you ever try it use the Bechamel sauce are you would Ricotta cheese. I'm not saying it's better, I'm just saying thats the way they do it. If I were to make the Lasagna with Bechamel sauce, I would also use a fresh Mozzarella cheese.........................

Time to fess up.  My great-grandmother came from Piedmont, Italy, near the Swiss border as did my grandmother and grandfather.  They never made lasagne, my mother never made lasagne and I never made lasagne.  I never tasted it until I went to college and I didn't like it.  I still don't like it.  But I would have to agree with pnwchef that it is made with Bechamel in Italy and I would probably prefer it that way, even though I do like ricotta.

Seems like using cottage cheese is a very common thing here in Wisconisn for some reason. I have used both and like both.
 

pnwchef


We goat some goats this yr, I plan on breeding them this month, should have a few Kids the first of Aug. I plan on making fresh Ricotta and Mozzarella cheese, I'm wondering how the Lasagna will taste with the Goat flavor. I have them in a good quality pasture, so I'm hoping for the best. The cheese will be from our Goats, the gnd beef is from our cows, the Italian sausage will be from our pigs. The Roma tomatoes and Basil & garlic are from our garden.  I think we just about have the whole Lasagna coming from the farm...............pnwc

Bill I am not commenting on this line buddy its a 'G' rated show!!

I have made lasagna using béchamel sauce instead of ricotta. I liked it but my family wasn't too keen on it. I'm back to using ricotta for lasagna and saving the béchamel for moussaka and patstitsio.

Bechamel with occasional, randomly placed dollops of ricotta.  My way.
 
Then again I also like sliced meat ball in mine.  Haven't made it in thirty years.  Last time was for a friend's baby shower.  Her son got married a couple of months ago.

Mar, I also like to use sliced meatballs along with sliced or crumbled Italian sausage too. 

I forgot about the Italian sausage.  I like getting varied tastes with different bites.

I've always used sliced meatballs -- never a meat sauce. In fact, I never heard of lasagna being made without them till I moved to Ohio.