Did you know that July 29th is National Lasagna Day? If there’s any food that deserves its own day, it’s lasagna. It’s a dish that is perfect in its simplicity. With layers of pasta, tomato sauce, and cheese baked to make the perfect comfort food, it’s hard to think of a better meal. And its perfect simplicity is what makes lasagna the perfect lunch. So when you’re searching for “Italian restaurants near me” to satisfy your need for the perfect lunch, come to Tammaro’s Cucina for some lasagna.
But how much do you know about lasagna? It’s a dish that’s been around for a long time and it started off as something quite different from the dish we know and love today.
Ancient Layers
Long before lasagna became synonymous with pasta, tomato sauce, and cheese, the ancient Greeks ate a layered dish made of fermented noodles called laganon. That might be where the name lasagna comes from, but we don’t know for sure. There are Italian words that may also claim that honor. It would be some time before lasagna started to look like the dish we recognize, and we have the Romans to thank for its evolution.
The Romans were known for adopting the local customs of the places they invaded and in turn spreading them across the Roman Empire. When they came to Greece around 140 BC, they brought laganon back to Rome. Italian chefs experimented with and adapted the recipe over the centuries and it started to resemble what we would recognize as lasagna today during the Middle Ages. One of the first written lasagna recipes we have is from a 14th-century English cookbook.
Modern Lasagna
Everyone knows a good lasagna only needs three ingredients: pasta, cheese, and tomato sauce. But, you may be surprised to learn, tomato sauce wasn’t an essential ingredient until the 1800s. The earliest recipe we have that includes tomatoes is from 1880. That recipe is from Naples where many people believe modern lasagna was born. Lasagna really took the world by storm when Italian immigrants came to America and brought their family recipes with them.
Hungry? Come to Tammaro’s!
If you’re hungry now after reading about the history of lasagna, that was the idea! Stop searching for “Italian restaurants near me” and come to Tammaro’s. We have all the classic Italian foods you love, including lasagna. Come enjoy the perfect lunch with us!