Lasagna is practically a world unto itself, although it is true that most restaurants have stopped serving cannelloni. It's up to them to explain why.

As lasagna is made from pasta, many times we must decide if we are going to use fresh or dry pasta. With fresh pasta we can always give it a special touch, and it is made from flour and egg, which makes it more delicate and nutritional. But it has the disadvantage that we have to make it by hand and then spread it out with a rolling machine, which most people don't happen to have at home.

�

Dry pasta is sold in a variety of forms. If we use the kind that is boiled, we must know how hard or soft we want the pasta to turn out. If the sauce that the recipe calls for is quite liquid, and we are going to prepare the dish a couple of hours ahead of time, then it is best to cook the pasta three minutes less than the time recommended by the manufacturer. This way we keep the pasta from overcooking and becoming an inedible goo that is unpleasant to the taste buds. If the sauce or stuffing is less liquid, cook the pasta just a minute or two less than the instructions indicate. This way we will feel the pasta on the palate. I, personally, like that. I like to bite the pasta. I don't like it to disintegrate into a weird mass

�

When using pasta that just needs to be moistened, there is a trick I learned years ago in Tenerife in the Canary Islands. Put the pasta in the dish without wetting it, but make the sauce and stuffing a bit more liquid, and let it all settle for a few minutes before putting it in the oven.

�

In essence, lasagna and other pasta dishes are a way to prepare leftovers. When I say leftovers, I mean - as Picadillo, and long before him, Mr. Dumas - noble leftovers. Those bits of mean, fish and vegetables that we couldn't eat, which remained in the pot or casserole, staring at our gluttonous eyes but with our stomachs just too full.

�

We can indeed make delicious lasagna with leftover roasts and stews. Always keep in mind that Verdi said bolognesa sauce was best with lamb from the previous day. Yes, it was roast lamb from the day before that was chopped up. And the tomato sauce is seasoned with sauce from the lamb, turning it into a work of art. Forget about ground beef.

�

And why not use leftover baked or stewed fish? All you have to do is remove the bones and thicken the sauce with tomato or cream sauce. It will be delicious. I remember once making a lasagna from hake, which the day before I had prepared in parsley sauce.

�

I also remember the time I turned some leftover cod in garlic, oil and peppers into lasagna. I did it for the family, in honor of an elegant chef, who absolutely loved cod. As a crowning touch, bit of fried dory on the top. Then there was that lasagna that some friend made for me, which had been a stew. That mix of tender meats and cold cuts were joined with a sauce of fresh tomato and cumin, and a bit of soft, mild cheese.

�

Then there is another one I like to make when I am feeling downright reckless. It's called suicide by cheese, and has a bit of well-seasoned tomato sauce, layers of three kinds of cheese, each of them grated, mashed or melted in a bit of cream sauce. I recall that this dish tends to require the help of a little bread and a lot of wine to finish off the whole pan of lasagna, a feat we don't usually achieve. And that's a shame because it is positively delicious with those touches of Montenebro cheese, bits of Manchego and that odd pur�e of Cabrales and cider. All hot and melted. What a recipe.

�

But we'll always have Paris� Or the task of making the dish a bit more vegetarian. Say, with stewed vegetables and 'pata de mulo' cheese or any strong goat's cheese, grated and sprinkled on top right before the lasagna is browned. Then there is the idea of trying something totally new. We can replace the pasta with cabbage leaves. And cabbage from a Spanish-style garbanzo bean stew would be ideal. Or strips of zucchini for a lasagna of leftover chicken. And if we feel really vegetarian we can prepare the dish with mild cheese, saut�ing the zucchini. This way we can even eat it cold. Or we can make it with strips of eggplant.

�

But watch out, it sounds like we are trying to invent that Greek dish, musaka. Of course we can always eat it chilled. Maybe a lasagna of marinated octopus or mussels with a thick sauce. It would have no cheese but it would be delicious.

�

We can serve lasagna as a chilled pasta salad in summer, preparing it in layers. In this case it would not have cream sauce. But if we want it to stick together nicely, a bit of mild cheese will work nicely. Without cheese it will be lighter.