The Tangy Cheese Ina Garten Uses To Elevate Turkey Lasagna

Famed chef Ina Garten is known for being an expert in the kitchen. Fans love her incredible-tasting recipes that are easy to make, as well as straightforward. 

Garten also gives great advice. For example, if you want to create the perfect fluffy scrambled eggs, she recommends letting the eggs set for three to five minutes without touching them: Patience is key to getting them to the perfect texture. Meanwhile, to make the most succulent chicken, she suggests letting it cook with the skin on, which leaves your poultry tender and moist. And, if you're prepping kielbasa, the culinary star advises coating the meat with a mustard and honey mixture before cooking it so the glaze will marinate the sausage and create the perfect caramelization. 

Given this wealth of information, when Garten says she has a way to enhance one of our favorite pasta dishes like lasagna, we're listening very intently. Once you learn her hack, you'll be surprised you hadn't considered adding this well-known ingredient before.

Lasagna is the perfect dish to whip up if you want something easy to make that won't require too much prep time. However, sometimes the end product can be a little lackluster. Garten's twist on this recipe will help to ensure your next pasta will be anything but bland. The famous cook showcased her recipe for turkey lasagna on Food Network's "Barefoot Contessa", which includes staple items like onion, garlic, crushed tomatoes, and tomato paste. But then she takes out a package of goat cheese and explains, "I know it's unusual in a lasagna, but I think it gives it great flavor."

Garten says she takes the goat cheese and crumbles it right into the ricotta before making the layers of her turkey lasagna. One fan that made her pasta dish wrote on Food Network that it's their family's favorite recipe and they make it every year for Christmas Eve dinner. Another reviewer added, "I've made this many times and it is always delicious." But if this hasn't convinced you just yet to give goat cheese in your lasagna a try, Jonesin for Taste also recommends the earthy ingredient, noting that it's great for those that are lactose intolerant because this type of cheese can be easier to tolerate. 

Sounds like a win-win to us!