Crispy Southwestern Lasagna Food

THE BEST LASAGNA

Steps:

• Place the beef in a large bowl and "pull" it apart with two forks as if you were shredding pulled pork, breaking up the clumps and loosening the meat without compacting it.
• Heat the oil in a Dutch oven or large heavy pot over medium-high heat. Add the pancetta and cook, stirring occasionally, until the fat has rendered and the meat is golden brown, 5 to 7 minutes. Transfer the pancetta to a large bowl with a slotted spoon, leaving the fat in the pot.
• Spread the beef in an even layer in the same pot and cook undisturbed until lightly browned, about 3 minutes. Toss and continue to cook, breaking up any clumps and scraping up any browned bits from the pot, until the meat is browned and completely cooked, 5 to 6 minutes. Transfer the browned meat with a slotted spoon to the bowl with the pancetta, leaving the fat in the pot.
• Reduce the heat to medium. Add the carrots, celery, onions, half the garlic, the bay leaf, oregano, red pepper flakes, nutmeg, 2 teaspoons salt and 1/4 teaspoon black pepper to the pot and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are tender but not browned, 6 to 8 minutes.
• Add the tomato paste and cook, stirring constantly, until it's very fragrant and brick red colored, about 2 minutes. Stir in the wine, bring to a boil and reduce until the liquid is very thick and no smell of alcohol remains, 6 to 8 minutes. Add the tomatoes and the reserved pancetta and beef, bring to a boil and then reduce the heat to low. Add the basil and Parmesan rind and simmer, stirring occasionally, until most of the liquid has evaporated and the sauce resembles sloppy joes, 2 to 2 1/2 hours. There shouldn't be any rapid bubbles while cooking. Instead, the ragu should release occasional small bubbles. If the ragu reduces too quickly, add 1/2 cup of water and continue cooking. Repeat if necessary. The ragu needs the full 2 to 2 1/2 hour cook time to develop the flavors.
• Discard the bay leaf, basil and Parmesan rind. Break up any remaining clumps of meat with the back of a spoon, making an even textured sauce. Season with salt and set aside until ready to assemble.
• Arrange a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees F.
• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Cook the noodles, stirring occasionally and separating them to prevent sticking, until softened and bendable but are still hard and chalky in the center, about 5 minutes. Transfer the noodles to a large bowl of cold water and set aside until ready to assemble.
• Stir together the ricotta, 1 cup of the Parmesan, the remaining grated garlic and 2 teaspoons salt in a medium bowl until thoroughly combined. Set aside until ready to assemble.
• Lightly oil a 13-by-9-inch glass or ceramic baking pan. Spread 1 cup of the ragu evenly in the bottom of the pan. Lay a single layer of noodles over the ragu (if you're using long noodles, you will need to cut some noodles to fill the gaps). Spread 1 1/2 cups of the ragu over the noodles. Dollop 3/4 cup of the ricotta mixture over the ragu and spread lightly with a small offset spatula. Sprinkle with 1/2 cup of the mozzarella, followed by another layer of noodles. Repeat with the remaining pasta, ragu, ricotta mixture and mozzarella, creating 4 layers of pasta and ending with the remaining 1/2 cup mozzarella. (The lasagna should come just above the top of the pan but it will sink down slightly as it cooks.) Top with the remaining 1/4 cup Parmesan.
• Lightly oil a piece of foil and cover the pan. Put the pan on a rimmed baking sheet to catch any drips. Bake the lasagna until bubbling gently around the edges, about 1 hour.
• Remove the lasagna from the oven and increase the oven temperature to 450 degrees F. Remove the foil and then continue to bake the lasagna until the top is browned and crisp around the edges, 15 to 20 minutes.
• Let sit 10 minutes before serving.

ALL-CRUST SHEET-PAN LASAGNA

Steps:

• Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 450 degrees F.
• Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the sausage and cook, breaking up the meat with a wooden spoon, until browned and cooked through, about 5 minutes. Transfer the sausage to a bowl with a slotted spoon and reserve the drippings in the pan.
• Reduce the heat to medium. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil and the garlic to the pan. When the garlic begins to brown at the edges, about 1 minute, add the tomatoes with their juices, 3/4 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Bring to a simmer and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until the sauce thickens, about 8 minutes.
• Mix the ricotta, egg, milk, basil, 1/2 cup of the grated Parmesan, 3/4 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper together in a large bowl. Spread 2/3 cup of the tomato sauce across the bottom of an 18-by-13-inch sheet pan. Next, space out 6 lasagna noodles on top of the sauce, turning them to fit so there are 2 noodles across and 3 noodles down. (The noodles will expand when they cook.) Top the noodles with all of the ricotta mixture, all of the sausage, 2/3 cup tomato sauce, and half the shredded mozzarella. Add another layer of 6 lasagna noodles and top with the remaining sauce, mozzarella, and 1/4 cup grated Parmesan.
• Lightly oil one side of a large piece of foil. Cover the pan with the foil, greased side down. Bake until the noodles are tender when pierced with a paring knife, about 20 minutes. Carefully remove the foil and continue to bake until the top is very crusty and brown, 10 to 15 minutes more.

SOUTHWEST LASAGNA

Steps:

• Place cookie sheet or foil in oven on rack below middle oven rack; heat oven to 375°F. Spray 13x9-inch (3-quart) glass baking dish with cooking spray.
• Cook lasagna noodles as directed on package; drain. Rinse with cold water to cool; drain well.
• Meanwhile, in 10-inch skillet, cook ground beef over medium-high heat 5 to 7 minutes, stirring frequently, until thoroughly cooked; drain. Stir in taco seasoning mix and water. Reduce heat; simmer 5 minutes or until thickened.
• In small bowl, mix ricotta cheese, chiles and eggs.
• Stir pasta sauce, beans, corn and cumin into beef mixture. Cook about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until thoroughly heated.
• To assemble lasagna, arrange 3 cooked noodles in bottom of baking dish. Spoon and spread 1/3 of ricotta mixture over noodles; top with 1/3 each of beef mixture and cheese. Repeat layers 2 more times, reserving last 1/3 of cheese.
• Place baking dish on middle oven rack; bake 25 minutes. Sprinkle with reserved cheese; bake 15 to 25 minutes longer or until lasagna is bubbly and cheese is melted. Let stand 10 minutes before serving. Cut into squares.

CRISPY SOUTHWESTERN LASAGNA

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350°F.
• In a large non-stick skillet, cook the meat over medium heat until done, and drain any excess liquid.
• Add the tomatoes and juice, green chilies, chili powder, cumin, garlic, salt, and pepper; set aside.
• In a small bowl, blend the egg whites and cottage cheese well; set aside.
• In a 13x9x2-inch non-stick baking dish coated with non-stick cooking spray, place six quartered tortillas.
• Layer all the corn, half the meat mixture, half the cheese, four quartered tortillas, then all of the cottage cheee mixture, the remaining half of the meat mixture, and the remaining four quartered tortillas, and top with the remaining cheese.
• Bake uncovered for 30 minutes. Serve.

SOUTHWESTERN LASAGNA

Steps:

• In a large skillet, brown beef and onion until meat is no longer pink; drain. Stir in the enchilada sauce, tomatoes, olives, salt, garlic powder and pepper; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 20 minutes. , In a small bowl, combine cottage cheese and egg; set aside. Spread one-third of the meat sauce in a greased 13-in. x 9-in. baking dish. Top with half the Monterey Jack cheese, half the cottage cheese mixture and half the tortillas. Repeat layers, ending with meat sauce. Sprinkle with cheddar cheese. , Cover and bake at 350° for 20 minutes. Uncover and bake 10 minutes longer or until bubbly and cheese is melted.

SOUTHWESTERN LASAGNA

Steps:

• Cut each tortilla into 2 or 3 pieces; set aside.
• Brown ground beef in a large skillet until crumbly; drain fat.
• Add seasonings, tomatoes, tomato sauce, and green chiles to the skillet; stir and bring to a boil; reduce heat and cook for 5 minutes.
• Combine cottage cheese, egg, and 1 1/3 cups of the shredded cheese in a separate bowl.
• In a lightly greased 9x13" baking pan, spread (in layers) half of the meat mixture, then half of the tortilla pieces, and then half of the cheese mixture; repeat the layers, ending with cheese mixture; sprinkle remaining 2/3 cup shredded cheese and sliced olives over top.
• Bake, uncovered, at 350° for 20-30 minutes or until hot and bubbly around edges; remove from oven and let stand 5-10 minutes before cutting into serving portions.
• NOTE: The cottage cheese may be left unpureed or may be replaced with a cup of ricotta cheese.

CRISPY SOUTHWESTERN LASAGNA

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a large skillet coated with nonstick cooking spray, cook the meat until done. Drain any excess liquid. Add the tomatoes, green chilies, chili powder, cumin, garlic and salt and pepper, set aside. In a small bowl combine egg whites and cottage cheese, set aside.
• Coat a 13x9x2 inch baking dish with nonstick cooking spray. Cover the bottom of the baking dish with 6 quartered tortillas. Place layer of corn, half meat mixture, and the remaining 4 quartered tortillas, then all the cottage cheese mixture, the remaining half of the meat mixture and the remaining 4 quartered tortillas. Top with the remaining cheese.
• Bake uncovered for 30 minutes.