Fresh Lasagna Noodles Food

ULTIMATE HOMEMADE LASAGNA NOODLES RECIPE

Steps:

• Measure out 2 and 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour and pour it all into a large mound on a clean countertop or kitchen work surface.
• At the top of the mound, dig out a large well, using your fingers to push the flour into shape.
• Crack all 4 eggs into the center of the well and use a fork to beat them lightly.
• Once you beat the eggs, use your fingers to slowly fold over the flour into the eggs, filling in the well and mixing everything as you do so.
• Keep doing this until a soft dough has begun to form, and it's springy enough to shape into a ball.
• When you have the right shape, place more flour down onto the kitchen surface, and begin kneading your dough.
• Keep kneading for at least 10 minutes. The dough needs to be elastic and smooth.
• If the dough is too wet, you need to add more flour. If it's much too dry, then consider adding one further egg to the mixture and remixing.
• When you're pleased with your dough's texture, wrap it up in cling wrap. You should let your dough rest at room temperature for half an hour before you start rolling out your fresh lasagne sheets!
• Remove your dough ball from the cling wrap once it's rested for at least half an hour.
• With a sharp knife, slice the dough ball into 6 equally sized pieces.
• Place one piece on a lightly floured kitchen counter and wrap the rest up to keep the remaining dough from drying out.
• Push the dough ball into a flat rectangular shape with both hands.
• Set up your pasta maker on the side and place it onto the widest noodle setting.
• Pass the rectangle of dough through the roller to flatten it.
• Fold the flattened dough over into thirds and pass the rectangle through the roller while it is still on the widest setting.
• Keep repeating and rolling the dough through the pasta maker at least 10 times to flatten it out. You may need to add more flour if things start to get sticky!
• After the tenth attempt, place the pasta maker onto the next setting down from the widest and pass the dough through again.
• Keep putting the setting down a notch and passing the dough through until you've reached the thinnest setting it can be. The result should only be about 1/16 of an inch thick.
• Place your long, thin stretch of dough onto parchment paper and gently slice it into lasagna noodle-sized pieces.
• Repeat until you have no remaining dough left to roll out through your pasta maker!
• Place a large saucepan on the stovetop and bring a large pot of salted water to the boil.
• You also need a large pot of ice-cold water ready on the side (within easy reach!).
• Place individual lasagna sheets into the boiling water and allow them to cook for just 30 seconds.
• Immediately remove the lasagna sheets and place them into the ice-cold water you have waiting.
• Repeat this process until you have no lasagna sheets left to cook.
• Drain the lasagna sheets and give them a quick rinse under the water before transferring them to a baking tray or parchment paper where they can rest until it's time to assemble your homemade lasagna and bake it in the oven!

FRESH LASAGNA NOODLES

Steps:

• Mound flour on a work surface, and make a well in the center. Beat eggs and a pinch of salt in a small bowl, then pour eggs into well. Using a fork, slowly add flour to eggs, incorporating a small amount at a time, switching to hands as dough becomes stiff.
• Knead dough on a lightly floured surface until smooth, elastic, and no longer sticky, about 10 minutes. Cover with plastic, and let dough rest on counter for 1 1/2 hours.
• Cut dough into 8 pieces. Working with 1 piece at a time and keeping remaining pieces covered, dust dough lightly with flour, and feed through a pasta machine's widest setting (No.1). Fold dough lengthwise into thirds, and rotate 90 degrees. Pass through machine 2 more times.
• Turn dial to next-narrower setting. Pass dough through machine twice, gently supporting it with your palms. Continue to roll dough through ever-finer settings, 2 passes each, until sheet is almost translucent (No. 6 on a KitchenAid pasta roller). If dough bubbles or tears, pass it through again, and dust with flour if it sticks. Immediately cut sheet into lasagna noodles: 4-inch squares for individual lasagna or 4-by-13-inch strips for a large pan. Transfer strips to a drying rack for 1 hour. Repeat with remaining dough. (Noodles can be stored, when completely dry and stiff, for up to 1 week.)
• Fill a large bowl with cool water. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook 2 to 3 noodles at a time for 90 seconds. Using a wire-mesh skimmer, transfer noodles to cool water, and swirl a few times. Place on a parchment-lined baking sheet until ready to use, placing a piece of parchment or plastic between layers. Use immediately.

MARY'S LASAGNA

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of water to a boil for the noodles. Put a bowl of ice water near the stove, and set out a few towels next to the bowl to drain the pasta.
• Generously grease a 10 by 14-inch baking pan using 1 to 2 tablespoons of the butter. Set aside.
• In a small bowl, mix the ricotta, egg, and parsley together. Rip up the basil leaves and fold them into the ricotta mixture. Season with salt and set aside.
• With a slotted spoon, transfer the pieces of pork, sausage, and meatballs from the Sunday Gravy to a separate bowl. They will be coated with some of the tomato gravy. That's okay. Set the remaining gravy and bowl of meats aside.
• Generously salt the boiling water and cook the lasagne sheets, a few at a time, at a rolling boil for 1 minute. The noodles will be very firm; they will cook further in the oven. Transfer the pasta to the ice water with a long-handled flat skimmer or strainer. As soon as they are cool to the touch- less than a minute- lift them out, shaking off excess water, and lay the noodles out on towels to drain. Repeat the process until all the pasta is cooked.
• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• Cover the bottom of the baking pan with a layer of lasagne sheets, allowing the pasta to hang over all sides of the pan. Top with another layer of lasagne sheets cut to fit the bottom of the pan without an overhang.
• Cover the pasta with 1/2 of the reserved meats. Spoon over enough gravy to moisten well, about 1 cup. Sprinkle with a rounded 1/4 cup Pecorino Romano. Cover with another layer of pasta cut to fit without an overhang. Top with 1 cup gravy. Dollop 1/2 of the ricotta mixture over the gravy and top with half of the mozzarella and a rounded 1/4 cup of Pecorino Romano. Repeat the pasta and meat layer and the pasta and ricotta mixture layer.
• Cover with a final layer of pasta (you may not have used all the lasagne sheets) cut to fit the inside of the pan without an overhang. Top with the remaining gravy and Pecorino Romano. Bring up the overhang of pasta and fold over the top of the lasagne to enclose the filling. Dot with remaining butter and loosely cover with foil.
• Bake the lasagne for 25 minutes, uncover, and continue to bake until very lightly browned and bubbling hot, an additional 10 to 15 minutes. To keep the top noodles soft without browning, bake the lasagne covered with foil for 35 minutes and uncovered for the last 5 to 10 minutes in the oven. Let cool for 5 minutes before serving.
• Heat the olive oil in a heavy-bottomed stockpot. Add the pork chops and sausages and brown on all sides. Transfer the pork chops and sausages to a plate to make room for the onions. Toss the onions into the pot with the garlic, fennel, and salt. Saute over moderate heat, stirring frequently and scraping up any bits left behind by the pork and sausages, until the onions are soft and golden.
• Put the pork chops and sausages back in the pot with any juices on the plate. Add the tomatoes, water, and tomato paste. Drop in a few cheese rinds or ends if you have any. They are completely optional but give a nice flavor to the sauce. Cover the pot, bring to a boil, lower the heat, and simmer for 30 minutes. Gently drop in the meatballs, 1 at a time, shaking the pot a bit to encourage the meatballs to nestle in with the pork and sausage and to make room for the addition of more meatballs. After all the meatballs have been added, continue to simmer, covered, for an hour longer or until the pork chops are very tender.
• To finish the gravy, transfer the pork chops to a cutting board. Remove and discard the bones, chop up the meat, and return it to the sauce. Keep warm over low heat.
• Homemade, fresh pasta is glorious and well worth the effort. Nothing compares to the silky, light, slippery noodles you can produce in your own kitchen. This is a quick recipe. The dough is mixed in a food processor and a pasta machine kneads and rolls the dough. George's whips this up easily, in 5 minutes tops.
• There are minor variations depending on the weather and the moisture in your flour (you may have to knead in an extra tablespoon or 2 of flour) but if you follow these proportions you will have excellent pasta.
• The organic eggs we buy at the farmers' market vary in size. The most reliable way to get an accurate measurement is with a portion scale. The measuring cup method will work, too (crack eggs into a small mixing bowl, whisk to combine, pour the required amount into a liquid measuring cup, and discard or save any excess for another use). In making pasta, skill is developed through repetition. Each batch will be easier than the last and with a little experience exact measurements will be less important.
• Don't fret if the final dimensions of the pasta are different from those specified in the recipe. The strips coming through the rollers of the pasta machine may be longer and/or not as wide. The ends may also narrow rather than being perfectly square. For instance, the edge going through the rollers first will be u-shaped (they can be cut later to square the noodle, if you like). Practice does make a difference in developing a feel for the process. Try to roll the dough as wide as possible--a little less than the width of the rollers, but don't be discouraged if that doesn't happen the first time. Adjust the cutting of the pasta to the strips you have--less wide sheets of lasagna noodles, for instance.
• Put the flour in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade. With the motor running pour the eggs through the feed tube. Stop the machine as soon as the mixture resembles coarse cornmeal. Run the motor again pouring the hot water through the feed tube. Pulse on and off for 10 seconds; stop the motor. The dough should stick together when pressed between your fingertips. If not add another 1/2 to 1 teaspoon hot water and run the motor again. Turn out onto a cool, smooth surface--marble is ideal. Knead for 1 to 2 minutes until the dough is smooth and pliable. If it is sticky, knead in 1 to 2 tablespoons flour. Shape into a ball and cover the dough completely with plastic wrap and allow to rest at room temperature for a minimum of 20 minutes or up to 2 hours in the refrigerator. If the dough is refrigerated, remove it from the refrigerator about 20 minutes before proceeding with the recipe.
• Set up the pasta machine with the rollers at their widest opening.
• Divide the dough in 1/2. If the dough is sticky, dust it with flour. Flatten the dough half with the heel of your hand, and feed it through the rollers of pasta machine. Fold the dough in half lengthwise and feed it through the rollers again. Repeat 20 to 30 times occasionally folding widthwise to fit between the guides. This kneads and smoothes the dough further, creating silky and supple pasta.
• Now you can roll the pasta into thin sheets by feeding it through each successive setting of the pasta machine until you have passed it through the second thinnest opening (dust with just enough flour as necessary to keep the dough from sticking). This process is done without folding. If the sheet of pasta becomes cumbersomely long cut it crosswise into 2 pieces to make it more manageable. Repeat with the second half of the dough. Lay the dough out on a barely floured counter or clean, dry kitchen towels. Each half of dough will yield 2 strips of pasta roughly measuring 3 feet by 4 inches.
• Try to make lasagna noodles as wide as your pasta machine allows (4 to 5-inches); cut the lengths the most appropriate size for the pan you plan to use--anywhere from 8 to 12-inches long (longer if you like, or shorter if smaller noodles are easier for you to handle. Lasagna noodles can be cut and patched together in assembly). Keep in mind the pasta will grow, or expand, when it boils, increasing its dimensions.
• After you have cut the noodles, you can cook them right away or lay them out in a single layer without touching on a lightly floured surface or on clean, dry kitchen towels until ready to cook (flour dusted or towel lined baking trays work well if you don't have counter) If you are not using the pasta the same day, allow it to dry completely, then transfer to long, shallow containers with lids. You can keep it in a cool, dry place for 1 week.

HANDMADE LASAGNA SHEETS

Steps:

• Mound the flour in the center of a large mixing bowl. Dig a well in the center of the mound and add the whole eggs and 5 yolks. Using a fork, beat together the eggs and begin to incorporate the flour, starting with the inner rim of the well. The dough will start to come together in a shaggy mass when about half the flour is incorporated.
• Use your fingers to continue to mix the dough. Press any loose bits of flour into the dough. If needed, add another egg yolk or a tablespoon of water to absorb all of the flour.
• Once the dough comes together into a cohesive mass, remove it from the bowl and transfer it to a lightly floured surface. Knead the dough by hand until smooth, elastic and uniform in color, 4 to 5 minutes. Wrap the dough in plastic and set aside at room temperature for at least 30 minutes (or up to 4 hours).
• Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and lightly dust with flour. Set aside.
• Cut off a quarter of the dough. Rewrap the larger portion and set aside. Use the heel of your hand to flatten the small piece of dough into an oval approximately the same width as your pasta machine, about 6 inches wide. Set the rollers to their widest setting and pass the dough through.
• Lay the dough out onto a lightly floured cutting board or countertop and neatly press together into halves, so it's again about the same width of the pasta machine. Feed the pasta through again at the widest setting. Think of these first rollings as an extended kneading. Continue to fold the dough in thirds and roll it until it is smooth, silky and even-textured. Do your best to make the sheet the full width of the machine.
• Once the dough is silky and smooth, you can begin to roll it out more thinly. Roll it once through each of the next two or three settings, adding flour as needed, until the dough is about 1/4-inch thick.
• Once the pasta is about 1/4-inch thick, begin rolling it twice through the next thinner settings. As you roll, lightly sprinkle flour on both sides of the pasta to prevent it from sticking to itself.
• Roll out pasta until you can just see the outline of your hand when you hold it under a sheet, about 1/16-inch thick. (On most machines, you won't make it to the thinnest setting.)
• Cut pasta into sheets, about 13 inches long. Dust the sheets lightly with flour, stack on the prepared baking sheet and cover with a clean, lightly dampened kitchen towel. Repeat with remaining dough.

FRESH TOMATO LASAGNA

Steps:

• Heat oil in small Dutch oven over medium heat.
• Add onion and garlic. Cook 10 minute or till tender, stirring occasionally.
• Add tomato. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 1 hour 20 minutes or till slightly thickened.
• Remove from heat. Stir in 2/3 cup basil, 2/3 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon pepper. Set aside.
• Preheat oven to 375.
• Heat ricotta in a medium sauce pan over medium heat till hot. Stir in mozzarella, stirring till melted. Remove from heat. Stir in remaining salt and pepper.
• Spread 2 cups tomato mixture in bottom of 13 x 9 casserole dish coated with cooking spray. Arrange half the noodles over tomato mixture. Top with ricotta mixture. Arrange remaining noodles over ricotta mixture. Top with remaining 2 cups tomato mixture. Sprinkle evenly with Parmesan.
• Bake at 375 for 15 minutes or till cheese melts and filling is bubbly. Remove from oven. Sprinlke with 1 tablespoon basil. Let stand 5 minutes.
• Above is the recipe as printed in Cooking Light Magazine. I modified it as bit as follows, with excellent results: I used 12 noodles and made three layers. I used dry basil. I omitted garlic.