Jans Summer Garden 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.

SUMMER VEG LASAGNE

Steps:

• Preheat the grill to full whack.
• Trim and finely slice the spring onions.
• Pour the oil from the anchovy tin into a large frying pan over a high heat, then add the spring onions and anchovies (save the rest for another day).
• Using a garlic crusher, crush the garlic straight into the pan and toss everything together well.
• Line up the asparagus, trim off the woody ends, then finely slice and add the stems to the pan, reserving the tips for later.
• Season with sea salt and black pepper, add 1 splash of boiling water and cook for a few minutes, or until softened, stirring occasionally.
• Add the peas and broad beans to the pan, then pick, roughly chop and add the mint along with the cream. Finely grate in half the lemon zest.
• Roughly mash and squash everything in the pan using a fork or a potato masher, then season to perfection with salt and pepper.
• Pour in the stock and bring to the boil, then stir in 1 tub of cottage cheese - the consistency should be creamy and loose.
• Place a deep 30cm x 35cm roasting tray on a medium heat. Spoon in a quarter of the veggie mixture to cover the bottom of the tray, then top with a layer of lasagne sheets, and a good grating of Parmesan. Repeat the layers with the rest of the veg and pasta, finishing with a layer of lasagne sheets.
• Mix the remaining tub of cottage cheese with 1 splash of water to loosen, then spread evenly over the top of the lasagne.
• Toss the reserved asparagus tips in a drizzle of oil, then tip onto the lasagne, pushing everything down with the back of a spoon to compact.
• Strip over the thyme leaves and finish with a drizzle of oil and a generous grating of Parmesan.
• Turn the heat under the tray up to high and cook until the lasagne starts to bubble, then place under the grill on the middle shelf for 8 minutes, or until golden and gorgeous. Delicious served with a seasonal green salad.

NO-BAKE SUMMER LASAGNA

Steps:

• In a small bowl, combine ricotta, Parmesan, and 2 teaspoons oil; season with salt and pepper. In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook noodles according to package instructions; drain.
• Meanwhile, in a large skillet, heat 2 tablespoons oil over medium-high. Add garlic and tomatoes; season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring, until slightly broken down, about 3 minutes. Transfer tomatoes to a bowl. Add 1 tablespoon oil and zucchini to skillet; season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring, until zucchini are tender, about 5 minutes. Transfer to another bowl and stir in basil.
• Place some tomatoes on four plates; top with a noodle and small spoonfuls ricotta, zucchini, and more tomatoes. Repeat layering twice, then top with remaining noodles and tomatoes. Garnish with basil.