Lasagna Verde Food

LASAGNA VERDE

Steps:

• Assemble lasagna: Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. In a greased 12 x 7 (2-quart) casserole dish, lay down a lasagna sheet, cutting to fit if necessary; spread 1 cup of Besciamella on top. Add another layer of pasta, then evenly spread 3/4 cup Pistachio Pesto on top, followed by 3/4 cup mozzarella and 1/2 cup Parmigiano. Repeat layering 2 more times for a total of 6 pasta layers. Finish with a final layer of pasta, 1 cup Besciamella, 1/2 cup Parmigiano, and 1/2 cup mozzarella. Cover with foil and bake, 25 minutes. Remove foil, then back another 10 minutes until top if golden brown. Let cool 15 minutes before plating. Garnish each serving with freshly cracked black pepper and a sprinkle of Parmigiano.
• In a food processor, add pistachios; pulse a few times to roughly chop. Use a chef's knife to roughly chop arugula, chives, basil, and parsley (a few stems are okay); add to the food processor. (It will seem like a lot of herbs, but just pack them down.) Add Parmigiano, along with a pinch of chile flakes and salt. Process on high speed, adding lemon juice and oil in a steady stream. (Turn off the motor to scrape down the sides of the bowl as necessary while processing.) Season to taste with salt. Makes 2 1/2-3 cups. (Store in airtight container in the refrigerator up to 3 days).
• In a medium, heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium-high heat, begin to melt butter. Meanwhile, roughly slice shallot and add to the butter, along with bay leaf, thyme and peppercorns. Once butter is bubbly, sprinkle in flour and stir constantly until the raw flour is cooked and smells nutty, 4-5 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-low; then slowly add milk while stirring constantly until mixture starts to thicken, 2-3 minutes. Besciamella is done when it coats the back of a spoon. Add nutmeg and season generously with salt to taste. Place a fine-mesh strainer over a bowl. Remove Besciamella from heat and strain into the bowl; it should be the consistency of thick batter. (Stir in a few tablespoons water if it's too thick.) Cover the surface of the sauce with plastic wrap to prevent a skin from forming until assembly time. Makes 5½-6 cups. (Make ahead and store in the refrigerator for up to 2 days; bring to room temperature before using.)
• Lasagna sheets: Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add enough salt to make it taste like the sea. Meanwhile, fill a bowl with ice water and set aside. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper and set aside. Parcook the lasagna sheets one at a time, in boiling water, for 60 seconds, then transfer to the ice bath for 15 seconds. Place parcooked sheet on the sheet pan and pat dry with a paper towel. Cover with a layer of parchment paper and repeat, creating a stack of sheets, each patted dry and separated by a layer of parchment.(Note: If using dried lasagna, cook according to manufacturer's instructions.)

LASAGNE VERDI AL FORNO

Steps:

• For the pasta dough: Steam the spinach in a steamer or over boiling water until bright green, 2 minutes. Squeeze to remove excess moisture and process in a food processor to make a paste. Combine spinach with eggs, semolina, and salt and process until smooth. Stir in enough of the flour to make a smooth dough. Knead briefly, cover and set aside.
• For the ragu: In a large skillet, melt butter over medium-high heat. Saute bacon, carrot, celery and onion until onion is translucent. Stir in ground pork, ground beef and minced ham, and cook until browned. Stir in tomato paste, oregano and beef stock. (Reserve the chicken livers for later.) Season with salt and pepper, reduce heat to low, cover and simmer 20 minutes.
• For the bechamel: While the ragu is simmering, combine 2 tablespoons butter and 2 tablespoons flour in a medium saucepan over medium-low heat. Whisk to make a roux. Remove from heat, let rest one minute, then whisk in warm milk. Return to heat, simmer 10 minutes, stirring constantly, until thickened. Season with salt and nutmeg. Remove from heat.
• To cook pasta: Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. On a floured surface, divide pasta dough into three portions. Roll each portion out to a thin sheet. Have ready an ice water bath. Cook each sheet 3 minutes in the boiling water; remove from the boiling water and dip in the ice water; drain and dry on a clean, dry cloth.
• To finish the ragu: Stir the chicken livers into the simmering sauce. Cook 1 minute, remove from heat and set aside.
• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Grease a 9x13 baking dish.
• To assemble lasagna: Place one pasta sheet in bottom of prepared baking dish. Spread one-third of the ragu, one-quarter of the bechamel, one-third of the ricotta, and one-quarter of the parmesan over the pasta. Repeat layers twice. Top with remaining bechamel and parmesan and dot with butter.
• Bake in preheated oven 30 minutes, until top is golden brown.

CLASSIC LASAGNE

Steps:

• To make the meat sauce, heat 2 tbsp olive oil in a frying pan and cook 750g lean beef mince in two batches for about 10 mins until browned all over.
• Finely chop 4 slices of prosciutto from a 90g pack, then stir through the meat mixture.
• Pour over 800g passata or half our basic tomato sauce recipe and 200ml hot beef stock. Add a little grated nutmeg, then season.
• Bring up to the boil, then simmer for 30 mins until the sauce looks rich.
• Heat oven to 180C/fan/160C/gas 4 and lightly oil an ovenproof dish (about 30 x 20cm).
• Spoon one third of the meat sauce into the dish, then cover with some fresh lasagne sheets from a 300g pack. Drizzle over roughly 130g ready-made or homemade white sauce.
• Repeat until you have 3 layers of pasta. Cover with the remaining 390g white sauce, making sure you can't see any pasta poking through.
• Scatter 125g torn mozzarella over the top.
• Arrange the rest of the prosciutto on top. Bake for 45 mins until the top is bubbling and lightly browned.