Lasagna With Bean Ragu 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.

RAGÚ® NO BOILING LASAGNA

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Combine ricotta cheese, 1 cup mozzarella cheese, 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese and eggs in bowl; set aside.
• Spread 1 cup Sauce in 13 x 9-inch baking dish. Layer 4 uncooked noodles, then 1 cup sauce and 1/2 of the ricotta cheese mixture; repeat. Top with remaining 4 uncooked noodles and remaining sauce.
• Bake 1 hour covered tightly with aluminum foil. Remove foil and sprinkle with remaining mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses. Bake uncovered an additional 10 minutes. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

THE ULTIMATE LASAGNE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4.
• For the ragu, heat the olive oil in a frying pan over a low heat and fry the celery, carrots and onion for approximately 15 minutes, until softened and golden. Add the garlic and rosemary and fry for two more minutes.
• Add the beef and pork mince and cook until the liquid from the meat has been absorbed.
• Pour in approximately 400ml/14fl oz of red wine and stir well. Cook for approximately 45 minutes.
• Once the wine has evaporated, add the tomatoes and stock. Leave the mixture uncovered to cook slowly for two hours. Top up with more warm stock if necessary. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.
• To make the bechamel sauce, place the milk in a large non-stick saucepan, add the bay leaves, onion and nutmeg and gently bring to the boil.
• In a separate saucepan melt the butter and add the flour. Beat well and cook for two minutes. Remove the milk from the heat and add a little to the flour mixture. Combine well, and when all the milk has been absorbed, add a little more. Continue to do this until all the milk has been added, whisking continually.
• For the lasagne, blanch the pasta in salted boiling water for three minutes. Spoon a third of the bechamel sauce into the bottom of a lasagne dish in a layer, then place some of the pasta strips over the top. Follow this with some of the mozzarella and parmesan, and sprinkle over freshly ground black pepper. Follow with a layer of ragu. Repeat this step twice until all the ingredients have been used up. Dot knobs of butter over the surface and cook in the oven for 30 minutes, or until golden-brown on top and completely cooked through.

BEEF & PORK RAGU LASAGNE (LASAGNA) FROM FINE COOKING

Steps:

• Make the ragù: In a 5- to 6-qt. Dutch oven, melt the 6 Tbs. butter with the olive oil over medium heat. Add the celery, carrots, and onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened and lightly golden, about 15 minutes.
• Add the beef, pork, and pancetta and cook, breaking up the meats with a spoon and stirring often, until the meats lose their redness, 5 to 8 minutes.
• Stir in the wine, tomato purée, and tomato paste and simmer vigorously until the liquid is almost evaporated, 15 to 20 minutes.
• Add the beef or chicken broth and the milk, cover with the lid ajar, reduce the heat to low, and simmer gently until you have a rich, concentrated sauce, about 2-1/2 hours. Check every 30 minutes to see if more liquid is needed, adding more broth if necessary to prevent scorching.
• Season to taste with salt and pepper, if needed. Let cool. Skim off the fat from the top, if desired. You should have about 6 cups.
• Cook the noodles: Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Prepare a large bowl of ice water. Slip the noodles, two or three at a time, into the boiling water and cook them until they're tender and pale, 3 to 5 minutes (thinner noodles will cook more quickly). If using dried noodles, cook according to box directions.
• Carefully scoop the noodles out of the water with a large wire skimmer and slide them into the ice water to stop the cooking. When they're cool, layer them between clean dish towels until you're ready to assemble the lasagne (they'll keep this way for up to two hours).
• Make the cream sauce: In a 2-qt. saucepan, melt the butter over medium-low heat. Add the flour and cook, whisking constantly for 2 to 3 minutes. Do not let the mixture brown.
• Slowly whisk in the hot milk and bring just to a simmer, whisking frequently.
• Reduce the heat to low and cook, whisking often, until the sauce has thickened to a creamy, gravy-like consistency and no longer tastes of raw flour, 10 to 12 minutes.
• Remove from the heat and whisk in the salt, pepper, and nutmeg. If not using right away, transfer to a bowl and press a piece of plastic wrap directly on the surface of the sauce to keep a skin from forming. Plan to use the sauce within 30 minutes because it thickens if it's left to sit for too long. If that should happen, add a little warm milk and whisk well to thin it.
• Assemble the lasagna: Position a rack in the center of the oven and heat the oven to 350°F Choose a baking dish that's about 9x12 inches and 3 inches deep, or about 10x14 inches and 2 inches deep. Butter the baking dish.
• Spread 1/2 cup of ragù in a sparse layer on the bottom of the dish. Then cover with a slightly overlapping layer of cooked noodles, cutting them as needed to fill the gaps. Spread one-third of the remaining ragù (about 1-1/2 cups) over the first layer of noodles.
• Drizzle on one-third of the Basic Cream Sauce (about 1 cup) and spread it with a spatula or the back of a spoon.
• Sprinkle with 1/3 cup Parmigiano. Add a new layer of noodles, overlapping them slightly.
• Repeat the layers as instructed above, until all of the filling ingredients are used, to make a total of three layers (you may not need all the pasta). Dot the top with the butter cubes.
• Put the baking dish on a baking sheet and bake until heated through and bubbling at the edges, 45 to 50 minutes. Remove from the oven and let rest for 10 to 15 minutes before serving.
• Make Ahead Tips: You can prepare the ragù up to four days ahead and refrigerate it, or freeze it for up to one month. Reheat gently until the sauce is warm enough to spread for assembling the lasagne. The assembled, unbaked lasagne will keep for at least a day in the refrigerator. Alternatively, you can freeze it for up to four months (make sure you wrap the dish tightly with plastic). Thaw the lasagne in the fridge and bring it to room temperature before baking.

LASAGNA WITH BEAN RAGU

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
• Place onions, celery, carrot, and pancetta in the bowl of a food processor; pulse until finely chopped.
• Place 1 tablespoon olive oil, chopped vegetable mixture, and rosemary in a Dutch oven over medium heat. Cook, stirring, until vegetables are caramelized, about 10 minutes. Add beans and continue cooking 5 minutes more. Add red wine and cook until liquid is reduced by half.
• Add tomato sauce and stock; stir to combine. Transfer to oven and cook for 20 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, return to oven and cook for 10 minutes more.
• Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat. Add 1/2 cup salt and return to a boil. Add lasagna pieces and cook, according to package directions, until al dente. Drain, reserving 1/4 cup pasta cooking water.
• Transfer pasta to Dutch oven, adding pasta cooking water, 1 tablespoon at a time, if sauce seems too thick. Continue to cook pasta, stirring, in the hot sauce, 3 to 5 minutes more. Season with salt and pepper.
• In a large bowl or serving platter, place a layer of just the sauce; top with a layer of pasta and sprinkle with a third of the cheese. Repeat layering process two more times with remaining sauce, pasta, and cheese; sprinkle with parsley. Serve immediately.