Casseroles make some of the most practical and delicious all-in-one
meals. When you have a dish like lasagna, you really don't need sides,
the lasagna takes all the attention. The thing that makes lasagna so
popular is its ability to bring joy to everyone who eats it. I've never
met a person who didn't like lasagna. It has to be all that cheese and
sauce melted together between layers and layers of pasta. Most people
would agree that lasagna is Italy's answer to comfort food. Not to
mention it's practically a sanctified Italian-American specialty.
This recipe is based on a traditional Northern Italian lasagne alla
Bolognese named after the gastronomic hub of Bologna. The lasagna
features two important ingredients: the ragù, a slow-cooked meat sauce,
and a béchamel, a white sauce made of butter, flour, milk, and a touch
of nutmeg. Italian-American lasagna replaces béchamel sauce with
ricotta. It's mostly a time-saving step, but I'd like to think we
Americans prefer the flavor of the cheese to the white sauce. My recipe
fuses both traditional and modern by combining the ragù and the ricotta
filling to create a classic Italian-American lasagna.
Except for the pasta, this lasagna is made almost from scratch. The
sauce starts with sofrito (onion, garlic, carrot, and celery), tomato
paste, red wine, and crushed tomatoes. Cooked slowly for about an hour,
it makes the most simple and versatile sauce. Without the meat, it
could easily function as a flavorful marinara. The sauce can be made a
day in advance and rewarmed before assembling the lasagna. Once it's
baked, bubbling, and brown, be sure to let the lasagna cool so it
doesn't ooze into a puddle, though it's still highly enjoyable either
way. This lasagna would make the most perfect Sunday family supper.
Just think how easy it will be to get everyone to the table when they
hear what's for dinner.
Classic Lasagna
for the Bolognese sauce:
1 large yellow onion, cubed
2 celery stalks, cubed
2 carrots, cubed
2 garlic cloves
olive oil
1 pound ground beef
1 pound ground pork
fine sea salt
freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 cup dry red wine
2 28-ounce cans crushed tomatoes
1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
1 large bay leaf
for the ricotta filling:
1 32-ounce container ricotta cheese
1 large egg
1/4 cup milk
1/4 cup chopped parsley
for the assembly:
olive oil
14 sheets dried lasagna pasta
1 pound mozzarella, sliced
8 ounces Parmesan cheese, grated
Make the Bolognese sauce: Add onion, celery, carrots, and garlic to the bowl of a food processor. Pulse until finely chopped.
Warm a splash of oil in a large pot or Dutch oven set over medium-high
heat. Add the ground meats and cook, breaking up bits, until no longer
pink, about 8 minutes. Remove to a bowl and drain off fat.
Refresh the pot with oil and add chopped vegetables. Sauté until very
soft, about 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Stir in tomato
paste. Pour in wine and bring to a boil. Simmer vigorously for 5
minutes to cook off alcohol. Return cooked meats to the pot. Add
tomatoes, Italian seasoning, and bay leaf. Bring back to a simmer and
reduce heat to low. Cook, uncovered, until thickened, about 45 minutes
to 1 hour. Check seasoning once cooked. Remove bay leaf.
Make the ricotta filling: Combine ricotta, egg, milk and parsley in a large bowl. Season with salt and pepper.
Boil the pasta in liberally salted water until just short of al dente.
Drain into a colander, return to pot, and toss with oil to prevent
sticking. Brush the bottom and sides of a 9-by-13-inch baking dish with
oil.
Assemble the lasagna: Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Add a ladleful of
sauce to bottom of pan and spread evenly. Layer over crosswise with 4
sheets of pasta, allowing ends to turn up sides of baking dish. Line
each end of baking dish with a sheet of pasta to form a collar. Spread
about half the sauce in the bottom. Top with half the ricotta filling
and spread evenly. Top with a third of the mozzarella and a third of
the Parmesan. Repeat with another layer of 4 sheets of pasta, almost
all the remaining sauce (reserve 1 ladleful), the remaining ricotta
filling, half the remaining mozzarella, and half the remaining
Parmesan. Top with the remaining pasta. Spread with remaining ladleful
sauce. Top with remaining mozzarella and Parmesan. Tuck the ends of the
pasta into the baking dish using a spatula. Place the baking dish on a
sheet of foil to catch any drips and bake lasagna until bubbling and
brown, about 45 minutes. Let rest for 45 minutes before serving.
Yield: 8 servings.
Joseph Erdos is a New York–based writer and editor, butabove all a gastronomer and oenophile. He shares his passion for foodon his blog, Gastronomer's Guide , which features unique recipes and restaurant reviews among many other musings on the all-encompassing topic of food.