Lasagna with Béchamel and Bolognese Sauce
Serves 4
Ingredients:
9 lasagna pasta noodles
2 cups Bolognese sauce
2 tablespoons prepared pesto
2 ounces Parmesan cheese, freshly grated
Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Make both sauces, see below. Set aside.
Cook pasta according to directions, slightly before it reaches the al dente stage.
To assemble: Spread 1/2 Béchamel sauce in bottom of 9 x 13 baking dish. Sprinkle evenly with 1/3 of the Parmesan cheese.
Top sauce with 3 pasta noodles lengthwise. Evenly spread ½ Bolognese sauce over noodles. Top with 1/3 Mozzarella cheese. Repeat each layer again ending with both cheeses. Cover with foil, tented or sprayed with cooking oil to avoid sticking.
Cook in oven for 20 minutes. Remove foil and cook additional 20 minutes or until cheese has Very slightly browned on top. Cool 15-20 minutes before serving.
Béchamel (basic white sauce)
Makes 2 cups
Ingredients
2 cups milk
3 tablespoons butter or margarine
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
¼ onion, peeled, quartered
1 bay leaf
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
Instructions:
Heat the milk to a simmer in a medium saucepan. Add the onion and bay leaf. Lower the heat so that the milk just stays warm.
Meanwhile, in a separate heavy-bottomed saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat until it becomes frothy. Take care not to let the butter turn brown, though — that'll affect the flavor.
With a wooden spoon, stir the flour into the melted butter a little bit at a time, until it is fully incorporated into the butter, giving you a pale-yellow-colored paste. This paste is called a roux. Heat the roux for another few minutes or so, until it has turned a light blond color. Don't let it get too dark.
Using a wire whisk, slowly add the warm milk to the roux, whisking vigorously to make sure it's free of lumps. Simmer for about 10 minutes until thickened, stirring frequently to make sure the sauce doesn't scorch at the bottom of the pan. Use a ladle to skim off any impurities that rise to the surface.
The resulting sauce should be smooth and velvety. If it's too thick, whisk in a bit more milk until it's just thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. Remove the sauce from the heat. For an extra smooth consistency, carefully pour the sauce through a wire mesh strainer lined with a piece of cheesecloth. Keep the sauce covered until you're ready to use it.
Bolognese Sauce
Makes about 2 cups
Ingredients:
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 tablespoon cooking oil
1 small ham hock
1 cup small diced carrots
3/4 cup small diced celery
1 cup small diced onions
3/4 pound ground beef
¼ pound ground sausage
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 tablespoon minced garlic
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 cup whole milk
Salt and black
Instructions:
In a small sauce pot, bring the cream up to a simmer and reduce by 1/3. About 6 tablespoons of cream should be remaining. In a sauce pot, heat oil to medium high and stir in the carrots, celery, and onions. Season with salt and pepper. Sauté the vegetables for about 3 minutes or until the onions are translucent. Add garlic and cook another minute.
In a mixing bowl, combine the meats. Season the meats with salt and pepper. Stir the meat into the vegetables and continue to cook until the meat has browned, about 5 minutes. Stir in the wine and tomato paste, reduce the heat to very low. Add ¼ of the milk. Cook partially covered for 30 minutes up to 2 hours. From time to time stir in more milk until all of the milk is incorporated. Stir in the reduced cream. Season with salt and black pepper.