Baked Lasagna Recipe: Rich, Hearty, and Delicious

Lasagna is a comfort food that combines satisfying rich flavors and filling textures in every bite. This popular Italian tradition, built with layers of pasta, hearty meat sauce, and melted cheese, has been a beloved family favorite at kitchen tables for generations.

Whether at family gatherings or as an easy weeknight meal, lasagna is a satisfying and delicious experience that never fails to please. Its adaptability allows for the creation of infinite versions, and thus the dish can be modified with ease to fit various tastes.

Lasagna with My Version: Ingredients and Preparation

Preparing a 4-person tray of lasagna involves the following ingredients:

Ingredients:

• 250g egg puff pastry sheets (approximately 20 cm by 15 cm)
• 800g meat sauce
• 500g béchamel sauce
• 200g cooked ham sliced
• 200g caciotta cheese
• 4 eggs boiled hard
• 150g peas (for addition to the meat sauce)
• 100g Parmesan cheese or freshly ground Grana cheese
• Meat Sauce Recipe

Meat Sauce Ingredients:

• 500g veal and pork ground
• 1 carrot, 1 stalk of celery, and 1 small onion, finely chopped
• 500g chopped tomatoes, peeled
• 1 liter of meat stock (or stock cube)
• 1 pinch of brine (chopped garlic, rosemary, sage, salt, and pepper)
• Olive oil (as necessary)

Preparation of Meat Sauce:

1. Heat olive oil in a pan and brown the finely chopped onion, celery, and carrot.
2. Add the ground meat and fry for 10 minutes. Prepare a liter of stock using the meat stock cube, and add to the sauté mixture.
3. Stir until the stock evaporates, roughly two hours. Add water in moderation so as not to dry.
4. Salt and pepper, then add chopped tomatoes.
5. Simmer for further 20 minutes.
6. Add the peas and stir for further 10 minutes, adding water or stock as needed.

Béchamel Sauce Recipe

Ingredients of Béchamel Sauce:

• 500ml whole milk
• 50g butter
• 50g flour
• A pinch of nutmeg
• A pinch of salt

Béchamel Preparation:

1. Heat the milk in a saucepan, including the nutmeg and salt.
2. Melt the butter in another pan, add the flour, and mix to avoid lumps.
3. Pour the flour mixture into the boiling milk slowly, stirring constantly, until the sauce is at your desired consistency.

Lasagna Assembly:

1. While heating up the meat sauce and béchamel sauce, prepare the hard-boiled eggs and cheese too.
2. Butter a rectangular baking dish (20x30 cm).
3. Add a few tablespoons of meat sauce at the bottom of the dish, followed by a sheet of dough.
4. Spread more meat sauce and béchamel sauce over the pasta.
5. Add a layer of caciotta cheese, slices of hard-boiled eggs, and ham cooked.
6. Repeat layering sequence until all ingredients are used up, finishing with a topping of meat sauce, béchamel sauce, and grated Parmesan on top.
7. Bake in a static oven at 180°C for about 30 minutes, or until a crusty top is formed.

Tip for Extra Lasagna:

Since preparation of lasagna is time-consuming, I would suggest doubling the quantities and preparing two trays. Place the second tray in the freezer for later and bake when you need to have a new lasagna.

Traditional Lasagna Bolognese Recipe

If you prefer a traditional Bolognese lasagna, you can follow the following steps.

Green Pasta Recipe for Lasagna Bolognese

Serves 4 people:

• 300g flour
• 60g finely chopped, cooked spinach
• 3 medium eggs
• Beat eggs and mix them with flour and spinach. Knead the dough by hand until stiff.
• Rest the dough 30 minutes, covered.
• Roll out dough in thin sheets, cut into rectangles, and cook them in salted water for a few minutes. Dry the sheets on a towel.

Bolognese Ragù Recipe

For Bolognese ragù:

• 300g ground beef
• 150g minced pork belly
• 1 celery rib, 1 onion, and 1 carrot
• 300g tomato puree
• ½ glass dry white wine
• ½ glass milk
• Olive oil
• Pepper, salt
• ½ glass fresh cooking cream (optional)
• Sauté the chopped bacon, onion, carrot, and celery rib in olive oil in low heat in a large pot. Add the ground meat and brown it.
• Add the white wine and allow it to evaporate. Add the tomato puree and cook slowly for about two hours, adding stock if needed to prevent drying out.
• Add the milk, pepper, and salt. Add the cream if using, towards the end of taking the sauce off the heat.

Lasagna with Pesto

A novel variation on lasagna which brings together pesto, béchamel sauce, and caciotta cheese.

Pesto alla Genovese Preparation

Ingredients:

• 100g basil leaves
• 120g olive oil
• 60g pine nuts
• 60g aged pecorino
• 40g Parmesan cheese
• ½ garlic clove
• A pinch of coarse salt
• In a mortar, grind the garlic with salt, then add the basil leaves and continue grinding.
• Add the pine nuts and continue grinding. Add the grated cheeses and mix with olive oil until smooth.

Lasagna with Pesto Preparation

Ingredients:

• 250g lasagna pasta
• 300g pesto
• 300g béchamel sauce
• 200g caciotta or provola cheese
• Spread a spoon of pesto on the bottom of the greased pan, then a layer of pasta.
• Continue with additional layers of pesto, béchamel, and caciotta cheese until all have been used. Cover with Parmesan cheese.
• Bake in a preheated oven at 180°C for 30 minutes.

Lasagna with Mushrooms

This fall lasagna features mushrooms as the main filling.

Mushroom Sauce Preparation

1. Wash and slice mushrooms. Sauté garlic in olive oil and simmer for 10 minutes. Add sliced parsley.
2. Alternate pasta, mushroom sauce, and béchamel with Parmesan cheese at the top.
3. Bake in a preheated oven at 180°C for about 40 minutes.

Enjoy your meal!