Almost Lasagna Rachael Ray Recipes

MEXICAN LASAGNA

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
• Preheat a large skillet over medium high heat. Add 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil - twice around the pan. Add chicken and season with chili powder, cumin, and red onion. Brown the meat, 5 minutes. Add taco sauce or stewed or fire roasted tomatoes. Add black beans and corn. Heat the mixture through, 2 to 3 minutes then season with salt, to your taste.
• Coat a shallow baking dish with remaining extra-virgin olive oil, about 1 tablespoon oil. Cut the tortillas in half or quarters to make them easy to layer with. Build lasagna in layers of meat and beans, then tortillas, then cheese. Repeat: meat, tortilla, cheese again. Bake lasagna 12 to 15 minutes until cheese is brown and bubbly. Top with the scallions and serve.

SPINACH LASAGNA

Steps:

• Heat the EVOO in a saucepot and add the butter. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes and crush them up a bit. Add the passata, a fat handful of torn basil leaves, the onion and some salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer and simmer for 40 to 45 minutes. Remove the onion and set the sauce aside.
• Separate the spinach while adding it to a mixing bowl. Add half of the mozzarella, the ricotta, 1 1/2 cups of the Parmigiano-Reggiano and the eggs yolks and mix to combine. Season with grated nutmeg, salt and pepper.
• Layer a little sauce into a lasagna pan and top with three flat lasagna sheets or four curly. Top with a little more sauce, and then half of the spinach and cheese mixture. Repeat with another layer, and end on top with lasagna sheets. Top with some sauce and the remaining mozzarella and Parmigiano-Reggiano.
• The lasagna can be stored before or after baking for a make-ahead meal, or baked to serve immediately. When baking the first time, bake at 375 degrees F, uncovered, from room temperature until cooked through and brown and bubbling on top, 60 to 70 minutes. If reheating, bake at 375 degrees F, covered, for 40 to 45 minutes.
• Let the lasagna rest 20 minutes before cutting. Serve with extra sauce on the side.

SLOPPY LASAGNA

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of water to a boil over medium heat. Break all of the pasta sheets into irregular, larger than single bite-sized pieces. Salt the water, then add the pasta and cook to a little shy of al dente. Drain and set aside in a large bowl.
• Heat the extra-virgin olive oil in a heavy bottomed pot or large skillet over medium heat. Add the meat, press it into an even layer and brown it for 3 to 4 minutes before moving. Turn the meat and add the onions and grated carrot. Stir and cook a few minutes to soften, then add the garlic, bay leaves, salt and pepper, to taste, and the cinnamon. Cook for a couple of minutes, then stir in the tomato paste, wait for 1 minute then add the wine. Reduce for a minute more, then add the tomatoes, breaking them up as you stir. Reduce the heat to a simmer and add the basil.
• While the sauce simmers, in a medium sauce pot, melt the butter over medium heat and whisk in the flour. Cook for 1 minute, then whisk in the milk and nutmeg, and season with salt, pepper, to taste. Let cook for a couple of minutes to thicken, then stir in 1/2 cup of the grated cheese and turn off the heat.
• Heat a broiler.
• Add the meat sauce to the bowl with the pasta and toss. Layer half of the pasta into a lasagna pan and scatter with dollops of fresh ricotta cheese. Top with remaining pasta. Pour the white sauce over the pasta and scatter the remaining 1 cup of the grated cheese over the top. Put under the broiler to brown and bubble. Remove from the broiler and serve.

LASAGNA WITH ROASTED EGGPLANT-RICOTTA FILLING

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• Place the cherry tomatoes on a large baking sheet along with the thyme, oregano and garlic. Dress with 2 tablespoons of the EVOO, season with salt and pepper and toss to coat. Roast until the tomatoes burst, 35 to 45 minutes
• Brush the eggplant with the remaining 2 tablespoons EVOO and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place cut-side down on a baking sheet and roast alongside the tomatoes until soft, 30 to 40 minutes.
• Let the tomatoes cool slightly, and then puree them with the basil in a food processor until smooth. Remove the skins from the garlic and puree the sauce with the roasted cloves before transferring the sauce to a bowl.
• When the eggplant has cooled, spoon out the flesh and add it into the cleaned bowl of the food processor along with the ricotta, Parmigiano-Reggiano, egg yolks and some salt and pepper. Puree the mixture until smooth and season with more salt and pepper.
• Ladle one-third of the tomato sauce into the bottom of a 9-by-13-inch casserole dish. Layer pasta sheets on top, followed by one-half of the eggplant, more pasta sheets, tomato sauce and 1/2 of the mozzarella. Repeat with another layer of pasta sheets, followed by the remaining eggplant, more pasta sheets and the remaining tomato sauce. Top the lasagna with the remaining mozzarella. Bake 1 hour. Let cool 20 minutes before serving.

BROKEN FLORENTINE LASAGNA BAKE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375F.
• Melt the butter in a medium pot over medium heat. Sprinkle the flour over the melted butter, whisk to combine, and cook for about 1 minute. Slowly whisk the milk into the butter-flour mixture, season with salt, pepper, and nutmeg, and cook for a couple of minutes to thicken. Stir in half the Parmigiano (about 3/4 cup). Set the sauce aside.
• Heat the EVOO in a large cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat. Toss in the cracked clove of garlic and cook for a minute or two to release its aroma and flavor. Add the chard and cook, turning occasionally to wilt down, 2 minutes. Add the spinach a few handfuls at a time, wilting each batch before adding more. Season the greens with salt and pepper.
• Break the pasta sheets into large pieces. Toss them into the pan with the greens and give them a good stir to incorporate them. Pour the sauce into the skillet, stirring again to incorporate everything evenly. Smooth the top down and sprinkle the remaining 3/4 cup Parmigiano into the skillet. Cover the skillet with foil, transfer to the oven, and bake the lasagna for 30 minutes. Remove the foil from the pan and let it finish cooking uncovered for about 15 more minutes to brown the cheese.

RACHAEL RAY'S MEXICAN LASAGNA

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
• TO COOK THE FILLING: Preheat a large skillet over medium high heat.
• Add 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil - twice around the pan.
• Add chicken and season with chili powder, cumin, and red onion.
• Brown the meat, 5 minutes.
• Add taco sauce or stewed or fire roasted tomatoes.
• Add black beans and corn.
• Heat the mixture through, 2 to 3 minutes then season with salt, to your taste.
• ASSEMBLE LASAGNA: Coat a shallow baking dish with remaining extra-virgin olive oil, about 1 tablespoon oil.
• Cut the tortillas in half or quarters to make them easy to layer with.
• Build lasagna in layers of meat and beans, then tortillas, then cheese.
• Repeat: meat, tortilla, cheese again.
• Bake lasagna 12 to 15 minutes until cheese is brown and bubbly.
• Top with the scallions.
• *NOTE* - I omit the last step and offer the chopped scallions, chopped tomatoes, salsa and sour cream on the side as additional toppings.

LASAGNA STOUP ALA RACHAEL RAY

Steps:

• In a soup pot, heat oil over med high heat.
• Add the beef, season with salt and pepper and cook until browned, 3 to 4 minutes.
• Stir in the onion, carrots and garlic and cook until softened, 5 to 7 minutes.
• Stir in 2 cups water, the chicken broth and tomatoes; and dried seasonings -- if using fresh add later, cover and bring to a boil.
• Add the pasta and cook until al dente, about 15 minutes.
• Serve stoup in bowls and dollop with ricotta.
• Pass the parm at the table.

ALMOST LASAGNA - RACHAEL RAY

Steps:

• Heat a large pot of water to boil for pasta. Salt water and cook pasta to al dente. Heads up: you will need a ladle of the starchy cooking water to help form sauce before draining.
• Heat a deep nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add extra-virgin olive oil, 2 turns of the pan. Add the meat and break it up into small bits as it caramelizes. Once meat has good color to it, 4 to 5 minutes, add garlic, onions and red pepper flakes and season with salt, pepper, allspice and Worcestershire sauce. Cook another 5 minutes, deglaze the meat and onions with red wine, cook off a minute, then combine about 1/2 cup of stock into the meat. Stir in the tomatoes and bring to a bubble. Reduce heat to medium low and simmer 5 minutes.
• Place ricotta cheese in the bottom of a shallow bowl. Add a ladleful of boiling, starchy pasta water to the ricotta and stir to combine. Add a couple of handfuls of grated Parmesan to the ricotta and mix it inches.
• Drain pasta. Toss hot pasta with cheeses. Add half the thick meat sauce to the pasta bowl and combine. Tear or shred the basil and add to the meat and pasta, toss again. Taste to adjust salt and pepper. Serve bowlfuls of Not-sagna with extra sauce on top and more grated Parmesan to pass at the table.