Incredible Lasagna W Bolognese Sauce Recipes

OLD SCHOOL LASAGNA WITH BOLOGNESE SAUCE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Tomato Sauce:
• In a medium pot, heat the olive oil and add the onions and garlic. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. When it turns light brown, add the thyme, bay leaf and tomatoes. Simmer for 20 minutes, then taste for seasoning. Add more salt and pepper, if desired. Remove and discard the thyme and bay leaves. Stir in the basil leaves and shut off the heat to allow the sauce to "rest."
• Pasta: Bring the water to a boil over medium heat. Add the salt and the lasagna sheets. Cook for 4 minutes, drain and rinse under cold water. The pasta should still be very firm to the touch. Separate the sheets carefully so they don't stick together.
• Divide the tomato sauce in half and reserve half for the Bolognese and half for the lasagna.
• Assemble the lasagna:
• Spoon a thin layer of the sauce in the bottom of the baking pan. Arrange a layer of pasta sheets over the sauce. Sprinkle some of the mozzarella and Parmesan over the pasta and another thin layer of sauce. Repeat the layering process 2 more times. It is important there be remaining cheese and sauce for the top. Cook's Note: I love to get a corner piece from the pan and pick at the crispy edges of the top layer. When you finish, there should be 4 layers of pasta and 5 layers of filling.
• Cover the dish tightly with aluminum foil and put it in the center of the oven. Bake for 45 minutes. Raise the temperature of the oven to 450 degrees F and remove the aluminum foil. Bake until the top browns slightly, about 10 to 15 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and let it cool for 15 minutes or so before serving.
• Make the Bolognese while the lasagna is baking:
• In a large wide pot over medium-high heat, add the olive oil. Add the ground beef and cook until brown, about 4 to 5 minutes, stirring with a wooden spoon to break up the pieces. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Remove the beef from the pot and set aside. Set the pot back over the heat and add a little more olive oil. Add carrots, onion and celery. Cook until browned, about 5 minutes. Add the beef back to the pot, then add the reserved 1/2 recipe of tomato sauce. Cover slightly and simmer for 20 minutes.
• When done, finish with milk, taste, season and serve, spooned over the lasagna.

INCREDIBLE LASAGNA W/ BOLOGNESE SAUCE

Steps:

• Grease a ceramic 9 x 13 casserole dish with butter and set aside (this is so that the noodles don't stick to the bottom, and it works better than putting sauce down, and tastes great, too).
• Boil lasagna shells until al dente (look at directions on package), unless you're using the ready to bake type.
• Arrange pasta into single layer in pan, cutting and patching to fit as needed.
• Carefully top with a thin layer of bolognese (about 1 1/2 cups). Sprinkle liberally with parmiggiano cheese.
• Arrange another layer of pasta on top, covering with bechamel (about 1 1/3 cup) and sprinkle again with parmiggiano cheese.
• Repeat layers until you have at least 3 layers of bolognese and bechamel, then finish with another cup of the reserved bolognese, and finally top with parmigianno.
• Bake at 350 degrees until hot and bubbly, about 50 minutes.
• Let rest about 15 minutes before serving.
• Serve with any remaining bolognese on the side.

LASAGNA BOLOGNESE

Steps:

• Up to two days ahead
• Make the Bolognese sauce Pulse onion, carrot, and celery in a food processor until finely chopped.
• Heat olive oil in a large heavy pot over medium heat. Add ground beef, ground pork, pancetta, and vegetables; cook, breaking up ground meat with a spoon, until moisture is almost completely evaporated and meat is well browned, 25-30 minutes; season with salt and pepper.
• Add wine to pot and bring to a boil, scraping up browned bits from bottom of pot, about 2 minutes. Add milk; bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer until moisture is almost completely evaporated, 8-10 minutes. Add tomatoes and 2 cups broth; bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer, adding water by 1/2-cupfuls if sauce looks dry, until flavors meld and sauce thickens, 2 1/2-3 hours.
• Let sauce cool, then cover and chill at least 12 hours or up to 2 days. (Letting the sauce sit will give it a deeper, richer flavor.)
• Up to one day ahead
• Make the fresh pasta dough Whisk salt and 3 cups flour in a large bowl, make a well in the center, and crack eggs into well. Mix eggs with a fork, then slowly mix in flour until a shaggy dough forms. Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead, dusting lightly with flour if sticky, until smooth, about 5 minutes (it will be fairly stiff). Wrap in plastic; let sit until dough holds an indentation when pressed, 1-2 hours.
• Chill dough if you are not rolling it out right away. Bring to room temperature before rolling out, about 1 hour.
• Make the noodles Set pasta maker to thickest setting; dust lightly with flour. Divide dough into 4 pieces. Working with 1 piece at a time and keeping remaining dough wrapped in plastic as you work, flatten dough into a narrow rectangle (no wider than mouth of machine); pass through rollers . Fold dough as needed to fit and run through again. Repeat without folding, adjusting machine to thinner settings after every pass and dusting with flour if sticky, until pasta sheet is 1/16" thick (setting 8 on most machines). Place pasta sheets on a lightly floured surface and cut crosswise into 16 8"-long noodles.
• If making noodles ahead, stack on a baking sheet with a piece of parchment paper between each layer. Cover with plastic wrap; chill.
• Make the béchamel Heat butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat until foaming. Add flour and cook, whisking constantly, 1 minute. Whisk in warm milk, 1/2-cupful at a time. Bring sauce to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer, whisking often, until the consistency of cream, 8-10 minutes; add nutmeg and season with salt. Remove from heat, transfer to a medium bowl, and press plastic wrap directly onto surface; let cool slightly. Chill if not using right away.
• Day of
• Reheat the sauces Combine Bolognese sauce and remaining 1 cup broth in a large saucepan over medium heat, and heat until sauce is warmed through.
• Meanwhile, if you made the béchamel ahead of time, heat in a medium saucepan over low heat just until warmed through (you don't want to let it boil).
• Cook the noodles Working in batches, cook fresh lasagna noodles in a large pot of boiling salted water until just softened, about 10 seconds. Remove carefully with tongs and transfer to a large bowl of ice water; let cool. Drain noodles and stack on a baking sheet, with paper towels between each layer, making sure noodles don't touch (they'll stick together).
• Assemble the lasagna Preheat oven to 350°F. Coat a 13x9" baking dish with butter.
• Spread 1/4 cup béchamel in the prepared baking dish. Top with a layer of noodles, spread over a scant 3/4 cup Bolognese sauce, then 1/2 cup béchamel, and top with 1/4 cup Parmesan. Repeat process 7 more times, starting with noodles and ending with Parmesan, for a total of 8 layers. Place baking dish on a rimmed baking sheet and bake lasagna until bubbling and beginning to brown on top, 50-60 minutes. Let lasagna sit 45 minutes before serving.
• Lasagna can be assembled 12 hours ahead. Cover and chill. Let sit at room temperature 2 hours before baking. Cook, covered with foil until the last 20 minutes, then finish cooking uncovered.

PERFECT LASAGNA BOLOGNESE

Steps:

• Heat olive oil and 1 tablespoon butter in a large Dutch oven over medium heat. Add pancetta; cook and stir until browned, about 8 minutes. Add celery, carrots, and onion; cook, stirring occasionally, until very soft, about 15 minutes. Stir in beef and pork. Season with salt and pepper. Cook until evenly browned, about 20 minutes.
• Pour white wine into the Dutch oven; cook until alcohol evaporates, about 5 minutes. Stir in crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, and sugar. Bring to a simmer; reduce heat to low, cover and simmer Bolognese sauce, stirring occasionally and skimming fat off the surface, about 3 1/2 hours. Stir in beef broth, 1/4 cup at a time, if sauce looks dry.
• Stir heavy cream and 1/2 cup milk into the Bolognese sauce; mix well. Cover and cook over very low heat until flavors combine, about 30 minutes.
• Melt 5 tablespoons butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Stir in flour until a smooth paste forms; cook and stir until paste turns a golden sandy color, about 7 minutes.
• Increase heat to medium-high and slowly whisk 4 cups milk into the saucepan. Bring to a gentle simmer; reduce heat to medium-low and add bay leaf. Continue simmering, stirring occasionally until bechamel sauce is thick and smooth, about 10 minutes. Season with salt and nutmeg; discard bay leaf.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 9x13-inch baking dish with butter.
• Spread 1/4 cup bechamel sauce in the bottom of the baking dish. Cover with 1 lasagna sheet; prick in several places with a paring knife. Spread 1/2 cup bechamel sauce and 1/2 cup Bolognese sauce on top. Sprinkle 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese on top.
• Repeat layers 7 times with remaining lasagna sheets, bechamel sauce, Bolognese sauce, and Parmesan cheese. Cover lasagna with aluminum foil and place on a rimmed baking sheet.
• Bake lasagna in the preheated oven until bubbly, about 25 minutes. Remove aluminum foil and continue baking until cheese is browned, about 20 minutes more. Let cool before serving, about 15 minutes.

TRADITIONAL LASAGNA BOLOGNESE

Steps:

• Bring sauce to room temperature. In a large bowl, whisk together ricotta, egg yolks, Parmesan, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, black pepper, nutmeg, and cayenne pepper. Chill filling until ready to assemble lasagna.
• Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Butter an 11-by-14-by-3-inch lasagna baking pan. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add olive oil and remaining tablespoon of salt. One at a time, add lasagna noodles; cook until very al dente, 2 to 3 minutes less than the manufacturer's instructions. Remove noodles with tongs; drain in a colander.
• Spread about 3 cups of sauce on the bottom of the prepared baking dish. Place a single layer of lasagna noodles over the sauce, overlapping them slightly. Spread about 2 cups sauce over the noodles and about half the ricotta filling mixture over the sauce.
• Top with a layer of lasagna noodles, again slightly overlapping them. Repeat with more sauce and remaining ricotta filling mixture. Top with a final layer of lasagna noodles. Spread a layer of sauce over the noodles, and finish with a layer of sliced mozzarella rounds.
• Bake until the sauce is bubbling and the cheese is melted, at least 1 hour. Cover with aluminum foil if the cheese starts to brown too early. Let the lasagna stand 10 to 15 minutes before serving.