A Lasagna for all Seasons

Lasagna with Layers of Pesto, Cherry Tomato Sauce, Besciamella, Eggplant, Zucchini & Carrot

I love lasagna in all shapes and forms. Below are several versions of the dish, that I make often. Keep in mind: Lasagna can go way beyond a standard baked pasta dish with meat sauce, mozzarella and parmesan (not to say that isn’t delicious as well). Just like other pasta dishes, it can be made in any style you like.

The following lasagna dishes are listed in an attempt to show the versatility of lasagna, which hopefully will spark your own creative lasagna dishes.

Fresh Pasta or Dried Pasta?

I find that lasagna comes best when using fresh pasta sheets. Fresh pasta is not hard to make, but can be time consuming. When making lasagna at home, I suggest buying the sheets from a fresh pasta vendor. If you can’t find the fresh pasta, dried pasta will do just fine. If using the type of dried pasta that does not need to be boiled before use, I suggest placing it in salted boiling water anyway for a few minutes, otherwise the pasta soaks up too much of the liquid and can cause your lasagna to turn out dry and bland.

Note that many of the following recipes contain besciamella, which is a creamy white sauce made up of butter, flour and milk. Besciamella does magic to lasagna by adding an irresistable creamy texture to the soft layers of pasta.

Recipe for Besciamella (enough for one tray of lasagna):

8 tablespoons (1 stick) butter
3/4 cup flour
4 cups milk
2 teaspoons sea salt
Freshly grated nutmeg to taste

Directions:

In a medium saucepan, heat butter until melted. Add flour and stir until smooth. Over a low flame, cook until light golden brown, stirring constantly, about 5 minutes.

Add boiling milk to flour mixture, 1 cup at a time, stirring continuously until very smooth. Bring to a boil. Wisk for about 1 minute and remove from heat. Season with salt and nutmeg and set aside.

Lasagna with Pesto, Cherry Tomatoes, Besciamella and Seasonal Vegetables

Ingredients:

Tomato Sauce made from 4 cloves of sautéed garlic in olive oil and 5 cups of canned Italian cherry tomatoes

Pesto Sauce (see recipe below)

Besciamella (see recipe above)

1 1/2 cups of grated parmesan cheese

Choose 3-4 pieces of Seasonal vegetables of your choice: Italian Eggplant, Zucchini, Squash, Carrots, Asparagus

5 Pasta Sheets 9″ x 12″

Directions:

1. Heat the oven to 375 f.

2. Fry the vegetables in extra virgin olive oil or brush with olive oil and grill. When cooked sprinkle with salt and allow to drain on paper towel sheets.

3. In a 4-5″ high rimmed 9″ x 12″ baking dish, spread a thin layer of tomato sauce.

4. Add a sheet of pasta, followed by a layer of besciamella, some parmesan and some of each cooked vegetable.

5. Add another sheet of pasta, followed by a layer of tomato sauce, parmesan and vegetables.

6. Then, add a sheet of pasta, followed by a layer of pesto and vegetables.

7. The next two layers should repeat steps 4 and 5 (a layer of besciamella and a layer of tomato sauce, both layers with parmesan and vegetables)

8. Finally, cover the top layer of pasta with a thin layer of besciamella, followed by some dollops of tomato sauce and pesto. Sprinkle with the remaining parmesan. This layer should not have vegetables.

9. Bake for about 35 minutes, the first half of the time covered with aluminum foil.

10. Let sit for about 15 minutes before cutting. When serving, place a piece of lasagna on a thin layer of tomato sauce. Decorate the dish around the tomato sauce with a few drops of pesto.

~ This, like most lasagna, tastes even better heated up the following day…if you can only wait that long!

Pesto:

2/3 cup pine nuts
4 large cloves of chopped garlic
5 cups fresh basil leaves, packed
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 1/2 cups extra virgin olive oil
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan

Directions for Pesto:

In a blender, mix the ingredients in the order listed above. The olive oil should be added slowly in a stream.

Cousin Maria’s “Pasta al Forno” ~Lasagna with Ground Beef, Tomato Sauce, Peas and Besciamella

Since I was a young girl, this has been my favorite dish in Sicily. Years ago, before I acquired a taste for peas, Maria used to add them to the lasagna, and I used to remove them one by one before devouring the rest of the dish. Finally, Maria stopped putting them in altogether when preparing the dish for me. Nowadays, I only make this recipe when peas are in season.

As for the besciamella, it is not a typical Sicilian addition to lasagna. It is used more commonly in Northern Italian recipes. Maria includes it in her recipe, which is otherwise a very typical Sicilian recipe. However, when this recipe was passed down to my grandmother from her mother, her version contained fresh ricotta rather than besciamella.

The recipe is self explanatory. Make besciamella (recipe above) and 5 cups of tomato sauce with ground beef and onions. Blanch about three cups of peas. Make layers of fresh pasta sheets and meat sauce, besciamella, grated parmesan, peas. Each layer should have all of the ingredients. But the top layer should not consist of peas because they could burn. Bake for about 40 minutes in a 375f oven.

Winter Lasagna with Maple Glazed Roasted Root Vegetables and Besciamella:

After a recent (winter) visit to the farmer’s market and a bag full of root vegetables later, I came up with this seasonal lasagna. I didn’t use the sweet potato when I made it, but I think it would make a fine addition. Make sure to use a good amount of freshly grated nutmeg.

The look of this dish was rather bland, but it was bursting with flavor. We ate it straight out of the oven because it smelled so good, but in fact, it was much better when heated the next day.

In order to spice up the decoration of the dish if making this for guests, make very small cubes of butternut squash. Carmelize them in a pan with some water and butter. Use them as a tasty decoration around the dish along with a sprinkling of turmeric and nutmeg.

Rub any combination of Parsnips, Butternut Squash, Acorn Squash (or any other squash you find at the farmer’s market), Carrots, Yellow Carrots, Turnips, Sweet Potato with Maple Syrup, Nutmeg, and a touch of Cinnamon. Roast in oven until tender. Then, place these root vegetables in a large pot with water. The water should reach no more than half way up the vegetables. Cook for an additional 10 minutes and coarsely puree the vegetables. Season well. To make the lasagna, add the vegetable mixture, along with grated parmesan and besciamella with a teaspoon of tumeric added to every layer of pasta. Before placing in the oven, the lasagna should have a liquidy consistency. Bake in a 375f oven for about 40 minutes. Let sit before serving.

Other Lasagna Ideas:

Fall/ Winter: Mixed Wild Mushroom, Roasted Garlic, Fresh Herbs, Grated Aged Sheep’s Milk Cheese & Besciamella

Late Spring: Asparagus, Basil, Enoki and Oyster Mushrooms, Roasted Tomatoes, Parmesan, Soft Goat’s Milk Cheese

Best in Summer: Mixed Seafood, Saffron, Pesto Cream and a Cherry Tomato Sauce

Late Summer: Lamb Ragù, Eggplant, Parmesan Cream, Besciamella

Spring/Summer: Artichokes, Roasted Yellow and Red Peppers, Red Pepper Cream, Cherry Tomato Sauce, Mozzarella, Soft Goat’s Milk Cheese