Lasagne al Forno- Baked Lasagne

This is fabulous four-food-group recipe. If you wish, serve it with a green salad and lovage dressing.

Lasagne is a classic Italian dish that consists of multiple layers of wide, flat pasta sheets alternated with delicious layers of rich and flavorful sauces. Traditional lasagne typically includes ingredients such as bolognese sauce, bechamel sauce, and grated cheese, all baked to perfection in the oven. It is a hearty and comforting dish that is loved by many around the world for its savory taste and satisfying texture. In Italian, lasagne is the name given to those flat rectangular sheets of pasta most non-Italians call lasagna. But actually, lasagna is the singular of lasagne. Most pasta names in Italian are used in the plural form because recipes usually involve more than one piece of pasta! I love using fresh pasta, which is easy to make at home or buy freshly made from any local Italian pasta makers. Additionally, instead of chopped parsley or basil, I use carrot greens. Carrot greens are just as edible as carrots themselves, and they're delicious in adding a unique flavor to the dish.

Yield: 12-18 portions

Equipment: casserole dish 26 cm x 37 cm

Ingredients:

• 500g quark or ricotta cheese

• 2 eggs

• 450g organic free range ground chicken or grass-fed beef

• 398ml diced tomatoes

• 1.250ml homemade roasted tomato and pepper sauce as per my recipe or purchased

• 1/2 cup onion, chopped fine

• 2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced

• 1/2ccup zucchini, chopped

• 1/4 cup celery, chopped

• 1/2 cup fresh pepper, chopped

• 3 small fresh porcini or button mushrooms, thinly sliced

• 1/4 cup olive oil

• 1 small hot pepper, chopped - optional

• 350g fresh pasta - no boiling required (otherwise follow packaging instruction)

• 350g shredded mozzarella cheese

• 60g shredded parmesan or gruyere cheese

• 1 cup of chopped carrots tops or chopped parsley

• salt and pepper to taste

Instructions:

1. Heat the oil in a heavy saucepan over moderate heat. Add the onions, celery, garlic, porcini mushroom, peppers, and zucchini.

2. Sweat the vegetables until they just begin to soften.

3. Add ground chicken, along with with a touch of salt and pepper. Stir to break up lumps, and cook until meat is nicely moistened and lost its pink color.

4. Stir in the diced tomatoes and roasted tomato/pepper sauce. Add 1/4 cup chopped parsley or carrots tops.

5. Simmer over lower heat for 1.5 hours . Stir from time to time as it cooks.

6. Lasagne sauce is ready when thickens in texture and develops full aroma from all the ingredients. Taste and adjust the seasonings as you like.

7. Mix together the quark or ricotta cheese with eggs and 1/4 cup of chopped parsley/carrots tops and parmesan cheese.

8. Ladle a little meat sauce on the bottom of the casserole dish. Spread it across the bottom evenly.

9. Arrange a layer of pasta over the sauce , top with meat sauce. cheese mixture , layer of mozzarella and again with pasta layer, layer of meat sauce and cheese mixture, and mozzarella topped with parsley or carrots tops until all ingredients are used. You should have at least 3 layers. Top the last layer of pasta with tomato sauce and finish off with shredded mozzarella cheese which I prefer over parmesan cheese as a final topping.

10. Preheat oven to 375°F or 190°C. Cover lightly with parchment paper and foil. Parchment ensures that cheese doesn’t stick to the cover. Remove the parchment and foil for the last 15-30 minutes to create nice crispy but not dried finish.

11. You must let your lasagna rest for a minimum of 15 minutes once you take it out of the oven. This allows it to set in shape. You won't have to do this when you reheat it but the first time you pull it out of the oven, it must sit so it can solidify.

Buon Appetito!”

Perfect Crust

At the end, it is all about the crust that makes the lasagna taste out of this world!