Old Fashioned Neapolitan Lasagna

Why is this an old fashioned lasagna?  Well, no idea.  That is simply the title Maria Luisa has chosen to provide so we're sticking with it.  Old fashioned or not, it proved to be a tasty lasagna, an opinion seconded by the friend I had over for dinner that night.  Since it was more meat and less veggie, I chose to serve it with a side of Brussels Sprouts Parmigiana.  Also tasty.  My only complaint is with the Brussels sprouts...yet again it's a 2 inch long recipe taking up space for no real reason.  I realize I sound like a cranky old lady, but I truly believe that recipes in a cookbook should involve more than boil sprouts, put in dish, add melted butter, sprinkle on cheese, bake.  I probably would have done that anyway.  I put cheese on everything.  I might not have baked it since baking the sprouts added I'm not even sure what.  Oh, whatever.  I'm over it.  At least the lasagna took some effort.

Maria Luisa did not get very specific with the type of beef she wanted me to use, just that it needed to be chopped.  I chose to go with stew beef that I then cut into even smaller pieces.  I have to say, it was really nice biting down into a hunk of meat as I was eating the lasagna.  Mixed in with the beef was some spicy Italian sausage, so there were pieces to sink your teeth into and a little heat as well.  This was definitely a meat lovers lasagna.  The Debbie Downer aspect was that, once again, we were expected to use tomato paste diluted in water....yuck.  I had a jar of marinara in the fridge so I substituted that for the diluted paste.  This also aided in the flavoring of the sauce and helped to keep the acidity down.  The additional flavors were essential.  Maria Luisa did get a little crazy this time around, we put a whole 1/4 teaspoon of marjoram in with the meat.  However, that and the single garlic clove that was removed halfway through is not enough to flavor lasagna sauce.  I highly suggest following my lead and using a basic jarred pasta sauce....no one will ever know.

Old Fashioned Neapolitan Lasagna

Lasagne Napoletane all'Antica

Ingredients:

8 no boil lasagna noodles

2 slices bacon - finely chopped

4 Tbsp butter

1 clove garlic - leave whole

1/2 a medium onion - finely chopped

2 Tbsp carrot - finely chopped

1 Tbsp celery - finely chopped

1 tsp. parsley - chopped

1/2 lb beef - chopped

2 spicy Italian sausage links - casings removed

1/4 tsp. marjoram

1 large can diced tomatoes

2 c. marinara sauce

1/2 c. dry white wine (I went with Villa Marchesi Pinot Grigio)

1/2 lb. ricotta cheese

1/4 tsp. salt

1 egg - beaten

1/2 c. Parmesan cheese - grated

1/2 small mozzarella cheese - diced

Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

In a large saute pan, melt butter then saute bacon, garlic, onion, carrot and celery for 5 minutes.  

Discard the garlic and add the beef, sausage, marjoram, and parsley,  Simmer until the meat has browned, approximately 5 minutes.

Drain off some of the excess juice then add the wine.  Cook until the wine has evaporated, about 10 minutes.  Add the diced tomatoes and tomato sauce.  Simmer, uncovered, for 30 minutes.  Season to taste and then continue cooking until sauce is thick, about another 10 minutes.

Mix the ricotta, egg, Parmesan cheese, and a bit of salt and pepper together.  Cover the bottom of a 9 x 13 baking dish with sauce.  Make a layer of lasagna noodles then one of cheese.  Dot with some of the mozzarella then repeat.  Cover with sauce and a few mozzarella pieces.  Bake in an oven preheated to 375F for 30 minutes.

Brussels Sprouts Parmigiana

Cavoletti alla Parmigiana

Ingredients:

2 boxes frozen Brussels sprouts

4 Tbsp butter - melted

1/4 c. Parmesan cheese - grated

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350F.  Cook Brussels sprouts in salted boiling water for 5 minutes  Place in a buttered baking dish, pour butter over them, sprinkle on cheese.  Bake for 20 minutes.

Yea, that's an actual recipe in Maria Lusia's cookbook.  She's lucky it tasted good, otherwise I'd scream.

And there are my two Italian dishes on my Hungarian map table runner.  I was feeling very international that evening.

Spinach and Mushroom Rollatini

As I have mentioned before, I am a bit of an over shopper.  This time around, I had an extra box of lasagna noodles in addition to the half a box I had left from the previous week's kitchen adventure.  I did not want to make just another lasagna so I decided I would go crazy and do rollatini instead.  At this point you are thinking to yourself "but wait...last week she said she used no-bake lasagna noodles.  How do you use those to make rollatini!?"  The answer my friends: hot water and a 7 minute pre-soak.  MAGIC!

The Spinach and Mushroom Rollatini recipe follows quite closely with the Italian Lasagna recipe.  The cheese mixture is almost exactly the same and I made my sauce the same just minus the meat.  Based on the amount of filling I put on each noodle, I was able to fit 12 total into the baking dish, so this recipe makes 6 servings.

Ingredients:

1 pkg. chopped spinach - thawed and excess liquid squeezed out
2 c. sliced mushrooms
4 oz. creamy goat cheese rolled in black pepper
15 oz. part skim ricotta cheese
shredded mozzarella
1 c. Parmesan cheese - grated
1 large egg
1/4 c. chopped parsley
1 28 oz. can crushed tomatoes with basil
1 6 oz can tomato paste
1 onion - chopped
2 Tbsp. partially dried basil
1 Tbsp. sugar
olive oil
1 1/2 pkgs no-bake lasagna noodles

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400F

In a medium saute pan, heat olive oil.  Add mushrooms and cook until tender, about 10 -15 minutes.

While the mushrooms are cooking, boil several cups of water.  Fill a 9x9 baking dish about halfway with the water and begin soaking lasagna noodles. Soak each noodle for about 7 minutes then lay out on parchment paper.  If you are worried about the noodles sticking to the dish or each other, add a bit of olive oil.

Once cooked the mushrooms are cooked, set aside to cool.  Add a bit more oil to the saute pan and then cook onions until tender, about 7 minutes.  Add crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, 1/2 the parsley, and the basil.  Simmer until the sauce thickens up, about 10 minutes.  When I taste tested the sauce I found it to be too acidic for me so I added 1 Tbsp of sugar for balance.

In a large bowl, combine spinach, mushrooms, goat cheese, ricotta, Parmesan cheese, egg, and the remaining parsley.  Make sure it is well mixed, you want a fork full of everything in each bite!

No that you have all your parts, time to put it all together.  Spoon a little less than half of the sauce into the bottom of a 9x13 baking dish.  On one of the lasagna noodles, spoon out about 3 Tbsp worth of filling and spread across.

Sprinkle with the mozzarella and then roll.

Repeat until you have filled the dish.

Spoon enough sauce on top to cover the rollatini and then sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.

Bake for 30 minutes.

The result, in my opinion, is spectacular.  The cheese has a nice flavor and the mushrooms provide you with something you can sink your teeth into.  This recipe is also easily adjusted.  If you want something heavier on the vegetables, just reduce the amount of cheese.  The noodles will not get mushy even with the pre-soak and baking.

Sausage Lasagna

I have always found lasagna to be one of the best "throw together" meals.  It requires four basic ingredients - lasagna noodles, marinara sauce, ricotta cheese, and mozzarella cheese.  After that it's up to you, which means you have been given carte blanche over your meal.  Add meat, add vegetables, add both...go crazy.  Of course, for some less experimental people, this could be your version of food hell.  Me, I have both gotten experimental as well as stuck close to a recipe.  What follows in this post is my adapted version of my absolute favorite lasagna recipe - Ina Garten's Turkey Lasagna.

I found this recipe six or seven years ago and fell in love because it uses creamy goat cheese to add a bit of tangy kick to the cheese mixture.  Another aspect that I really enjoy is that the sauce and the meat are cooked together.  For me, I feel that it creates a better flavor.  Plus, we're not putting together a dinner version of the 7-layer dip, we don't need individual layers for each section of the lasagna.  Some basic changes I've made to the original recipe include using a flavored goat cheese and crushed tomatoes with basil.  Using a flavored cheese adds a bit more depth (not that it's actually necessary) and having basil with the tomatoes means I was able to cut the amount I needed otherwise.  The result is a dish of fabulous everyone loves!

Ingredients:

Olive oil
1 c. onion - chopped
3 garlic cloves - mincesd
1 1/5 lbs hot Italian sausage - casings removed
1 28-oz can crushed tomatoes with basil
1 6-oz can tomato paste
1/4 c. Italian parsley - chopped
2 Tbsp. partially dried basil - chopped
15 oz. part skim ricotta cheese
4 oz. crushed red pepper flavored creamy goat cheese
1 c. Parmesan cheese - grated
1 large egg
1 lb. fresh mozzarella - thinly sliced
1/2 box no-bake lasagna noodles

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400F

Heat the olive oil in a large saute pan over medium heat.  Add the onions and cook until tender, approximately 7 minutes.  Add the garlic and give a couple of stirs.  Add the sausage and cook for about 10 minutes.

As you cook, break the sausage apart into small chunks.  Once it is no longer pink add the crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, 1/2 the parsley, and the basil.  Reduce heat to simmer and cook for another 20 minutes.  You want the sauce to thicken up.

While the sauce simmers, put together your cheese mixture.  In a large mixing bowl, combine goat cheese, ricotta, Parmesan cheese, the rest of the parsley, and the egg.  Don't be afraid to get your hands in there to ensure everything is well mixed.

On to the layers!  Start with 1/3 of the sauce in the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking dish.  Next is a layer of noodles - no overlapping.  Follow with 1/2 the mozzarella, 1/2 the ricotta mixture, and 1/3 of sauce.

Then repeat, topping with a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese.

Bake in the oven for approximately 30 minutes until the sauce is bubbling.  Let rest for a couple of minutes before digging in.  It'll still be a sloppy mess on your plate, but I promise it is tasty!