"Vilco" > wrote in message
. ..
>I have found that making your own lasagne isn't thet expensive, maybe the
> opposite. When I'm feel in the mood to knead I make my own lasagne with 2
> eggs, 400 grams flour and a fistful of pressed cooked spinach, and some
> water if necessary to knead it well.
> If I'm not in the mood to knead I go to the "pasta fresca" shop and buy
> uncooked green lasagne, fresh ones, again about 400 grams. If I'm not in
> the
> mood to nkead nor to go to the pasta fresca shop, I go to the bearby
> stupidmarket and buy dry lasagne sheets. Since these are dry, I'll be
> using
> just half of a 250 grams package instead of 400 grams.
> Ragu': finely mince a stalk of celery, a medium sized white onion and a
> carrot, saute' them in EVO oil over low fire for at least 10 minutes, then
> add 400 grams of ground lean beef and 400 grams of shredded sausage (just
> pork salt and black/white pepper). Stir up until all the meat gets
> browned,
> then add 250 grams of tomato sauce and a glass of white dry wine. Bring to
> a
> slow boil and let uncovered for about 2 hours and covered for another
> hour.
> Since it will soon dry-up, you'll need to keep up the moistu do this by
> adding milk. I used both whole and partly defatted milk and I didn't feel
> much difference. So, the ragu' must be prepared in time to be ready for
> the
> assembly of the lasagne dish.
> Bechamel: melt 75 grams of butter and add 75 grams of all purpose flour
> and
> mix them well over medium-low fire for at least a couple of minutes, then
> slowly add about 0,5 litres of cold milk and mix slowly and mix it in
> well,
> stir continuously for about 5 minutes always over medium-low fire. By
> then,
> the mix should start to thicken and look silky, velutee: when this starts
> to
> happen just remove from fire, making sure the mix has cooked for at least
> 7
> minutes (2 without milk and 5 with milk).
> Meanwhile you should have readied a pot of boiling salted water: toss the
> lasagne in and let them cook for 2-3 minutes if fresh or 6-10 minutes if
> dry
> store-bougth.
> Line a oven dish with some bechamel.
> Remove the lasagne from the boiling water and lay them over a dry canvas
> to
> drain them well, then put a first layer of lasagne on the oven sheet and
> thinly cover it with bechamel and garnish it with ragu'. Add some grated
> cheese and proceed with the next layer: lasagne, bechamel, ragu' and
> grated
> cheese. Repeat until you run out of ingredients.
> Bake in a 375°F oven for about 25 minutes, and use the oven broiler for
> some
> minutes to get a crusty top.
> What to say... last tiem I did this dish it was yesterday. I must
> ethernally
> thank Mum for having kept me by her while she was cooking, so many times
> that now I can cook ragu' with the same ease with which I rdie a bike, or
> make bechamel as I make coffee. This sure helps when making dishes as
> lasagne or other pasta al forno recipe.
>
>
>
An excellent looking recipe. I've always followed Marcella Hazan's recipe
for ragu, in
Classic Italian Cooking. She only cooks the ground meat until it's done and
avoids
browning the meat. I think this makes for a smoother sauce. As we know,
using fresh
pasta makes all the difference in the world. We usually use ricotta, or
ricotta combined with mozarella cheese. As you well know, lasagne is a fair
effort.

Cheers,

Ed