Lasagna

Lasagna Dish Guide

For The Noodles

2 cups 00 flour

3 whole eggs (2 whole eggs if using AP flour)

5 egg yolks (6 egg yolks if using AP flour)

1 T olive oil

pinch of salt

Add the eggs, egg yolks, oil and salt to a bowl and whisk thoroughly to combine. On a clean work surface, add the two cups of flour in a mound and use your fingers to create a well large enough to hold the egg mixture. Pour in the eggs and use a fork to slowly fold in the flour working around the edges of the eggs. Once you have incorporated enough flour that the eggs are no longer liquid, fold in the rest of the flour and bring the dough together into a a pile. Knead the dough for 1-2 minutes and if it is sticky, add a bit more flour and continue kneading for a total of 8-10 minutes or until no visible white pockets of flour remain. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and rest in the fridge for 30-60 minutes to properly hydrate and allow the gluten to relax. When the dough does not spring back quickly to the touch, remove it and flour the work surface and top of the dough lightly. Form into a ball or rectangle and cut into 8 even pieces and then roll these out lightly by hand to flatten. Using a handheld pasta crank or the attachment on a stand-mixer at its thickest setting, run one piece of dough through and then fold over in thirds and run through again. Move the roller to the next thinnest setting and pass it through 2 more times. Continue this process of thinning the sheets of dough until you can barely see your fingers through the dough. Set the pasta sheet on a rack or lightly floured board to dry for at least an hour before using.

For The Meat Sauce

1 lb ground beef

1 lb ground Italian sausage (hot, sweet or mild)

8 oz mushrooms, finely chopped

1 white onion (about 1 cup), finely chopped

3 cloves of garlic, minced

1 T dried Italian seasoning

2 28 oz cans crushed tomatoes

1 cup red wine

Salt and Pepper to taste

Brown and break up the beef and sausage over medium heat and drain excess fat. Add the onion, mushroom, Italian seasoning and garlic and cook for 8-10 minutes until the onion begins to soften and the mushrooms give off their liquid. Add the wine and scrape the pot to deglaze and get any fond off the bottom. Add in the crushed tomatoes and rinse the cans and add the water (about 1/4 cup per can). Season to taste with salt and pepper and simmer partially covered for 30-45 minutes.

For The Cheese and Topping:

32 oz Ricotta cheese

16 oz fresh mozzarella cheese, cubed or shredded

1 cup of freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese

1 egg

1/2 cup chopped parsley

8-10 Basil leaves, cut into chiffonade

Combine the ricotta, egg, most of the parsley (save a bit for garnish) and 1/2 cup of parmigiano in a bowl and season with salt and pepper. Mix thoroughly to combine. Set the mozz, other 1/2 cup of parm, remaining parsley and basil aside.

To Make the Lasagna:

Add a ladle of the sauce to the bottom of deep 9x13 baking dish. Add a layer of noodles. Add more meat sauce to cover the noodles. Add half of the ricotta mixture and spread out into an even layer. Sprinkle on 1/3 of you mozzarella cubes. Repeat this layer again. For the top layer, add more meat sauce and add your final third of the mozz and sprinkle on the other half cup of parm. (You will probably have a cup or two of extra meat sauce, but we prefer to have too much vs run out too soon. Save it, its great on spaghetti!) Bake uncovered at 375 for 35-45 minutes until the edges are bubbling and browning. If you like the whole top to be golden brown you can broil for the last 2-3 minutes. Let rest at least 30 minutes before topping with the basil and parsley and serving.

Dish Notes:

This dish guide will work just as well with no-bake pasta sheets or dry pasta that has been par cooked. If you shred your mozzarella as opposed to cubing it you can mix 2/3 of it in with the ricotta mixture to save a step but we find the texture of little pockets of gooey mozzarella to be more appealing. Some Italian grandma is probably out there shaking a rolling pin at the casual and lazy way we went about making our pasta sheets but we find putting forth effort to get perfectly shaped sheets to be a waste of time. This dough is perfect for spaghetti, tagliatelle or fettuccine which can be cut by hand or with the appropriate attachment. To make this vegetarian, double the mushrooms in the sauce and replace the meat with 16 oz of tempeh.