The layers of lasagna bolognese

I didn’t need much more convincing to attempt a go at a new recipe. Replacing the combination of cheeses with bechamel worked like a charm. I didn’t even miss the ricotta or mozzarella from the recipe. The smooth, thick sauce was enough to give flavor and moisture to the dish allowing the layers to remain distinct (and to help hydrate the noodles).

I again found Cooks Illustrated and Epicurious helpful with ideas of where to start and how to assemble this. The assembly follows the Cook’s Illustrated almost identically and had a fantastic result.

Cooks Illustrated suggested soaking the no-boil noodles in hot tap water for 5 minutes before using. I had never done that before but had no reason to doubt their technique. I didn’t do a side-by-side comparison of soak vs no-soak noodles, so I cannot comment on how effective this is, but the result was very good.

Lasagna Bolognese

Lasagna Bolognese
Bolognese Ingredients and Recipe
Use 6 cups of the bolognese recipe from the other day.
Other Ingredients
4 tbsps unsalted butter
1/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
4 cups whole milk
3/4 tsp salt
15 sheets no-boil lasagna noodles (9 ounces) (I like Barilla brand.)
4 oz Parmesan cheese, grated (2 cups)

1. Warm the bolognese over low heat while making the béchamel. Stir occasionally.
2. Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat until it just foams. Add the flour all at once and whisk constantly. Cook and whisk for about two minutes. The mixture should not brown, but it may darken slightly. This is called a white roux. The darker a roux gets the richer the flavor becomes, but as a consequence the thinkening power decreases. A white roux has very little flavor but can dramitcally thicken dishes.
3. Slowly whisk in the milk. Whisk constantly and bring the mixture to a boil. Add the salt, then reduce the heat to a bare simmer (med-low). Simmer for 10 minutes. Continue whisking making sure to scrape the bottom of the dish. Transfer the mixture to another bowl to cool slightly. You should have about 3 1/2 cups.
4. Heat oven to 425 degrees. Soak the noodles in very hot tap water in a 9×13 dish for about 5 minutes. Stir the noodles to prevent them from sticking. Pat them dry.
5. Dry the baking dish, then spray lightly with nonstick cooking spray. Stir the béchamel to recombine. Combine 3/4 cups of the warm béchamel into warm meat sauce and mix together.

Assembly
1. Pour 1 cup béchamel-meat sauce in baking dish.
2. Lay three noodles side-by-side on top of sauce. Place them close together, but don’t let them touch.
3. Spread 1 1/4 cups béchamel-meat sauce evenly over noodles. The sauce should go to the edge of noodles but not to the edge of the dish. You want to cover just the noodles.
4. 1/3 cup béchamel goes on top of the meat sauce.
5. 1/3 cup Parmesan is then sprikled over the béchamel.
6. Repeat steps 2-5 three more times.
7. All the meat sauce should be used but there will be bechamel and Parmesan remaining. The remaining bechemal is used to cover the last three noodles. Any excess should be poured over the dish and fill the sides and any gaps. Sprinkle the remaining Parmesan over the dish.

Baking
1. Cover the dish with a large sheet of foil that has been lightly sprayed with cooking spray. Bake for 30 minutes.
2. Increase the heat to 450F. Remove the foil and bake for 10-15 minutes more, until the surface of the lasagna becomes spotty brown.
3. Allow to cool for 10-15 minutes so that the sauce can set. Cut and serve!

Bolognese with tagliatelle

There are a few key ingredients and methods that are overlooked by many when attempting a bolognese sauce. It’s not quite as simple as mixing ground beef and tomato suace together–that may make a good meat sauce, but it’s not a bolognese.

The two most often overlooked ingredients in a bolognese are white wine, and milk. Yes, white whine, and milk. Sounds odd to many people. The BBC segment even has reaction shots of people discovering their their beloved dish should be made with (gasp) milk!

A quick search online reveals many variations on the classic meat sauce recipe. Some recipes look nothing like the original with the additions of peppers, mushrooms, red wine, even cheeses directly into the sauce. I’ve attempted to keep my recipe basic without making any alarming changes. One difference I did adopt was instead of just beef and pancetta (or bacon), I use a mixture of beef, veal, and sausage to provide a complex base of meaty flavor.

Oh, and one thing the video points out is that is should be served with tagliatelle, not spaghetti. Italian chefs can be quick to point out that each shape and style of pasta is best suited for different kinds of sauce. The wide, semi-rough ribbons of tagliatelle make it ideal for thicker meatier sauces to cling to. Spaghetti can work, but it’s not ideal. The thin, round, slick strands make it difficult to hold the meat with the pasta. If you can’t find it in the store, go with fettuccine.

Pasta Bolognese

This recipe is time consuming, but most of the cooking time is passive. You just let it simmer away on the stove. To make the time spent more worthwhile, this recipe makes a very large batch, about 12 cups. I normally make the large batch and freeze it in about 3 cup quantities that are ideal for a pound of pasta. I also needed about 6 cups for something else… stay tuned next week to find out.

It’s adapted from many different sources, but looking at it now, it seems heavily influenced by Cooks Illustrated and Epicurious. But traditional is traditional and shouldn’t change much anyway. You can also put in a pinch of nutmeg when adding the milk. I just as often remember to add it as forget it. Either way, keep it to a small pinch.

Classic Bolognese
Makes 10-12 cups, recipe can be halved. 3 cups is good for 1 lb of pasta.
1 tbsp olive oil
2 medium onions (1lb), minced fine
2 medium carrots (1/2 lb), minced fine
2 medium celery stalks (1/2 lb), minced find
4 cloves garlic, minced or mashed
1 lb beef, ground
1 lb veal, ground
1 lb pork, ground
1 tbsp salt
1/2 tbsp pepper (1 1/2 tsp)
1 1/2 c milk
pinch freshly grated nutmeg (optional)
1 1/2 c white wine
2 28-oz cans crusted tomatoes

Directions
1. Heat a large pot over medium heat with a tablespoon of olive oil. When hot, add the vegetables and garlic. Cook for about 12 minutes, until the vegetables are tender, but not browned. Reduce the heat if necessary.
2. Add the meats, salt and sugar and mix thoroughly. Cool just until it looses the raw color, but not yet fully cooked.
3. Add the milk and bring to a slow simmer until most of the liquid evaporates, about 25 minutes. If using nutmeg, add a pinch now.
4. Add the wine and continue the slow simmer until most of that liquid evaporates, another 25 minutes.
5. Add the tomatoes with the juices from the cans. Continue the slow simmer for about three hours. (I leave it uncovered, but put a spatter screen over the top to catch any spatter.)