Homemade Lasagna

Valentine's Day Romantic Dinner #3: 

ITALIAN

I have a couple of 'foodie' friends who lived in Italy for awhile and have introduced me to some AMAZING food I am in love with.  This Lasagna recipe is one of them, this is definitely worth the effort.  It is loaded with homemade-gooey cheesy goodness and by far my favorite lasagna!  I have had several varieties of lasagna in my life with layers of cottage cheese and ricotta etc..., but this in my opinion surpasses them all. Yum...if it wasn't currently 10pm, I might even be tempted to make it now!

Lasagna

Red Sauce:

2-4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil (enough to generously cover bottom of sauce pan)

5 cloves garlic, minced

1 small onion, chopped

1- 28 oz can crushed tomatoes

1-1/2 tsp sea salt

1 tsp brown sugar

handful of fresh basil leaves

1/3 cup cream

1/3 cup fresh parmesan, grated

8 oz italian sausage (optional)

-In a medium sauce pan over medium heat, add olive oil, onion and garlic and cook just until onions are soft and blonde in color and garlic lightly browned.

-Add: canned tomatoes, sea salt and brown sugar.  Reduce heat and simmer over low heat for 45 minutes or put in a crock pot on low for 1-2 hours, stirring occasionally.

-Tear basil leaves by hand (to release flavor) and simmer 10 more minutes.  At this point add more salt or brown sugar to taste if desired.

-Add heavy cream and freshly grated parmesan and simmer 5-10 more minutes. Remove from heat until ready to layer.

-If desired, brown italian sausage separately and add to mixture, or cook sausage with onion and garlic and reduce amount of olive oil. 

Bescamela (White Sauce):

2 Tbsp butter

2 Tbsp flour

1 cup whole milk

Salt (to taste)

dash of nutmeg

-In a sauce pan, melt butter over medium heat, once melted, add flour, stirring quickly and cook 1 minute, but don't let flour brown. Whisk milk in, in small drizzles to avoid a lumpy sauce. Once mixture is smooth, cook to slightly thicken, and add salt and nutmeg.  

-Set aside until ready to layer.

Lasagna:

1 package Barilla Lasagne Noodles, No Boiling Required

Fresh mozzarella, shredded 1 to 1-2 lbs, depending on how cheesy you want it

1/2 cup fresh parmesan

Red sauce

White sauce

-To assemble: Cover an 8x8 pan with a thin layer of red sauce. Place 3 noodles side-by-side to cover the length of the pan (if necessary, break one noodle in 1/2 length wise.

-Cover noodle layer with red sauce, then a layer of shredded mozzarella, then top with a layer of white sauce.  Cover with a second layer of noodles, but turn the noodles lengthwise in the opposite direction of the first layer of noodles.

-Repeat process two more times for a total of 3 layers.  

-Layer with a last (4th) layer of noodles and end with topping the final noodle layer with red sauce and parmesan cheese only.

-Bake in oven at 375 degrees for 25 minutes or until brown and bubbly.  Watch carefully because the fresh lasagna cooks much faster and can burn easily.

NOTE: This recipe is slightly labor intensive, so if you have freezer space, I recommend doubling the recipe and making a second batch to freeze for another day. Just place the frozen lasagna directly in the oven when ready to serve and double (maybe even triple) cooking time.

ANOTHER NOTE: This lasagna is also fantastic with fresh basil (broken by hand) and added to each red sauce layer.