Italiano Lasagna; Americanized
So, ya like cheese? I mean REALLY like cheese? How about meat? I should make a disclaimer at the end of this recipe/rant that you can't blame me if your cholesterol goes up a couple points after eating this dish. If you are trying to cut carbs and trying to go low-fat, please check out some other recipes that might be a little more pleasing to the waistline.
So, this was the dish that got me started on my cooking adventure back in 1988. Prior to that I just ate what my Mom made and called it a night. My Mom made two kinds of lasagna....a traditional one with the chunky tomato sauce and ricotta cheese and the "other" lasagna, my arch nemesis....seafood lasagna. Don't get me wrong, I love shellfish, but I'm not a big fan of lots of cheese and fish mixed together. On those nights I pretty much just starved and went to bed.
I never really tried cooking anything more than your simple basic dishes when I was younger. I did try making a pot of chili once when I was a Sophomore in high school and it was pretty much the most horrific thing I subjected my stomach to. So, when Mom and Pop started to go away on summer vacations without me, it was either eat fast food every day, starve or make my own stuff. I tried the fast food route and that worked for about a week and my body told me no more. So, the first thing I thought of was....lasagna!
I never was a fan of the traditional Italian lasagna because I can't stand stewed tomatoes or any kind of tomato chunks for that matter and I really can't stand ricotta cheese. So, no, I have absolutely zero Italian in my bloodline (mostly all German). I'd never made anything more exciting that a sandwich, bacon and eggs or thrown a steak on the grill...so this was going to be interesting. I figured, I don't need no stinkin' recipe! It's just meat, cheese and noodles for the most part, right? Pretty much, yeah, that's about the extent of it. So, I threw it together..took a while...knife skills weren't that great as a 16 year old...and aren't much better now. At the end I sat down in from of my 17 inch color tv while watching Three's Company or some other random 80's show and took my first bite. It was like the sky opened up and the angels sang. I actually made something that tasted good...not good, but damn incredible. It's hard to screw up meat and cheese though...guess I picked the right dish to start my journey.
This dish takes some prep time and you can make it longer if you decide to do homemade sauce or even go bold and make your own pasta...but this recipe is the easy way using jarred sauce and standard noodles. So, loosen your belts, get your statin medication and be ready to go into a cheesy-meat coma.
Sevres approx 6-8 people, freezes well.
Ingredients:
2-24 oz jars of your favorite quality pasta sauce (I love the Trader Joes 4 cheese style).
1-16 oz can of San Marzzano or other quality tomato sauce
1.5 lbs of 85/15 Ground Beef
1.5 lbs of ground Italian Sausage
3/4 lb of ground Veal (substitute with any other meat if you don't like killing baby cows...I'm in that group too, but this is the only thing I use veal in)
1 lb Crimini Mushrooms (sliced)
1 bunch of Fresh Basil
3 large shallots
Italian Seasoning
1 lb Mozzarella (sliced)
1 lb Sharp Cheddar (I love Cabot)
1/2 lb Monterey Jack
8 oz Provolone slices
3 large Heads of Garlic
Olive oil for cooking onions and mushrooms
I package of standard Lasagna Noodles, or the No-Boil style
Preparation:
1. Get out your supplies. You're going to need a 8 quart stock pot (or larger), a 11 X 14 casserole dish, another 8 quart stock pot if you choose the boil style noodles, cutting board, larger fry pan, foil, and a small food processor (will save you chopping time).
2. Heat the oven to about 400 F. Get out your garlic and chop the top of the head off about 1/2 inch from the top. Put about 1 tsp of olive oil on top of each head. Wrap them all in a piece of foil and place in the oven for about 45 minutes. When timer goes off, unwrap from foil and set aside and let cool.
3. While the garlic is roasting, start cooking your meat and veggies. Start with your shallots. Use your processor and chop the shallots down to size. If you are a pro, get to chopping with the knife skillz. Once chopped, pour a Tbs of olive oil in the pan and saute'e the shallots until softened..about 5 minutes or so. Remove and drain liquid when onions are done and set aside in a bowl.
4. Next we'll move on to the meat. Toss your ground beef into the pan and cook until just done. Drain fat, set aside and repeat with the Italian sausage and veal (or any other meat you decide to use).
5. After your meat is done, cook your mushrooms with about 1 Tbs of olive oil. You really don't need to spice up the mushrooms as you'll pretty much just be tasting the meat and cheese, plus you don't need to add any extra salt to this dish. Drain and set aside mushrooms when done.
6. Now you can combine most everything into your stock pot and start to meld everything together. Pour both jars of sauce into the pot, then add all your cooked meat, your shallots, mushrooms and your roasted garlic into the pot. Stir to combine. Once mixed together, add 1 Tbs of Italian seasoning. Mix again and simmer for about 30 minutes. After 30 minutes taste your sauce. Chances are it should be about perfect. If needed add more Italian seasoning.
7. At this point you should let the sauce simmer for another hour or even more if you have the time.
8. If you are using noodles that you have to boil, now is the time to do that. If you are using the no boil noodles (what a time-saver), skip this step.
9. Start putting it together! Get out your casserole dish and pour your can of tomato sauce on the bottom of the dish and spread out evenly. Lay you first layer of noodles on top of of the sauce. Scoop out your meat sauce onto the layer of noodles and spread out evenly about an inch thick. On top of the first layer of meat, put whole leaves of basil on top. Then begin to place your cheese. Place half of your mozzarella slices on top of the sauce and basil, place 3-4 slices of provolone as well. Finish the cheese layer by adding shredded cheddar and jack. (I know, you are looking at the ingredients and seeing 3 lbs of cheese...no, you don't need to use all of it...but it's not like you're going to throw away extra cheese...you'll eat it :) I would use all the mozzarella and maybe 3/4 of the cheddar and jack and maybe 1/2 of the provolone). OK, back to the prep! Congrats, you have finished a layer. Now repeat. Another layer of noodles, layer of meat sauce, basil and then the cheese to finish it off.
10. If you are going to have dinner soon, heat the oven to 350 F, cover with a glass lid or loosely cover with foil. Cook for approx 30 minutes. If you made it early and you are putting it in the fridge for later that day or the next day, you will need to cook for 45-50 minutes.
Try it and tell me this isn't comfort food extreme. If you eat it and find that it is too salty, next time try caramelizing some onions and adding them to the meat sauce. This will add a dose of sweetness that will even out the flavor.
What goes well with this cheesy monster? Why cheesy garlic bread and Caesar salad of course. Recipes to follow in my next couple blog posts.
Wine and beer you ask? This bad boy is a wine lovers dream. Even though it's been Americanized and bastardized, it still screams for Italian varietals. If you want to go old school Italy go out and grab one of those straw covered Chianti bottles...if you want to go bold, find a nice bottle of Sangiovese or Primitvo. These are often fruit forward wines (think cherry jolly rancher), that work perfect with the acidity of the tomato sauce. If you want to toss back a cold one, I would suggest an Amber Ale like Fat Tire or Bell's Amber Ale or you could go the Belgian Tripel route and seek out St. Bernardus, Tripel Karmeliet or Golden Monkey. The Tripel's are stronger in alcohol and usually have a nice sweetness that works will with the meaty and cheesy mixture.