Lasagna Bolognese

Last week I had a dinner party...my friend Saul's mother was here from Mexico. She had been here for a couple of months and was going to return to her country. We had wanted to have her and Saul's little family over and decided to cook Lasagna. Her favorite restaurant to go to here was Olive Garden, so I thought I couldn't go wrong with pasta. This is a great recipe...it is not the traditional stringy cheesy Lasagna, although it is creamy and very tender....the Bechamel, with the hint of nutmeg gives it a spice than is not easy to discern.... I made it the night before doubling the recipe and kept it in the fridge until time to put in the oven, that worked out fine,  it was so wonderful!

 

Lasagna Bolognese
from the chef: Mario Batali

Servings
Serves six to eight.
Ingredients

Ragù:
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 medium onions, finely chopped
1 carrot, finely chopped
4 stalks celery, finely chopped
5 cloves garlic, sliced
1 pound veal, ground
1 pound pork, ground
4 ounces pancetta, ground
1 8-ounce can tomato paste
1 cup milk
1/2 cup white wine
1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Béchamel:

5 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/4 cup flour
3 cups milk
2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

Lasagna:
3/4 to 1 pound fresh pasta sheets, about 7 by 4 inches, or dried lasagne noodles blanched for 6 minutes and refreshed
1 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
Oil for brushing

Cooking Instructions

Ragù: In a large heavy-bottom saucepan, heat olive oil. Add onion, carrot, celery, and garlic, and sweat over medium heat for about 5 minutes, until vegetables are translucent. Add veal, pork, and pancetta to the vegetables, and brown over high heat, stirring to keep the meat from sticking together. Add the tomato paste, milk, wine, thyme, and 1 cup water, and simmer over medium-low heat for 1 to 1-1/2 hours (if the ragù becomes too thick, add a little more water). Season to taste with salt and pepper, and remove from heat.

Béchamel: Melt the butter in a medium saucepan, add the flour, and whisk until smooth. Cook over medium heat, stirring regularly, until the mixture turns golden brown, about 6 to 7 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat the milk in a separate pan until it is just about to boil. Add the milk to the butter mixture, 1 cup at a time, whisking continuously until the sauce is very smooth. Bring to a boil and cook for 30 seconds longer. Remove from the heat and season with salt and nutmeg.

Assembly: Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Brush a 9-by-13-inch glass baking dish with melted butter or oil, and layer in the following order from the bottom: ragù, pasta, béchamel, and grated cheese (saving about 1 cup béchamel for last topping), making 3 to 4 layers of pasta, finishing with ragù, béchamel, and 1/4 cup of the Parmigiano-Reggiano sprinkled over the top. Bake in the oven for 45 minutes, until the top is golden brown and the casserole is bubbling. Remove from the oven, allow to cool for 20 minutes, slice, and serve.

start with sauteing onions, celery and carrots in oil in heavy large pan...

pancetta is in the recipe to be used, but I had this meaty bacon on hand and used it....chopped it up small

it says ground pork in the recipe but I used italian sausage, says ground veal (I used bison) and the bacon...put it all in the pan and...

cook over medium heat until all meat is done.....

add wine, (or water) tomato paste, milk, water and thyme and stir

add chili peppers and stir....

cook uncovered for 1 to 1-1/2 hours...it will cook down....

grate your parmigiano-reggiano

time to make the bechamel....heat milk in separate pan....

melt butter in large skillet....over medium heat

add flour and stir....

whisk, whisk, whisk.....cook, cook, cook...

when you turn to get your camera don't let your whisk fall in the pan....

things happened very fast and before you know it the sauce is done....it is creamy, fragrant and smooth

the ragu is perfect...not to thick.....taste it to see if it needs salt and pepper....

I bought the fresh pasta sheets at Metropolitan Market...but several larger grocery stores carry them as well as Trader Joes....

here you start your layering...red sauce...pasta sheets....

Bechamel sauce, sprinkle cheese....then repeat.....

do about 5 layers...not overfilling your pan....

I grated some extra cheese to put on top right before I put it in the oven.... couldn't very well blame these hands on being Gramas or Mom's......

cause check it out she was right next to me...Hi Mom!...(wow aren't those the largest reading glasses you have ever seen?)

cheese on top and then....

it is ready to go in the oven.....you won't be sorry you went to the trouble to make this...it tastes like going to Italy....not that I would know, but I am sure this is what they eat everyday!

Here are some pictures I thought  you might like to look at of our special night....

This was our fabulous dessert...sister Mary made it...Coconut cake...maybe we can get her to share it!

this is my grand daughter Misty on the right and on the left is my great-great niece Ashlynn...

Misty, Ashlynn, Lucas and Fernando coloring....

Cousin Diane, cousin Susan, Saul's wife Lidia and my godson Fernando peaking..

Friend Dar, sister Mary, Saul, Saul's mother Maria and Diana

Mother and Maria

ok left to right...Fernando, Saul, Lidia, Lucas in front, Susan, myself, Mother, Maria, David and Sarah

It was quite a night!

Cheers to Happy  !! 

Baked Mushroom Pork Chops and Potatoes

I have been eating this and making this recipe for as long as I can remember.....My mother made it and then I made it for my children, I would guess all my brothers and sisters make it for theirs...they say everyone makes 7 recipes over and over again...if so, this was ours...yummy pork chops...they are good enough for company....if more people show up for dinner (as often happened in our house growing up) you just add more potatoes....and a larger stack of bread and butter on the table....where did that tradition go? Who stopped it? I want it back......

my family used to make this with fatty bone in pork steak, this was the best...it was fall off the bone tender....since we no longer eat fatty pork steak I used 6 very meaty lean boneless pork chops....salt and pepper both sides...

heat 2 tablespoons vegetable oil in a heavy skillet, over medium high heat .....

add your pork chops and begin frying them at about 3 minutes on each side....

when all are nicely browned...add to the pot......

about 10 scrubbed clean and cut red potatoes....

and 1 large can of cream of mushroom soup, or 2 or three small cans.....

it looks like this...I also added about 1 tablespoon of worcestershire sauce.....Iknow, I know it doesn't look like much....but just wait.....

cover with lid and put in a 400 degree oven for 2 hours......

comes out like this, pork chops fall apart, potatoes are so soft, hot and tender....and the gravy...ladle that over everything.....

This is so great, and yes go ahead and serve it with canned green beans, it just goes togehter!!!!! Very creamy and flavorful...your guests and family will love it, as much as ours does!!!

Cheers to Happy  !!

Cinnamon Toast...

Is there anything that sounds as good as cinnamon toast? When we were young and mother made cinnamon toast it was a very special day....she would broil it in the oven and we would wait in anticipation...I would bet any one of my brothers and sisters would say they could of ate a whole loaf of bread this way...Yes it is nostalgic...but it says special...for whoever you make it for...cinnamon toast says you went out of your way and that you love the one you made if for...so very nurturing....

to make really special cinnamon toast you start with the cheapest white bread at your grocer and real butter and a mix of cinnamon sugar...which is sugar with cinnamon mixed in...you make that the way you like it, but a good rule of thumb is 1/2 cup of sugar with 1 heaping teaspoon of cinnamon stirred in.....

put you toast in the toaster and toast lightly......

like this....

spread butter on the toast side to side...not missing any surface...make sure you do not use soft spread...it has water in it and will make soggy toast...cubed margarine will work fine.....

ok got busy and forgot to take the next picture, but make sure you liberally sprinkled on the the sugar mixture and making sure to get on all the edges and put under the broiler in the oven....

broil until very bubbly, just about a minute....like creme brulee....smells heavenly....

it looks like glass on the top.....

slice and place on a plate and serve to your special person....

and that may be yourself.....who will know? nobody, there is more sugar than this in a lifesaver...just splurge and DO IT......

Cheers to Happy  !!

Dishes....

I am sure I can't be the only one that has an addiction! No it is not alcohol or cigarettes or drugs....it is coats, shoes and DISHES, yes there I said it and no I have never counted how many sets I have...more that I can use....they are tucked everywhere...I swore off buying anymore...nope not me...I do not need any more...I will not buy any...I don't have room for more...until I went to my sister's garage sale....and there were my Aunt Esther and Uncle Franks dishes....my sister does not share this sickness obviously or she wouldn't be selling them....I touched them and petted them and walked away from them...then decided that I couldn't bare if anyone else bought them...so that is how I ended up with these beautiful 150 year old dishes (they started out as my great Aunt Esther's mothers)

being so old they look so 'current' there is a motto here, if you see something you really want just buy it! As my Dad so often said 'folks it is only money'

This is the side story to go along with the dishes...on the back of each plate, cup and saucer is a blob of flesh colored finger nail polish....during the war with Japan, Aunt Esther was embarrassed about the 'made in Japan' on the bottom of her dishes so she covered the name up! Not that any one in her tiny little town would of ever turned her dishes over! Oh we all laughed about this every time we used them at their house!

Cheers to Happy  !!