White Lasagna
I think it is hard not to love lasagna, those succulent blocks layered with pasta, meat and tomato sauce, and either a creamy sauce or a bit of ricotta cheese, depending on where you grew up. However, with such classics like lasagna, we are often left to wonder if there are ways we can improve upon the classics, and that’s what I’m about to do today.
Today, I’m going to strip away the tomatoes from your traditional lasagna and do more of a white lasagna. Don’t worry, this will still have a big flavorful impact. My idea is to base this recipe off the original recipe for pasta Bolognese, which involves no tomatoes and is often made with ground veal but I’m opting for the more readily available beef, and I will combine that with a creamy, cheesy bechamel for an indulgent and delicious experience.
I suppose you can think of this dish as a beef alfredo lasagna. This is great to make if you happen to have a tomato allergy, or if tomatoes aren’t really in season, or even if you’re just looking for a way to change up lasagna night.
Serves 4
For the White Meat Sauce:
3 tbsp unsalted butter
8 oz pancetta, coarsely diced
1 white onion, chopped
2 medium carrots, peeled and chopped
2 large celery stalks, chopped
1 1/2 pounds ground beef (80/20 is preferred)
Salt and pepper
2 tbsp minced fresh rosemary
2 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
5 tbsp flour
2 cups low sodium beef broth (chicken broth also works)
For the Bechamel Sauce:
6 tbsp unsalted butter
6 tbsp flour
3 cups milk
1/2 cup finely grated Parmigiano Reggiano
Salt and pepper
Freshly grated nutmeg, to taste
For Assembly:
Olive oil
1 box (1 pound) no-boil lasagna sheets
1 cup shredded melting cheese (Fontina, Gruyere or Emmental are all great)
1 cup finely grated Parmigiano Reggiano
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F/180 C
Heat the butter with the pancetta in a wide frying pan over medium low for about 10 minutes, or until the pancetta has let out some of its fat and is starting to brown. Increase the heat to medium, then add the onion, carrot, and celery, then cook for another 4 minutes, or until the veggies start to brown.
Make a well in the center of the veggies, then add the ground beef. Season the beef with salt and pepper, then cook for another 5 minutes, breaking up the beef with a wooden spoon, until the beef is no longer pink in the middle.
Add the nutmeg, rosemary, and flour, then cook about a minute longer before adding the beef broth. Bring to a simmer, then let it go for about 15 minutes, or until the liquid has reduced and thickened. Season the sauce with salt and pepper to taste.
While the meat sauce simmers, make the bechamel by melting the butter in a saucepan. Whisk in the flour, then cook for about a minute, then slowly add the milk. Bring the sauce to a simmer, then cook for about 5 minutes, or until it starts to thicken. Take the sauce off the heat, then stir in the Parmigiano, and season with salt, pepper, and nutmeg
Line the bottom of a 9x13 baking dish with oil, then spread on a thin layer of the meat sauce. Top with an even layer of pasta sheets, then another layer of meat sauce, followed by some of the bechamel sauce, and a sprinkling of both cheeses. Repeat this until you have used up all of your meat sauce, then top with a final layer of pasta, bechamel and cheese.
Wrap the lasagna with foil, then bake for about 15 minutes with the foil on, then remove the foil and bake for another 30 minutes. For a crusty top, switch on the broiler for about 2 minutes afterwards.
Let the lasagna cool for about 15 minutes before slicing and serving.
