Asparagus Lasagna
Asparagus is one of those vegetables that people either love or hate due to it’s taste and the way it makes your pee smell.
However, this humble vegetable does have many culinary uses, and I don’t just mean hiding it under our mashed potatoes. Today, I’m going to show you a classic asparagus lasagna that comes from a town called Le Marche, a town at the base of Italy’s Monti Sibilini. The area is also famous for Vincisgrassi, a type of lasagna made with a meat ragu that’s enriched with chicken offal…don’t worry, I won’t even touch that.
The technique for this lasagna is actually quite simple, it involves an asparagus puree, bechamel sauce and cheese for a very light lasagna that is perfect for the summertime. And like any lasagna, this can be made hours before you want to serve it.
I’ll be making my lasagna with fresh pasta because I am me, but there is nothing wrong with using dried pasta sheets for this.
Serves 6-8
Difficulty: Easy
Time: 1 hour and 45 minutes. (Add another hour if making fresh pasta)
For the Bechamel Sauce:
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
4 tablespoons flour
4 cups milk
Freshly grated nutmeg
Salt
For the Lasagna:
Cooking spray
2 pounds fresh asparagus, trimmed
1 pound of fresh or dried lasagna sheets
10 1/2oz low moisture mozzarella, cut into small cubes
3 1/2 oz grated parmigiano reggiano
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees and grease a 13x9 inch baking pan with cooking spray.
Make the Bechamel sauce. Melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Add the flour, then cook for about 30 seconds to form a roux, then slowly add the milk, whisking as you do so. Once all of the milk is added, bring the sauce to a simmer and let it cook for about 5 minutes, or until thickened. Season with nutmeg and salt, then set aside.
Bring a wide saucepan of salted water to a boil. Add the asparagus and blanch for about 2-5 minutes depending on the thickness of the asparagus, or until very tender. Drain and reserve the water.
Dump the asparagus into a blender or food processor, then blitz until it forms a thick puree, adding asparagus water if needed.
In the same pot used to cook the asparagus, blanch the pasta sheets according to the directions for al dente. Drain, then lay onto clean kitchen towels.
To assemble, spread a thin layer of bechamel sauce onto the bottom of the prepared pan, followed by a layer of pasta. Spread a thin layer of bechamel on the pasta followed by some asparagus puree, a some mozzarella cubes and a sprinkle of parmesan. Repeat this until you have at least 4 layers of pasta, or until you’ve used up all of the asparagus.
Top the pasta with a final thin layer of bechamel and a generous amount of mozzarella and parmesan. Bake for 45 minutes and if the top isn’t browned to your liking, switch on the broiler for a few more minutes. Let the lasagna cool for about 15 minutes before slicing and serving.
