Free Form Lasagna Recipes

FREE FORM POLENTA LASAGNA

Steps:

• Lightly coat a sheet pan with olive oil and set aside. Bring the water, milk, and olive oil to a boil in a large pot. Add salt and pepper, and then sprinkle in the cornmeal, stirring continuously with a wooden spoon or heavy whisk to avoid lumps. Reduce the heat to medium and continue cooking, stirring frequently, for about 15 minutes, or until the polenta pulls away cleanly from the sides of the pot. Season, to taste, again with salt and pepper. Fold in the butter and Parmesan.
• Turn the polenta onto the prepared sheet pan and smooth it out. Cover it with plastic wrap, and put it in the refrigerator until it is quite cold, preferably overnight. Using a 4-inch round pastry cutter, cut the cold polenta into 4-inch round cakes. Place the cakes on parchment paper, leaving them covered with plastic wrap until ready to serve.
• Close to serving time, heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add enough olive oil to coat the bottom of the skillet, and let the oil heat. Dust the polenta cakes with flour, add them to the pan in batches, and saute until crispy and golden brown. Top each cake with 1 tablespoon Taleggio, and place under the broiler until cheese is melted and a little browned on top. Serve the polenta cakes with basil oil, smoked tomato sauce, and grilled vegetables, layering like free-form lasagna as desired.
• Blanch the basil for 3 to 5 seconds in a large pot of boiling salted water. Using a spider or a slotted spoon, immediately plunge the basil into a bowl of ice water to retain its bright green color. Gently squeeze the basil to remove as much excess water as possible.
• Put the basil in a food processor or blender. Add both oils, and puree until smooth. Put the pesto in an airtight container, and refrigerate it overnight. Then pour off the excess oil that has settled on top. Pour pesto into squirt bottles for easier service.
• Smoke the onions and fresh tomatoes in a smoker under mesquite chips. Remove from smoker, and set the tomatoes aside. Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the smoked onions and garlic to the pan, and saute until tender and very fragrant. Add the oregano and bay leaves and cook for 1 more minute, or until fragrant. Add the smoked tomatoes and the canned tomatoes, and bring mixture to a boil. Add the white wine and basil, reduce the heat, and simmer for about 15 to 20 minutes. Using an immersion blender, puree the sauce until smooth. Then add the sugar, and simmer for another 10 to 12 minutes. Strain sauce through a medium-sized mesh sieve. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
• Preheat a grill, or heat a grill pan over medium-high heat. In a large bowl, toss all of the sliced vegetables with the olive oil. Add salt and pepper, to taste. Add the garlic and fresh herbs, if using, and toss all together. Grill the vegetables until they are tender yet still slightly crisp.

BEST LASAGNA

Steps:

• Cook noodles according to package directions; drain. Meanwhile, in a Dutch oven, cook sausage, beef and onion over medium heat 8-10 minutes or until meat is no longer pink, breaking up meat into crumbles. Add garlic; cook 1 minute. Drain., Stir in tomatoes, tomato paste, water, sugar, 3 tablespoons parsley, basil, fennel, 1/2 teaspoon salt and pepper; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, 30 minutes, stirring occasionally., In a small bowl, mix egg, ricotta cheese and remaining parsley and salt., Preheat oven to 375°. Spread 2 cups meat sauce into an ungreased 13x9-in. baking dish. Layer with 3 noodles and a third of the ricotta mixture. Sprinkle with 1 cup mozzarella cheese and 2 tablespoons Parmesan cheese. Repeat layers twice. Top with remaining meat sauce and cheeses (dish will be full)., Bake, covered, 25 minutes. Bake, uncovered, 25 minutes longer or until bubbly. Let stand 15 minutes before serving.

FREE-FORM LASAGNA

Steps:

• Cook and drain noodles as directed on package.
• Meanwhile, in small saucepan, heat pasta sauce over medium-low heat until bubbly. In small microwavable bowl, microwave ricotta cheese uncovered on High 1 to 2 minutes or until thoroughly heated.
• Cut each noodle in half. On each of 4 serving plates, place 1 half noodle; spread with a spoonful of ricotta cheese and a spoonful of pasta sauce, then sprinkle with Italian cheese. Repeat layers, using 3 more half noodles for each serving. Sprinkle with remaining Italian cheese. Garnish with basil.

FREE-FORM LASAGNA WITH WILD MUSHROOMS AND PARMESAN CREAM

Steps:

• Clean the mushrooms, removing the stems, and slice 1/4 in thick.
• Cook the pasta or egg roll wrapper in boiling salted water. Remove and drain, unfolding them if they stick or clump together.
• In a large skillet, heat the olive oil and butter over medium-high heat until the butter melts and the foam subsides.
• Add the mushrooms and cook, without stirring, until they are browned on one side 2 to 4 minutes. Sprinkle with the rosemary, salt and pepper, and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 3 minutes. Remove to a plate or small bowl.
• Return the skillet to medium heat. Pour in the cream and add 2 tbl of the Parmesan, stirring constantly, just until the cheese melts. Remove from the heat and season with salt and pepper.
• Dip the pasta or wrapper quickly into the sauce, turn to coat. Place on serving plate. Scatter the mushrooms over it.
• Dip the remaining pasta/wrapper and drape, slightly askew, over the mushrooms. Drizzle with any remaining sauce and sprinkle with remaining Parmesan.

FREE-FORM SAUSAGE AND THREE CHEESE LASAGNA

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees. In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook lasagna noodles until almost tender, about 5 minutes, then drain. Pat noodles dry then transfer to bowl and toss with olive oil.
• In a medium skillet, heat 1 tbl of the olive oil. Add Italian sausage, cover and cook over moderate heat, turning once, until browned all over. Add the water, cover and simmer until the sausage is just cooked through, about 4 minutes.
• In a large skillet, heat the remaining 2 tbls of olive oil. Add the garlic and cook over low heat until golden, about 3 minutes.
• Add the tomatoes with their juices and cook over moderate heat for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
• Add the sausage and its poaching liquid and simmer for 4 minutes. Transfer sausage to a plate. Simmer the sauce over moderate heat until thickened, about 12 minutes. Coarsely break up the sausage and season the sauce with salt and pepper.
• In a well-buttered, 9 x 13 inch ceramic baking dish, arrange 3 lasagna noodles in different directions in the dish, leaving about 2 inches of overhang. Spoon a scant 1/4 cup of the tomato sauce over each lasagna noodle and sprinkle with a little grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese. Set a piece of mozzarella and Fontina on each lasagna noodle and add a few chunks of sausage.
• Fold the overhanging lasagna noodles on top of the cheese and sausage.
• Repeat the process with the remaining lasagna noodles, tomato sauce, mozzarella, Fontina and sausage sprinkling with a litle more Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese.
• Brush the softened butter on any bare pasta and curly edges and sprinkle with Parmigiano-Reggiano.
• Bake on the top rack of the oven for 20 minutes, until the sauce starts to bubble. Raise the oven temp to 450 degrees and bake for about 7 minutes longer until the top is richly browned.
• Let the lasagna rest for about 10 minutes, then scatter the sliced basil on top.