Lasagne with Bolognese sauce & mushrooms

Method

1. For the Bolognese sauce: Finely chop the carrot, the celery and the onion.
2. Heat a pan and sauté them in a little olive oil.
3. Add the mixed minced meat, the bay leaf and stir.
4. Once the meat has browned a little, pour in the wine and let it reduce.
5. Add the tomato paste, cover with water and cook for at least 30 minutes.
6. Season with salt and pepper, remove the bay leaf and set aside.
7. Clean the mushrooms, slice them finely and cook in a non-stick pan over a medium heat, then set aside.
8. For the béchamel sauce: melt the butter in a pot, add the flour and then the milk stirring constantly to avoid lumps.
9. Season with salt and a pinch of nutmeg, then bring to a gentle boil.
10. Cook for a couple of minutes, then set aside.
11. Assembling: grease a baking tray with a little bit of butter and spoon over the bottom a first layer of béchamel and Bolognese sauce.
12. Create the first layer with the Lasagne sheets, cover with some mushrooms slices and sprinkle with grated parmesan.
13. Repeat this procedure 5 times, alternating layers of Bolognese sauce, lasagne, mushrooms and béchamel.
14. Leave enough béchamel sauce to completely cover the top layer.
15. Bake in a preheated oven at 220 °C for 25-30 minutes.
16. Let the lasagne rest for 10 minutes before serving.

Chef's tip

If you want to make this recipe vegetarian, replace the minced meat with dehydrated soy flakes: soak them in a veggie broth until fully hydrated, then drain, squeeze and carry on as if it was meat!

Serving suggestion

Since this is a quite heavy course, we suggest you serve it with light salads and/or vegetable-based side dishes.

Wine selection

Le Ellere Chianti Classico DOCG, Alturio Refosco Friuli Aquileia DOC or Sangiovese DOC Maremma Toscana.

Family tip

The lasagne sheets do not need cooking before placing in the baking tray. However, this only works if your sauces are not too thick and there is enough liquid to hydrate the pasta! If you prefer to err on the side of caution, scald the pasta sheets in hot boiling water for a couple of minutes before assembling the lasagne, or keep your Bolognese sauce looser.

Dish history

Lasagne is the name of one of the most ancient pasta forms, usually rectangular or band-shaped and thicker than tagliatelle. Already known at the time of Greeks as 'lasana', it was called 'lasanum' in Rome and was already cooked in a similar way as today. Its first description dates back to 25 BC - 37 AD and is to be found in the essay 'De re coquinaria' (The culinary art) from Apicio, a Roman gourmet. Across the centuries the recipe evolved until it became what we nowadays know as Lasagne alla Bolognese. Enjoy this piece of history and, why not, make your own contribution to its further development!