Baked Spinach Lasagne with Meat Sauce in the style of Bologna
Italy’s most famous baked pasta is lasagne! Historians have traced the dish back to at least Roman times, believing its name derives from the Latin lasania [cooking pot], and possibly to ancient Greece.
Lasagne has been widely adopted throughout Italy, with each region placing its own imprimatur on the dish. In Bologna, lasagne is made with fresh spinach pasta and layered with classic ragù alla Bolognese. In Liguria, lasagne is made with pesto (although sometimes the boiled pasta sheets are simply tossed with pesto [Genoa’s mandilli de sæa al pesto]). Neapolitans layer tomato sauce and mozzarella between the pasta sheets, and Calabrians prefer ricotta salata. In Piedmont, I’ve had lasagne with mushrooms and ham; and lasagne with artichokes is, well, sublime.
This dish takes quite a bit of time to prepare, but in our view it’s worth the effort. You can make the ragù alla Bolognese ahead of time. Also, once fully assembled, you can hold lasagne verdi al forno in the refrigerator for two full days if tightly sealed with plastic wrap. Just allow it to return to room temperature before baking.
Continue reading “Ricette Classiche: Lasagne Verdi al Forno”