Italian Lasagne Recipes

Lasagne is a baked casserole made with pasta and fillings. Italian lasagne is available in diverse varieties, but the traditional lasagna is from Bologna.

Authentic lasagne has the traditional pasta shapes used to make the long, flat strips seen in the layers of lasagne. You can layer your lasagne with your favourite ingredients like ground meat, sautéed vegetables and sauce.

Ingredients for Making Italian Lasagne

Pasta: Noodles form the structure of the lasagna. You can get ready-to-eat lasagna noodles or make them from scratch at home. Lasagna noodles are wide and similar to a flat ribbon.

The lasagna sheets or noodles are made with flour and eggs, but you can use other ingredients, such as wheat flour, semolina or durum. You can use fresh lasagna noodles without cooking.

Ragu or meat sauce: Lasagna requires meat sauce to enhance the flavour. You prepare the meat dish by heating olive oil to brown the ground beef or pork mince. You also need to add vegetables like carrots and celery to build the flavour.

Béchamel sauce is a classic French cuisine that lends a creamy taste to Bolognese lasagna. The silky sauce holds the layers of pasta together and contrasts the acidity of the tomatoes. Béchamel is a white sauce made from flour, butter and milk, and you can easily whisk it in time to add it to your lasagna.

When making béchamel sauce, you need regular plain flour (all-purpose flour) and unsalted butter. Use whole milk to achieve a creamier or richer consistency. Whole milk also thickens quicker than semi-skimmed milk.

While you can make the sauce with only three ingredients, you can improve its flavour with freshly ground pepper or freshly grated nutmeg.

How to Make Béchamel Sauce

Warm the milk and set it aside as you prepare the roux. Béchamel starts with French roux, a melted butter and flour paste. Melt the butter in a saucepan and add a few tablespoons of flour.

Cook it into a paste at medium-low heat before adding milk. Slowly whisk milk into the mixture as you cook to achieve a creamy consistency. Add seasonings like nutmeg and pepper while whisking the mixture.