Lasagne Verdi al Forno

Ingredients

PASTA

Spinach (rinsed, stemmed and dried) 150 g

Eggs 2

Semolina Flour 5/8 cup

Salt 1 tsp

All-purpose Flour 1 ½ cup

RAGU

Butter 2 tbsp

Bacon (diced) 2 slices

Carrot (diced) 1

Celery (diced) 1 stalk

Onion (diced) 1

Lean Ground Pork 100 g

Ham (minced) 100 g

Tomato paste 2 tbsp

Oregano (dried) 1 tsp

Salt and Pepper to taste

Chicken Livers (trimmed and chopped) 100 g

BECHAMEL

Butter 2 tbsp

All-purpose Flour 2 tpsp

Warm Milk 2 cups

Salt 1 pinch

Ground Nutmeg 1 pinch

CHEESE

Grated Parmesan Cheese 1 ½ cup

Ricotta Cheese 1 pint

Butter 3 tbsp

Method

For the pasta dough: Steam the spinach in a steamer or over boiling water until bright green, 2 minutes. Squeeze to remove excess moisture and process in a food processor to make a paste. Combine spinach with eggs, semolina, and salt and process until smooth. Stir in enough of the flour to make a smooth dough. Knead briefly, cover and set aside.

For the ragu: In a large skillet, melt butter over medium-high heat. Saute bacon, carrot, celery and onion until onion is translucent. Stir in ground pork and minced ham, and cook until browned. Stir in tomato paste, oregano and beef stock. Season with salt and pepper, reduce heat to low, cover and simmer 20 minutes.

For the bechamel: While the ragu is simmering, combine 2 tablespoons butter and 2 tablespoons flour in a medium saucepan over medium-low heat. Whisk to make a roux. Remove from heat, let rest one minute, then whisk in warm milk.

Return to heat, simmer 10 minutes, until thickened. Season with salt and nutmeg.

To cook pasta: Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. On a floured surface, divide pasta dough into three portions. Roll each portion out to a thin sheet. Have ready an ice water bath. Cook each sheet 3 minutes in the boiling water; remove from the boiling water and dip in the ice water; drain and dry.

To finish the ragu: Stir the chicken livers into the simmering sauce. Cook 1 minute, remove from heat and set aside. Preheat oven to 200 degrees C. Grease a 9x13 baking dish.

To assemble lasagna: Place one pasta sheet in bottom of prepared baking dish. Spread one-third of the ragu, one-quarter of the bechamel, one-third of the ricotta, and one-quarter of the parmesan over the pasta. Repeat layers twice. Top with remaining bechamel and parmesan and dot with butter. Bake in preheated oven 30 minutes, until it turns golden.

(Courtesy: www.allrecipes.com)