You expect to find a recipe for lasagna in every Italian cookery book and Buonissimo!, written by TV chef Gino D’Acampo (pub. Kyle Cathie, £14.99) is no exception. Gino calls this recipe (which appears here with permission), The No. 1 Lasagna. It is easy to make and appears in the section of the book that he has devoted to everyday recipes. In Buonissimo! Gino D’Acampo says that you can use ready-made béchamel sauce for this lasagna, but it will taste more special if you make your own. Gino says that, if you wish, you can substitute the minced beef with minced lamb, and once ready and out of the oven, you should make sure that you let it rest for a good 10 minutes, otherwise the lasagna will fall apart as you serve it.
Gino D'Acampo's No. 1 Lasagna Recipe - Serves 6 to 8
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 onion, finely chopped
- 1 large carrot, chopped into 1 cm cubes
- 1 celery stalk, finely chopped
- 500 g minced beef
- 1 glass Italian dry red wine
- 400 g tinned chopped tomatoes
- 1 tablespoon tomato puree
- 1 courgette, chopped into 1 cm cubes
- 10 basil leaves
- 9 sheets fresh lasagna (each about 10 x 18 cm)
- 50 g cold salted butter, cut into 1 cm cubes
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
For the Béchamel Sauce
- 100 g salted butter
- 100 g plain flour
- 1 litre full-fat cold milk
- 100 g freshly grated Parmesan cheese
- 1/4 freshly grated nutmeg
Method
- Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan over a medium heat and cook the onion, carrot and celery for 5 minutes. Add the minced beef and continue to cook for a further 5 minutes, stirring continuously, until coloured all over. Season with salt and pepper and continue to cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Pour in the wine, stir well and continue to cook for about 5 minutes until the wine has evaporated.
- Add the chopped tomatoes, tomato puree, the courgettes and basil, lower the heat and continue to cook for 1 hour, uncovered, until you get a beautiful rich sauce. Stir occasionally. After about 30 minutes, taste for seasoning.
- Meanwhile, heat the oven to 180° C/350°F/gas mark 4, and make the béchamel sauce. Melt the butter in a large saucepan over a medium heat. Stir in the flour and cook for 1 minute. Gradually whisk in the cold milk, reduce the heat and cook for 10 minutes whisking constantly. Once thickened, stirring half of the Parmesan cheese with the nutmeg, season, and set aside to cool slightly.
- Spread a quarter of the béchamel sauce in the base of a deep 2.2 litre ovenproof dish. Cover with 3 lasagne sheets, cutting them if necessary to fit the dish. Spread with half the meat sauce then top with a third of the remaining béchamel sauce. Cover with 3 more sheets of lasagna and then with the remaining meat sauce. Spread over half of the remaining béchamel sauce. Add a final layer of lasagne sheets and gently spread the rest of the béchamel on top ensuring that the lasagne sheets are completely covered.
- Sprinkle with the remaining Parmesan and scatter over the cubed butter. Grind some black pepper over the whole lasagne.
- Cook on the lowest shelf of the oven for 30 minutes then place the dish on the middle shelf, raise the oven temperature to 200°C/400°F/gas mark 6 and continue to cook for a further 15 minutes until golden and crispy all over.
Try Gino D'Acampo's recipe for Artichoke and Spinach Tart and read a review of Gino's first book Fantastico!
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