Fennel Lasagna Recipes

Steps:

• Make the pasta: Combine spinach, eggs, salt and olive oil in a blender or food processor and purée until smooth. Transfer to a mixing bowl and stir in flour. Knead mixture into a soft dough. If sticky, add a little more flour. Form into a ball, wrap in plastic, and set aside to rest while you prepare the other elements.
• Make the filling: Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add spinach and let wilt for a few seconds. Drain spinach in a colander and rinse well with cold water. Squeeze spinach dry and chop roughly.
• Put ricotta in a mixing bowl and stir in chopped spinach. Stir in lemon zest and crushed fennel seed. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
• Set a large skillet over medium-high heat and add sausage meat. Cook, breaking up with a spatula, until crumbled. Cook for 3 to 4 minutes, stirring, until just cooked through. Transfer to a bowl and let cool.
• For the béchamel, melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Whisk in flour and let cook for about 1 minute, stirring; do not let mixture brown.
• Whisk in milk 1/2 cup at a time, letting sauce thicken after each addition. Add bay leaf, cayenne and nutmeg and continue cooking over low heat, whisking frequently, for about 10 minutes, to create a smooth sauce. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Thin with a little more milk if necessary; consistency should be that of a not-too-thick milkshake. If needed, strain sauce to remove lumps. Keep warm in a double boiler to prevent thickening.
• Make the tomato sauce: In a saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add garlic and basil and let sizzle without browning, 1 minute or less. Add tomato purée and bring to a simmer. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Cook for about 5 minutes, until slightly thickened. Remove from heat, pull out the basil leaves, and whisk in butter. Set aside.
• Roll out the pasta: Set up a pasta machine and divide the dough into 5 roughly equal pieces. Roll each piece into a thin sheet of pasta about 12 inches long. Rolling twice at the second-to-last setting on the machine should give you the right thickness. Set aside on baking sheets, dust lightly with flour and keep covered with a slightly damp kitchen towel to prevent them from drying out.
• Butter a medium-large baking dish, not larger than 9 by 13 inches. Heat oven to 375 degrees.
• Cook the pasta: Have a large pot of salted boiling water on the stove and a large bowl of ice water nearby. One by one, place pasta sheets in boiling water to par-cook for about 1 minute, leaving pasta quite firm. Using tongs or a spider, lift pasta out and plunge into ice water. Lift out and lay on a clean kitchen towel to blot. Cut into two pieces.
• As the pasta is cooked, assemble the lasagna: Place 2 sheets cooked pasta side by side, in the bottom of the baking dish. Spread pasta with 1/2 cup béchamel and dot with one-quarter of the ricotta mixture. Sprinkle over one fourth of crumbled sausage and 1/2 cup grated Parmesan. Repeat process for each layer. You will have 4 layers. Finish with 2 sheets of pasta. Spread top with 1/2 cup béchamel and sprinkle with remaining Parmesan. (The lasagna can be made up to this point up to 1 day in advance, covered and refrigerated.)
• Cover with foil and bake about 30 minutes, until lasagna is bubbling. (If baking a refrigerated lasagna, this will take longer, up to 60 minutes.) Remove foil and bake uncovered for about 15 minutes, until lightly browned on top. Let lasagna rest for 10 to 15 minutes before cutting.
• Just before serving, reheat tomato sauce. To serve, cut lasagna into 3- or 4-inch squares. With a spatula, transfer each serving to individual plates. Spoon about ½ cup tomato sauce around each serving. Garnish with basil leaves.

Steps:

• In a Dutch oven, cook sausage, ground beef, onion, and garlic over medium heat until well browned. Stir in crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, tomato sauce, and water. Season with sugar, basil, fennel seeds, Italian seasoning, 1 teaspoon salt, pepper, and 2 tablespoons parsley. Simmer, covered, for about 1 1/2 hours, stirring occasionally.
• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook lasagna noodles in boiling water for 8 to 10 minutes. Drain noodles, and rinse with cold water. In a mixing bowl, combine ricotta cheese with egg, remaining parsley, and 1/2 teaspoon salt.
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
• To assemble, spread 1 1/2 cups of meat sauce in the bottom of a 9x13-inch baking dish. Arrange 6 noodles lengthwise over meat sauce. Spread with one half of the ricotta cheese mixture. Top with a third of mozzarella cheese slices. Spoon 1 1/2 cups meat sauce over mozzarella, and sprinkle with 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese. Repeat layers, and top with remaining mozzarella and Parmesan cheese. Cover with foil: to prevent sticking, either spray foil with cooking spray, or make sure the foil does not touch the cheese.
• Bake in preheated oven for 25 minutes. Remove foil, and bake an additional 25 minutes. Cool for 15 minutes before serving.

Steps:

• Cook noodles according to package directions; drain. Meanwhile, in a Dutch oven, cook sausage, beef and onion over medium heat 8-10 minutes or until meat is no longer pink, breaking up meat into crumbles. Add garlic; cook 1 minute. Drain., Stir in tomatoes, tomato paste, water, sugar, 3 tablespoons parsley, basil, fennel, 1/2 teaspoon salt and pepper; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, 30 minutes, stirring occasionally., In a small bowl, mix egg, ricotta cheese and remaining parsley and salt., Preheat oven to 375°. Spread 2 cups meat sauce into an ungreased 13x9-in. baking dish. Layer with 3 noodles and a third of the ricotta mixture. Sprinkle with 1 cup mozzarella cheese and 2 tablespoons Parmesan cheese. Repeat layers twice. Top with remaining meat sauce and cheeses (dish will be full)., Bake, covered, 25 minutes. Bake, uncovered, 25 minutes longer or until bubbly. Let stand 15 minutes before serving.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F
• Mix 1 cup mozzarella cheese, ricotta cheese, egg and 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese in medium bowl.
• Heat oil in large pot over medium-high heat. Add onions and fennel seeds; sauté 5 minutes. Add beef; sauté 10 minutes, breaking up meat with fork. Mix in seasoning, then tomatoes, broth and wine. Cover and simmer 8 minutes. Season sauce to taste with pepper.
• Spoon 1 1/3 cups sauce over bottom of 13x9x2-inch glass baking dish. Place 3 noodles over sauce. Drop half of ricotta cheese mixture by tablespoonfuls evenly over. Top with half of basil leaves, 1 cup mozzarella cheese and 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese. Continue layering with 3 noodles, 2 cups sauce, remaining ricotta cheese mixture, remaining basil, 1 cup mozzarella cheese and remaining 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese. Finish with 3 noodles, 2 cups sauce and remaining mozzarella cheese (reserve remaining sauce for another use). Cover with foil; place on baking sheet.
• Bake lasagna until heated through, about 1 hour. Uncover; let stand 15 minutes. Cut lasagna into squares.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F. Mix 1 cup mozzarella cheese, ricotta cheese, egg and 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese in medium bowl. Heat oil in large pot over medium-high heat. Add onions and fennel seeds; sauté 5 minutes. Add beef; sauté 10 minutes, breaking up meat with fork. Mix in seasoning, then tomatoes, broth and wine. Cover and simmer 8 minutes. Season sauce to taste with pepper.
• Spoon 1 1/3 cups sauce over bottom of 13x9x2-inch glass baking dish. Place 3 noodles over sauce. Drop half of ricotta cheese mixture by tablespoonfuls evenly over. Top with half of basil leaves, 1 cup mozzarella cheese and 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese. Continue layering with 3 noodles, 2 cups sauce, remaining ricotta cheese mixture, remaining basil, 1 cup mozzarella cheese and remaining 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese. Finish with 3 noodles, 2 cups sauce and remaining mozzarella cheese (reserve remaining sauce for another use). Cover with foil; place on baking sheet.
• Bake lasagna until heated through, about 1 hour. Uncover; let stand 15 minutes. Cut lasagna into squares.

Steps:

• Heat oven to 375 degrees. Remove a thin layer of the fennel bulbs' tough exterior with a paring knife or sharp vegetable peeler. Cut the fennel crosswise into half-inch-thick slices. Bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Boil the fennel for 1 minute, then put it in a bowl of cold water, drain and pat dry. Season with salt and pepper. Lightly oil an oven-proof baking dish. Layer in the fennel to a depth of 1 1/2 inches (pushing down, if necessary).
• In a small bowl, stir together 3 tablespoons olive oil, the fennel seed and the garlic, smashed to a paste with a little salt, the pepper flakes and the chopped rosemary. Drizzle 2 tablespoons of this mixture over the fennel. Sprinkle with the rosemary leaves. Cover with a layer of sliced or shredded mozzarella, then sprinkle with bread crumbs. Drizzle the remaining oil mixture, then sprinkle with Parmesan. (The dish may be prepared to this point several hours before baking.)
• Bake, uncovered, for 20 to 25 minutes, until nicely browned. Garnish with the chopped parsley or a mixture of the parsley and fennel fronds.