The lasagna recipe in this post draws inspiration from two lasagne recipes in Giuliano Bugialli’s classic Bugialli on Pasta (1988). One version hails from Naples and the other from Calabria.
Bugialli introduces the Neapolitan form:
“The well-known and very popular Lasagne imbottite, using long lasagne strips alternating layers of pasta with manifold ingredients, such as Napolitan ragù, tiny meatballs, sausage pieces, slices of mozzarella and hard-boiled egg (sic), ricotta, and grated Parmigiano is Naple’s version of the elaborate baked pasta made for the festivities of Carnival time. Such festival dishes once had a special meaning and were really made just at one time of year. Not only Carnival but each holiday season and even each saint’s day had its special dishes that were for just such an occasion, and they varied among the different regions and towns. But now one finds Lasagne imbottite on menus all over and at most times of the year, since the special meaning of such dishes has faded.”
Bugialli next turns to the Calabrian version:
“The Lasagne imbottite from neighboring Calabria is different. The fresh pasta is made with rougher semolina flour, whereas the Neapolitan is made with normal all-purpose flour; the little meat balls are made with pork rather than beef; the grated cheese is more likely to be pecorino; there is a simple tomato sauce rather than the Neapolitan ragù; and along with mozzarella, ricotta, and hard-boiled eggs is a special vegetable stuffing including dried porcini, artichokes, peas, and aromatic vegetables flavored with bay. A grand dish to celebrate Carnival, it is called in dialect form by the name, Sagne chine.”
The lasagna featured in this post borrows certain elements from both the Neapolitan and Calabrian dishes but more resembles the latter version (albeit simplier). I make a fresh egg pasta using 00 flour but add semolina to the dough. I form tiny pork meatballs that I poach in a simple tomato sauce. For cheese, I employ fresh homemade ricotta and heaps of grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese. I often sauté sliced mushrooms in butter to join the polpettine, tomato sauce and cheese in a six-layer lasagna. I omit the mozzarella and hard-boiled eggs favored by both the Neapolitans and Calabrians.
Here’s a little more detail if you want to try my take. I include links to previous posts to truncate these instructions.
For the Pork Meatballs
15 grams panko flakes, finely ground
50 grams whole milk
1.5 grams fennel seed, roughly ground
30 grams white onion, finely minced
12 grams butter
.35 gram fennel pollen
5 grams grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
4.5 grams kosher salt
5 grams sugar
1 gram freshly ground black pepper
5 grams tomato paste
1 gram toasted onion powder (I use Burlap & Barrel brand)
.5 gram garlic powder (Again, Burlap & Barrel brand)
225 grams ground pork
In a medium-sized mixing bowl, hydrate panko in milk. In a small pan, sauté minced onions in butter until onions are translucent and soft. Put cooked onions on a small tray and place the tray in the freezer to quicky cool. Add the remaining ingredients to the panko/milk mixture, remembering to add the cooled sautéed onions placed in the freezer. Mix the meatball ingredients together. (I usually fry a bit of the meat mixture to see if I need to adjust for salt and/or sugar.) Using wet hands, form approximately 40 tiny meatballs weighing between 5 to 7 grams each and measuring about 1-inch in diameter. Place meatballs on parchment paper-lined tray, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate until use.
For the tomato sauce
½ white onion, diced
28 ounces whole peeled tomatoes (I use Bianco DiNapoli brand), crushed by hand or cut into small pieces with kitchen scissors
4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
In a 26cm enameled cast iron Dutch oven, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add diced onions, salt and pepper to taste. Sauté onions until translucent and soft. Add tomatoes and remaining tomato liquid in can to the pot. Simmer tomato sauce, covered with lid slightly ajar, for 10 minutes. Add uncooked meatballs and shake pot to settle meatballs into the tomato sauce. Bring tomato sauce back to an low simmer, cover with lid lightly ajar, and cook for another 8 to 10 minutes. Use a kitchen thermometer to verify the meatballs are cooked (160°F). Cool sauce to room temperature and refrigerate, covered, a day or two until assembling the lasagna.
For the Ricotta
See recipe for fresh ricotta (here). I use around 275 grams of ricotta when I make this lasagna. Refrigerate ricotta until assembling the lasagna.
For the Pasta
165 grams Central Milling Organic Type 00 Normal Flour
35 grams Giusto’s Gourmet Semolina Flour
2.3 grams sea salt
107 grams of an egg mixture (about 1 large egg and 2 egg yolks)
For this lasagna, I follow the pasta dough recipe in Andreas Papadakis’s Tipo 00 (here). I use my Imperia R220 Manual Pasta Machine to laminate and roll per Papadakis’s instructions. I stop rolling when reaching my machine’s No. 2.5 setting. This produces a pasta sheet approximately 1.5mm thick. The rollers on the R220 are a little over 8-inches wide. I cut the pasta sheet into six 8-inch by 8-inch squares.
For the Mushrooms
Using a damp towel, clean approximately a dozen Cremini mushrooms. Towel dry and slice off the end of each mushroom stem. Slice the mushrooms and sauté in 4 tablespoons of butter. Add salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste. (I often add shiitake mushroom power (here) while sautéing the mushrooms.)
For Parmigiano-Reggiano
Using the fine-shred side of a box grater, grate 300 grams of Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese.
Assembling the Lasagna
I usually make the lasagna’s ricotta, meatballs poached in tomato sauce and mushrooms a day or two in advance. I assemble the lasagna the day before baking and serving.
With the ricotta, meatballs/tomato sauce, mushrooms, and Parmigiano-Reggiano ready, here’s my process.
1. Bring a pot of well-salted water to a boil. Fill a wide mixing bowl with cold water and ice cubes to shock the par-boiled pasta sheets. Cook each pasta sheet for approximately 1 minute. Using a spider strainer, transfer the pasta to the ice water bath. Remove the parboiled pasta from the ice water and lay it on a kitchen towel and pat dry. Repeat with remaining pasta sheets.
2. Butter a deep, square baking dish with interior dimensions of 8” x 8” x 2”. (I use an Emile Henry Modern Classics Square Baker with a 2-quart capacity.) Spoon enough tomato sauce to lightly cover the bottom of the baking dish. Keep in mind you need enough tomato sauce for each layer and the top of the lasagna.)
3. Place a parboiled pasta sheet on top of the tomato sauce. Spoon another thin layer of tomato sauce on the pasta. Scatter meatballs—five or six—over the pasta sheet, dot with ricotta, add some of the cooked mushrooms and dust with a handful of Parmigiano-Reggiano. Place a sheet of pasta on top of the base layer and evenly press down on the pasta sheet.
4. Repeat using the remaining ingredients. Top the final layer with tomato sauce and Parmigiano-Reggiano. Dot with small pieces of butter. At this point I usually slice the lasagna into 6 to 8 portions. This makes serving easier after baking. Cover the assembled lasagna with aluminum foil and refrigerate until ready to bake.
5. A couple of hours before baking, take the lasagna out of the refrigerator. When ready to bake, put oven rack in middle position and pre-heat the oven to 375°F. Bake the lasagna, covered with aluminum foil, for 30 minutes. Remove foil and bake the lasagna for another 30 minutes. Let lasagna rest after baking for 10 minutes.
Making a lasagna from scratch takes time. But prepping components early and assembling your lasagna a day in advance pays dividends on serving day: feeding friends and family becomes less hectic.
I frequently play around with some of the lasagna’s ingredients. Sometimes I use wide strips of homemade pasta in place of large sheets. I might use Pecorino Romano instead of Parmigiano-Reggiano (or even a mixture of the two cheeses). I often swap out the mushrooms for thick slices of artichoke hearts poached in a rich chicken stock until the slices are almost soft. Sometimes I even make things even easier by using store-bought ricotta and replacing the homemade meatballs with chucks of sausage squeezed out of its casing. Easier is often just as delicious! Enjoy!
