Lasagna with ricotta & mozzarella
Oven: 90 minutes
FOR THE SAUCE:
¼ CUP EXTRA-VIRGIN OLIVE OIL
5 CLOVES GARLIC, THINLY SLICED
TWO 28-OUNCE CANS WHOLE SAN MARZANO TOMATOES, CRUSHED BY HAND
¼ TEASPOON CRUSHED RED PEPPER FLAKES
1½ TEASPOONS KOSHER SALT
½ CUP LOOSELY PACKED FRESH BASIL LEAVES, CHOPPED
FOR THE FILLING:
3 POUNDS FRESH RICOTTA, DRAINED OVERNIGHT
1 CUP GRATED GRANA PADANO
2 LARGE EGGS, BEATEN
½ CUP CHOPPED FRESH ITALIAN PARSLEY
½ TEASPOON KOSHER SALT
FOR THE ASSEMBLY:
UNSALTED BUTTER, SOFTENED, FOR THE BAKING DISH
1½ POUNDS FRESH MOZZARELLA, THINLY SLICED
1½ CUPS GRATED GRANA PADANO
Prepare the pasta dough, and let it rest at room temperature for 30 minutes while you prepare the sauce. (Do not attempt to prepare two batches of dough at once in the food processor – it will be too much. Make two separate batches.)
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. For the sauce, warm up the oil in a large Dutch oven over medium heat. Once the oil is hot, add the garlic, and cook until golden on the corners, for about 1 to 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes, and slosh out the can with 1 ½ cups of water, then pour into the pan. Season the sauce with the red pepper flakes and salt. Let simmer until the mixture is slightly thickened, for about 20 minutes. Blend in the chopped basil. You should be left with 6 to 6 ½ cups of sauce.
To roll the pasta, slice each dough ball into six individual pieces. Keep the pieces covered while you work, and line several baking sheets with floured kitchen towels.
Flatten down each piece, and roll them through the pasta machine on the widest setting multiple times, folding it like a letter (rectangle) each time to smooth out the dough. Once you’ve obtained a smooth rectangle, continue rolling the piece through the settings, skipping over one each time you roll, and stopping at the last setting. Hand pasta machines usually come with 9 settings, and each setting makes the pasta thinner every time it’s rolled through. Layer the sheets of pasta on the floured towels without touching. You should be left with twelve long dough sheets.
Set a large roasting pan filled with iced water besides the boiling pasta water. Cook the sheets of pasta, a few ones at a time, until still quite al dente, for about 2 to 3 minutes per batch once they’ve returned to a boil. As they’re cooked, cool the sheets down in the ice water, and store them on the baking sheets lined with damp kitchen towels.
For the filling, mix together the ricotta, grated cheese, eegs, parsley, and salt in a large bowl. Mix the whole well to combine.
Once you’re ready to assemble the lasagna, butter a 4 quart lasagna pan. Pour in 1 cup of sauce at the bottom of the baking dish. Select the two longest sheets of pasta and lay them down in the baking dish so they overlap in the middle and the ends of the sheets flop over the sides of the dish. Pour in ½ other cup sauce over the pasta. Place two more pasta sheets perpendicularly to the first layer and flopping over the longer sides of the dish. (After the first two layers, the pasta should not longer go over the sides – cut the cooked pasta while you layer the lasagna and fold to fit into the dimensions of the dish.
Pour in another ½ cup of sauce over the pasta and spread with half of the filling. Layer half of the mozzarella, and sprinkle over with ½ cup of grated Grana Padano. Make another layer of pasta, cutting and folding to ensure fitting into the dish. Pour in another ½ cup of sauce, the rest of the filling, the rest of the sliced mozzarella, and ½ cup of grated Grana Padano. Finish off with another layer of pasta, and press down slightly.
Add in another layer of pasta sheets to cover the lasagna, followed by 1 cup of sauce. Cut and fold in a final layer of pasta atop the sauce to seal the lasagna. Fold the flopping edges over the top, and spread with the remaining sauce. Sprinkle in the rest of the grated Grana Padano. Tent the lasagna with foil (make sure the foil doesn’t touch the top), lay the dish over a sheet pan to catch the drips, and bake until the edges of the lasagna start bubbling, for about 45 minutes. Remove the foil, and bake until the top of your lasagna is golden and crusty, for about 30 more minutes. Leave the lasagna to rest for about 20 minutes before cutting it into squares and serving. The lasagna will cut much better once it’s been left to rest and cool.
