Artichoke Mushroom Lasagna

I love all kinds of lasagna – from Italian-American style red-sauce, ricotta-filled lasagna, to the traditional Italian lasagna from Emilia-Romagna that uses no ricotta but béchamel sauce instead. This recipe is the latter, and with spring upon us here in the Northeast U.S., artichokes are in season so why not make them the star of the dish? I added mushrooms too, but you can eliminate them and just feature artichokes. Feel free to trim and cook fresh artichokes, but they’re also available frozen, which is what I used, and they are a huge time-saver.

However, I did make my own pasta from scratch and it’s a game changer. If you don’t want to make your own pasta, a good substitute is a brand like Rana that’s as close to homemade as I’ve ever found (but there’s nothing like freshly homemade pasta for its toothiness and supple texture.)

Make the pasta and let it sit while you prepare the rest. You’ll use only half this amount of pasta for this recipe. Use the rest to make fettuccine or fazzoletti or whatever other shape you like.

After making the pasta, sauté the mushrooms. Make sure to cook them on high heat and leave them alone rather than continually tossing them, so they develop a nice brown outer coating.

Set the mushrooms aside in a bowl and saute the shallots and artichoke hearts in the same pan, then combine them all in a bowl. Cut some of the artichokes in half if they’re too thick.

Time to make the béchamel sauce. Place the butter in a pan with the flour and cook those together for a couple of minutes to eliminate a “flour-y” taste. Then slowly add the milk, the broth (if using), the bay leaf and other seasonings, whisking all the time. I don’t like the béchamel to become too thick, because the pasta absorbs a lot of it and the lasagna can easily become too dry if the sauce is too thick. So don’t let it get as thick as pudding, for example. If it does, thin it out with more milk or broth. It should closer in thickness to pourable brown gravy.

Now that the béchamel is made, boil the pasta sheets. They will need only a minute in the boiling water, since they’ll cook more in the casserole once it’s in the oven. Drain well, and/or pat dry.

Butter the casserole first, then pour in a little béchamel. Place the first layer of pasta in the casserole, cutting to fit.

Add half the mushroom and artichoke mixture, more béchamel, some parmesan and dabs of taleggio cheese.

Add another layer of pasta, cutting to fit.

Then layer on more béchamel, the rest of the mushrooms and artichokes, and more parmesan and taleggio.

Cover with another layer of pasta and the rest of the béchamel, more parmesan and more taleggio cheese. (A diet dish this is not!)

Bake in the oven at 350 degrees for 1/2 hour-40 minutes until browned on top and piping hot. I know it will be hard to resist cutting into it right away, but let it rest for at least 15 minutes before trying to slice it, or it will spill out and not hold its shape.

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Artichoke Mushroom Lasagna

Author: Ciao Chow Linda

printable recipe here

Ingredients

• FOR THE PASTA:
• 3 eggs
• 2 cups 00 flour
• (or buy already made lasagna sheets)
• FOR THE FILLING:
• 4 cups baby portobello mushrooms, sliced
• 2 tablespoons buttter
• 2 10-ounce packages frozen artichokes
• 1 large shallot, finely minced
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• a couple of sprigs of fresh thyme
• salt, pepper
• 7 ounces Taleggio cheese
• 1 cup grated parmesan cheese
• FOR THE BECHAMEL SAUCE:
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1/3 cup flour
• 4 cups milk or 2 cups milk and 2 cups vegetable broth
• 1 bay leaf
• salt, pepper
• a few grindings of grated nutmeg

Instructions

1. Make the pasta by placing the flour in the food processor add adding the eggs.
2. Hold back about 1/2 cup flour and add it after you’ve mixed the initial flour and eggs to see if you need to add more.
3. If it’s too wet, add more flour, even more than the 1/2 cup you reserved,if needed.
4. The dough should not be sticky, but should not be dry either.
5. You want it to be pliable enough to roll out.
6. I like to remove it from the food processor and knead it a minute or two on the board.
7. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and let it rest at least 1/2 hour to let the glutens relax.
8. Roll on a pasta machine to the next to the last thin setting.
9. When ready to assemble the lasagna, boil the pasta for just a minute, then drain and pat dry.
10. It will continue to cook the rest of the way in the oven.
11. FOR THE FILLING:
12. Boil the artichokes in water for five minutes.
13. Drain the artichokes, and remove from the water, but retain the water and let it reduce so you can use the flavored water in the bechamel sauce later.
14. If the artichokes are too thick, slice them thinner.
15. Place the butter in a skillet on high heat and add the mushrooms.
16. Let them sear on high heat to get some color and caramelization.
17. Remove from the heat and place the mushrooms in a bowl.
18. Lower temperature of pan.
19. Add the olive oil and the minced shallots and sauté until the shallots are wilted.
20. Add the cooked artichokes and seasonings.
21. Saute with the olive oil and shallots for a few minutes.
22. Add the artichokes to the bowl with the mushrooms.
23. TO MAKE THE BECHAMEL:
24. Melt the butter in a saucepan.
25. Add the flour and stir with a spoon or whisk and let the flour cook for a minute or two.
26. Slowly add the milk and the vegetable broth (or just milk alone if not using vegetable broth.)
27. Add the bay leaf and other seasonings and let them meld together.
28. Keep stirring with a whisk to make sure there are no lumps.
29. Remove the bay leaf.
30. Set sauce aside and assemble lasagna.
31. TO ASSEMBLE:
32. Spread some of the béchamel sauce on the bottom of a lasagna pan or casserole.
33. My lasagna dish measured 9″ x 11 1/2 “
34. Add one layer of the pasta.
35. Cover with half of the artichoke and mushroom mixture.
36. Dabble with some of the Taleggio cheese.
37. Spread with more of the bechamel sauce and some of the parmesan cheese.
38. Add a second layer of pasta, the rest of the artichoke and mushroom mixture.
39. Dabble with more taleggio cheese, bechamel and parmesan.
40. Cover with another layer of pasta, then spread the rest of the bechamel, parmesan and taleggio cheese on top.
41. This can all be done one day ahead of time and refrigerated.
42. On the day of serving, remove from refrigerator and let sit for one hour on the counter to bring to room temperature.
43. Place covered with aluminum foil, in a 350 degree oven for 20 minutes.
44. Remove the foil and bake for another 15-20 minutes or until the top is browned.
45. Remove from the oven and let the lasagna rest at least 15 minutes before serving.

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Ham and Bean Soup

If you’re lucky enough to have a leftover ham bone from Easter with some meat on it, this is one delicious way to use it. A lot of people like to make split pea soup with ham bones, but I’ve never been a fan, preferring fresh pea soup instead. However, the way I use my ham bone is to make a bean soup, using my favorite beans from Rancho Gordo. I buy them at my local health food store, but if you can’t find them where you live, search for them online. They’re worth the hunt. They are very tender and creamy after they’ve cooked for a couple of hours and have a very thin skin. They’re named after Marcella Hazan, the doyen of Italian cooking, who struck up an online conversation with the owner of Rancho Gordo. When she told him that the sorana variety of cannellini bean was her favorite and the one she missed the most, Rancho Gordo’s owner sleuthed out the seed for the bean and grew it. However, she died just as the first harvest was taking place, and Marcella never got to try them. After contacting Marcella’s widower, Victor, Rancho Gordo’s owner decided to name the bean in Marcella’s honor. Of course you could make this recipe with any cannellini bean, but these are the best I’ve ever tried, so why bother using any other?

They don’t need to pre-soak, just let all the ingredients come to a boil, then lower to a simmer (with the lid askew). After two to two and a half-hours, (don’t stir too often or too vigorously or you’ll crush the beans) the beans will be tender and the meat will have fallen off the bone. Remove the bone from the pot, and if you like, puree a bit of the soup, just to give a little more creaminess to the mix. Salt the soup near the end of the cooking. If you salt too early, it will take longer for the beans to soften.

By the way, if you’re wondering what that Italian saying means, written in blue across the bowl in the top picture, it’s a saying my mother used to say to us when we were growing up and it translates to: “Either eat this soup or jump out the window.”

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Ham and Bean Soup

Author: Ciao Chow Linda

printable recipe here

Ingredients

• 1 ham bone
• 1/4 cup minced onion
• 2 carrots, diced finely
• 2 stalks celery, diced
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 bag Rancho Gordo Marcella beans (or 2 cups dried cannellini beans)
• 6 cups water (or more if soup gets too thick)
• salt, pepper
• parmesan cheese rind
• parsley

Instructions

1. Sauté the onion, carrot and celery in the olive oil until softened.
2. Place the ham bone into the pot, and add the water, the beans and the parmesan cheese rind.
3. Bring to a boil, then lower the water temperature to a simmer.
4. Cook for about two hours, then add the salt and pepper to taste.
5. If you add the salt early in the process, it delays the softening of the beans.
6. After 2 1/2-3 hours, the beans should be soft.
7. Add more water if it’s too thick.
8. Optional: I like to puree a small amount of the beans when they are fully cooked, to make a creamier soup.
9. Serve in warm bowls, sprinkled with a little chopped parsley,

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Easter Ricotta Pie

Have you started planning your Easter dessert yet? Easter is one of my favorite holidays for the plethora of traditional foods that are found on most tables in Italian or Italian-American homes – from appetizers to main course to dessert. See the end of this post for more ideas. One of my all-time favorite Easter desserts is this ricotta pie, and there are endless variations, including one with the addition of chocolate chips. I have nothing against that – I’d happily eat a couple of slices — but for Easter, give me a pure, unadulterated ricotta pie with a hint of orange – the Italian version of cheesecake – and one that’s very popular in my household.

Feel free to use your favorite homemade pastry crust recipe or a store-bought one. I relied on Trader Joe’s this time, but it can be a bit fiddly to use since it has a tendency to split when you’re placing it in the pie plate. No problem, just press the pieces back together. Prick the pie crust and refrigerate while you prepare the filling.

Make sure you drain your ricotta (full-fat only please) thoroughly. I line a sieve with paper towels, add the ricotta, cover with plastic wrap, then put a weight on top and leave it in the fridge overnight.

Look how much liquid came out. If you don’t take this step, you risk having a soggy bottom crust.

I started out with three pounds of ricotta and was left with a little over four cups after draining overnight.

Mix with the orange and lemon peels as well as the rest of the ingredients. If you don’t have orange blossom water, use some orange flavored extract. Mix it all well then place into the prepared crust.

Cover with lattice strips and crimp edges. It’s easier to weave the lattice strips if you cut them out and place them in the freezer for a bit before placing on top of the pie.

Bake and let it cool thoroughly before serving.

Buona Pasqua tutti!

Here are a few more ideas for Easter dinner:Ricotta Broccoli Rape Torta – This is a dish my son makes as an appetizer for Easter, using broccoli rape. No, that spelling is not a mistake, it is rape in Italian, while most Americans spell it broccoli rabe or raab. Any way you spell it, it’s delicious, and a lighter alternative to the heavier, meat-laden pizza piena.

Braided Easter Bread – This bread, studded with hard boiled eggs, is braided with soppressata, olives and cheese, and would be perfect with drinks before dinner.

Grilled Leg of Lamb – Marinated and cooked on the grill, this lamb recipe from Julia Child, is tender and full of flavor.

Honey Baked Ham with roasted grapes – This recipe will make you forget those prepared hams purchased from franchise ham shops – and it’s so easy to make too.

 Neapolitan Pastiera – This traditional Southern Italian dessert is made with ricotta and wheat berries.

Colomba Pasquale – It wouldn’t be Easter in most Italian households without this Easter dove, which you can make at home too.

Coconut covered lamb cake – A childhood favorite, I continue the tradition with the same cake mold my mother used more than sixty years ago.

chocolate lamb cake – Why not give equal time to the black sheep? This cake, decorated with crushed cookie crumbs, will please the chocolate lovers in your family.

coconut cream Easter eggs – These are a weakness of mine, which is why I can’t make them more than once every few years. Otherwise, I’d end up eating dozens of them.

Perfect hard boiled eggs – And if you don’t make any of the above recipes, you’ll probably make hard-boiled eggs at some point. If you’ve ever struggled with peeling them, here’s a primer that will help you avoid frustration.

Buona Pasqua a tutti!

Click here to connect with me on Instagram and find out what’s cooking in Ciao Chow Linda’s kitchen each day (and more)

Easter Ricotta Pie

Author: Ciao Chow Linda

printable recipe here

Ingredients

• Two of your favorite homemade or store-purchased pie crusts (one for bottom and one for the lattice top)
• 4 cups drained full-fat ricotta cheese
• (I started out with 3 pounds of ricotta from the supermarket and there were more than 4 cups when it was all drained.)
• 6 eggs
• 3/4 cup sugar
• juice of one orange (a little less than 1/4 cup)
• grated rind of two oranges
• grated rind of one lemon
• 1/2 teaspoon orange blossom water (or 1 teaspoon vanilla)

Instructions

1. Drain the ricotta cheese overnight in the refrigerator.
2. To do this, I place a paper towel in a sieve, put the ricotta cheese in the sieve, then cover with a piece of plastic wrap and finally, a heavy weight.
3. Roll out the pie crust and place it in a deep-dish pie pan.
4. Prick the crust with a fork.
5. Place it in the refrigerator for a few minutes while you roll the lattice.
6. Roll out the other pie crust on a cutting board or something that will fit in the freezer.
7. Cut nine lattice strips and place the whole thing, cutting board and all, in the freezer.
8. Make sure you can keep it flat.
9. This technique of putting the strips in the freezer for a few minutes will help keep when the lattice strips from breaking apart when weaving them on the top after you have placed the filling inside.
10. Beat the eggs gently (but don’t beat too heavily or the pie will rise too much, and then deflate too much.)
11. Mix the eggs with the ricotta and the rest of the ingredients.
12. Place the filling in the pie shell.
13. Place the lattice work on top, weaving over and under till you get the desired effect.
14. Swipe the lattice with either some beaten egg, milk or cream.
15. Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven forr one hour.
16. When cooled and ready to serve, sprinkle with powdered sugar and top with grated orange peel.

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