Lasagne alla Portofino

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Lasagne alla Portofino is a stunning take on the oven-baked dish we all know and love. Egg pasta sheets layered with creamy besciamella and pesto genovese. But if you’d like to make the pesto in a blender, that’s also OK by me.

This recipe makes a loaf tin sized lasagne, perfect for two. By using a loaf tin you can get multiple layers without having to make an obscene amount of fresh pasta – perfect for a quick pasta project that yields fabulous results. Increase quantities for a larger lasagne.

Makes 1 loaf tin sized lasagne – perfect for 2 people

Ingredients 

Pasta

• Half a batch of my master pasta dough – I whisk the whole eggs to get an exact quantity a bit more easily, but this roughly equates to 1 whole egg, and 2-3 yolks for 180g flour.

Pesto genovese

• 50g basil leaves

• 1 garlic clove

• 1 tbsp pine nuts

• 6 tbsp grated Parmigiano Reggiano

• 2 tbsp grated Pecorino Sardo

• 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil – not too strong in flavour

Besciamella (Béchamel)

• 50g unsalted butter

• 50g plain flour

• 500ml whole milk

• Nutmeg

To finish

• Lots of Parmigiano reggiano for topping the lasagne

• Butter – not a lot, a few very small dollops

Method 

Pasta

1. Make the pasta dough.

2. Once rested, divide the dough into two pieces assuming you are only making a half batch for this recipe. Work with one at a time – flatten the piece with your hand or a rolling pin before passing it through the thickest setting on your pasta machine. Fold the edges in to create a neat rectangle that fits the width of your pasta machine, and run it through the thickest setting again until your dough is uniform in shape

3. Continue passing your dough through the machine, working through each thickness setting until you get to setting 6 or 7, depending on your preference for thickness. I go with 7 for this as I like lots of fine layers.

4. Use the loaf tin as a measuring guide and cut the rolled sheets of pasta into rectangles that will fit the base on the tin.

5. Re-roll any scraps to avoid wastage, and set your cut lasagne sheets aside, covered with a clean tea towel.

Pesto genovese

1. In a pestle and mortar, add a pinch of salt and the garlic clove. Pound and grind until this forms a paste.

2. Add the pine nuts and again, pound and grind until you have a paste.

3. Next, start adding the basil leaves in – a handful at a time, not all at once – and in a grinding motion, not pounding, slowly break the basil leaves down. Keep adding basil and grinding in this way until you have used all of it.

4. Add the Parmigiano and incorporate, followed by the Pecorino.

5. Add the olive oil in a few batches, incorporating after each addition.

Besciamella (béchamel)

1. Melt the butter in a saucepan and whisk in the flour until a roux forms (a paste).

2. Add the milk – I do this cold – whisking continuously until it’s combined with the roux, then over a gentle heat allow this to cook and thicken, stirring often (this is important).

3. To know when it’s the right thickness and consistency, coat the back of a wooden spoon with the besciamella and draw a finger through the sauce – it should leave a clean parting.

4. Remove from the heat and grate in a couple of pinches of fresh nutmeg, and season with salt to taste.

5. Set aside and make sure you keep this covered to prevent a skin forming on the besciamella as it cools slightly.

Assembly

1. Preheat the oven to 180c (350F/160c Fan).

2. Bring a large pot of water to a rolling boil and salt generously.

3. Working in small batches, cook the lasagne sheets for 30 seconds before transferring onto a clean tea towel.

4. Once cool enough to handle, it’s time to assemble

   1. start with a dollop of besciamella on the base of your loaf tin followed by a sheet of pasta.

   2. spread enough pesto to roughly cover the pasta sheet, followed by a dollop of besciamella.

   3. top with another pasta sheet and repeat the process – pasta – pesto – besciamella – until you get to your last sheet.

   4. top with just besciamella this time, and a whole heap of parmigiano reggiano.

   5. add a few very small dollops of butter on top, too.

5. Bake in the oven for 30-40 minutes until the top is crispy and edges are bubbling.

6. Allow the lasagne to cool for at least 10 minutes before serving.