LLasagne is the foundation of Italian cuisine. A dish you are offered at any restaurant in the main touristic cities as a culinary representative of our culture.
Usually, Italians cook this iconic dish for important occasions, like Christmas or special dinners.
An exception is represented by White Lasagne, a classic for Italian Sunday lunches with family and friends because easier to prepare.
Why? The “white lasagne” dishes substitute Ragù – long to prepare – with other tasty ingredients like Prosciutto ( ham), Vegetables, Pesto, and many others.
The time of preparation is shortened, but the effect is guaranteed! Your guests will surely be grateful to you!
I will repeat the following forever: “Every person, every family, and every region has a preferred version with some variation of any dish”. I encourage you to add your personal touch and adjust the recipes to your personal taste. Be creative!
Here, I propose the Ham and Mozzarella Lasagne dish – in Italian “Lasagne con Prosciutto Cotto e Mozzarella”.
You’ll see how easy it is to prepare but the effect, once cooked, is “a wow effect”.
I hope you’ll enjoy it!
Lasagne with ham: layers
Lasagna is composed of many layers of ingredients:
Prosciutto Cotto – Ham
Lasagna, a kind of flat sheet of pasta
Besciamella, a creamy milk sauce
Mozzarella cheese
Grated Parmigiano
Besciamella Sauce is the only more complex preparation for this dish. Therefore, it’s necessary to prepare it before composing the dish.
Once ready, we’ll proceed with the layers that create the final Lasagne with ham dish.
how to make lasagne
the Ingredients
PARMESAN
MOZZARELLA
HAM
NUTMEG
EVO OIL
PEPPER
BUTTER
FLOUR
SALT
LASAGNE PASTA
MILK
CASSEROLE
CHECK ALSO THE GROCERY LIST AT THE END OF THE PAGE !
let's cook lasagne together
step by step
1
YOU'LL NEED:
flour
butter
nutmeg
milk
pepper
salt
“BESCIAMELLA”: THE MILK SAUCE
Put a big piece of butter into a high pan. Cook slowly.
Once the butter has melted, add enough flour to form a ball called Roux (it must be soft but not breaking apart).
At the same time, in another pan boil 1 liter of milk (slowly) with half a teaspoon of salt and nutmeg powder ( I like one full teaspoon).
Once both are ready, pour the milk into the “Roux” and continue to cook until the besciamella is ready.
Add salt if necessary. (taste it!)
Turn off the stove once it becomes soft, creamy, and slightly consistent.
2
YOU'LL NEED:
BOIL THE LASAGNE
This procedure is necessary for all “white lasagne” dishes unless you find fresh lasagne pasta at the supermarket.
Why? As Ragu’ is not used here ( ragu’ is a liquid element that would soften the lasagne once in the oven), the lasagne must be preboiled.
STEPS
1
Take one big round pan and fill it with water.
2
Add some salt (2 teaspoons) and once the water is boiling, put 5/6 pieces of pasta at a time.
3
Boil for 4/ 5 minutes. Move with a fork to avoid the pieces of pasta from attaching to each other.
4
Pull out the pasta and let it dry on a clean kitchen towel.
3
YOU'LL NEED:
lasagne pasta
besciamella
mozzarella
pamesan
ragù
butter
COMPOSE THE LASAGNE: THE LAYERS
HERE’S WHERE YOU CAN ADD YOUR OWN STYLE TO THE LASAGNE.
Take one big rectangular casserole dish.
But some flakes of butter or olive oil and spread it all over the casserole
Put the first layer of dry Lasagna Pasta and cover the bottom. This is the base of the lasagna.
Start with the layers:
Pasta (the first one is the base)
Besciamella
Ham/ Prosciutto
Mozzarella
Parmesan
And then again pasta…
Continue layer after layer until you finish the ingredients
The last layer should be of Ham/ Prosciutto and parmesan.
TIPS
YOU ARE THE CHEF!
The chef generally adjusts the ingredients according to his style and taste. There’s not a unique recipe. Every family and person has his favorite version of every dish. I suggest you add your personal touch to the recipe. How? You’ll see below.
LASAGNE: COOKING TIME
Put the oven at 180/ 200 degrees for 35/ 40 minutes. Cover the casserole with aluminum paper to keep the humidity inside for the first 15 minutes. At the end of the cooking time check with a fork, if the lasagna has softened inside.
ADJUST TO YOUR TASTE
Keep in mind that Parmesan is a fundamental ingredient to build the final taste of the dish, so spread generously at every layer. The same applies to mozzarella.
VARIATIONS
Do you want to give more personality to this dish? You can add mushrooms or artichokes or zucchini for instance. Pre-cook them in a pan with garlic, and olive oil. Once cooked add parsley. Spread them as an additional layer with your ham.
5/ 8 mozzarella( I would get even 10 just to be sure I don’t run out of mozzarella and have some extra to put on the top)
300/ 400gr of ham or Italian Prosciutto Cotto.
4 packs of grated parmesan ( I’d buy 2 more for extra flavors and be sure to have enough)
2 boxes of Egg lasagna
LOOKING FOR MORE?
CHECK HERE FOR OTHER WAYS TO COOK LASAGNE. THE RECIPES WILL BE SOON ON OUR BLOG!
ASPARAGUS LASAGNE
HAM AND ARTICHOKEES LASAGNE
PESTO LASAGNE
SALMON LASAGNE
HAM LASAGNE
VEGETABLES LASAGNE
EXTRA VIRGIN OLIVE OIL
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