Alexis Fire Roasted Lasagna Recipes

FIRE-ROASTED FIERI LASAGNA

Steps:

• 1.To prepare the ragu, place the tomatoes in a food processor and pulse until chunky. Set aside.
• 2.In a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat, heat the olive oil. Add the carrots and onion and cook until the onion is translucent, 4 to 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute, until fragrant. Add the ground beef, sausage, and pepperoni and season with the salt. Cook for about 10 minutes, or until the meat is browned all over, using a wooden spoon to break up the meat as it cooks. Add the tomato paste and cook for 4 to 5 minutes, until fragrant.
• 3.Dust the flour over the mixture and stir well to combine. Stir in the reserved tomatoes, basil, marjoram, oregano, black pepper, and chili flakes. Bring to a boil, then cover and reduce the heat to a simmer. Cook for 45 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool. Using a large spoon, skim off any oil that accumulates on the surface. (The ragu can be prepared 2 to 3 days ahead of time; store it in a covered container in the refrigerator until ready to use.)
• 4.To prepare the lasagna, in a large stockpot over medium-high heat, bring 2 gallons of water to a boil. Add 2 tablespoons of the salt. Add the lasagna noodles and stir gently to separate. Cook the lasagna noodles until al dente, 8 to 9 minutes. Meanwhile, prepare a large bowl of ice water. When the noodles are done, drain them, then plunge them immediately into the ice water for 30 seconds to stop the cooking process. Drain and spread the noodles on a rack.
• 5.In a large bowl, combine the ricotta, half of the Parmesan, the egg, nutmeg, and pepper. Mix well to combine and set aside.
• 6.In a large saute pan over medium-high heat, heat the olive oil. Add the garlic, spinach, and the remaining 1 teaspoon salt. Saute the spinach until tender and wilted, 1 to 2 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and pour off any liquid. Transfer the spinach to a clean kitchen towel and twist it into a ball to squeeze out any excess moisture. Set aside.
• 7.Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Have ready a heavy 10 x 14 x 3-inch lasagna pan.
• 8.To assemble the lasagna, ladle 1 cup of the ragu into the bottom and around the sides of the pan. Arrange several lasagna noodles on top of the sauce, slightly overlapping them to create an even layer that completely covers the ragu. Spread 2 cups of the ragu over the lasagna noodles, followed by one-third of the ricotta mixture, one-quarter of the mozzarella, and one-third of the spinach.
• 9.Arrange more noodles on top, overlapping to cover the spinach. Spread 2 cups ragu over the noodles, followed by half of the remaining ricotta, one-third of the mozzarella, and half of the spinach. Arrange more noodles on top. Spread 2 cups ragu over them, followed by the remaining ricotta, half of the remaining mozzarella, and the remaining spinach. Arrange more noodles on top. Spread the remaining ragu on top and sprinkle with the remaining mozzarella and Parmesan and the basil, marjoram and oregano.
• 10. Cover the pan with heavy-grade plastic food wrap (or parchment paper), then wrap the whole pan tightly with aluminum foil. Place the pan on a baking sheet (to catch any drips) in the center of the oven. Bake for 1 hour. Remove the foil and plastic food wrap and bake for 20 minutes longer, until well browned around the edges and bubbling. Finish under the broiler if necessary. Cool for 20 minutes before serving.

ROASTED EGGPLANT LASAGNA

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C).
• Place eggplant slices on a wire rack; sprinkle with salt. Let sit until some liquid starts beading on slices, about 20 minutes. Rinse salt off eggplant slices and pat dry. Brush olive oil over both sides of each slice. Arrange eggplant slices on a baking sheet.
• Roast in the preheated oven for 10 to 15 minutes. Flip eggplant slices and continue roasting until slices are tender and lightly browned, 15 to 20 more minutes. Remove eggplant from oven and reduce temperature to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Mix ricotta cheese, Italian cheese blend, egg, garlic, oregano, thyme, and black pepper together in a bowl.
• Line a 9-inch square pan with aluminum foil. Coat the bottom of the pan with about 1/2 cup tomato sauce; top with 1/2 of the eggplant slices. Layer eggplant slices with 1/2 of the spinach, 1/2 of the ricotta mixture, and 1/2 of the remaining tomato sauce. Continue layering with remaining ingredients, ending with sauce. Top with mozzarella slices. Cover pan with aluminum foil.
• Bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes. Remove aluminum foil and continue baking until cheese is brown and bubbling, 5 to 10 more minutes.

ROASTED VEGETABLE LASAGNA

Steps:

• Coat two 15-in. x 10-in. x 1-in. baking pans with nonstick cooking spray. Place eggplant and mushrooms on a prepared pan. Place the zucchini and red pepper on the second pan. Combine the oil and garlic; brush over both sides of vegetables. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake, uncovered, at 400 degrees F for 15 minutes. Turn vegetables over. Bake 15 minutes longer. Remove eggplant and mushrooms. Bake zucchini and red pepper 5-10 minutes longer or until edges are browned.
• In a bowl, combine the ricotta cheese, Parmesan cheese and egg substitute. Spread about 1/4 cup pasta sauce in a 13-in. x 9-in. x 2-in. baking dish coated with nonstick cooking spray. Layer with four lasagna noodles (noodles will overlap slightly), half of ricotta cheese mixture, half of vegetables, a third of pasta sauce and 2/3 cup mozzarella cheese. Sprinkle with half of basil. Repeat layers. Top with the remaining noodles and pasta sauce.
• Cover and bake at 350 degrees F for 40 minutes. Uncover; sprinkle with remaining cheese. Bake 5-10 minutes longer or until edges are bubbly and cheese is melted. Let stand for 10 minutes before cutting.

ALEXIS' FIRE ROASTED LASAGNA

Steps:

• Mix together the ricotta cheese, eggs, basil, oregano, parsley, garlic and 2 cups of the mozzarella. Cover the bottom of a 13 x 9 stoneware casserole dish with a layer of the noodles. Top with a layer of the ricotta mixture. Sprinkle a little more mozzarella on top, maybe 1/4-1/2 cup. Cover with another layer of noodles and add one half of the meat sauce, spreading it evenly. Repeat all of that for the third and fourth layer. Top the meat sauce with the mozzarella cheese and any of the ricotta mixture that is left. All this prep should take about 5 seconds if you are as fast as Alexis ;) Preheat your Big Green Egg to 375f set up for indirect heat. The Big Green Egg and other ceramic cookers are IDEAL for this since they are effectively wood/coal fired brick ovens. In this case, Alexis set up her Egg in the convection oven configuration with the plate setter in, legs down. Put spacers so the casserole dish did not sit directly on the plate setter. I used the 2 little green legs that came with the BGE. Place the uncovered casserole in the grill (on the legs) and close the lid..... Cook the lasagna for 1 hour or until hot and the cheesey gooey crust is golden brown. She rotated hers once during the cook for even cooking. Remove from heat and let rest for 15-20 minutes to cool down. Meanwhile place 1/2 loaf of french bread, split, face down directly on your plate setter (only if it is clean like Alexis'. I would have to put foil on mine before doing this). For regular grills, you could use a preheated pizza stone as long as it was HOT. Cook the bread cut side down for 2-3 minutes until browned and then flip. Brush with a mix of clarified butter, parsley, and minced garlic. Cook for 2 minutes more or until golden brown