Irish Lasagna Recipes

CLASSIC ITALIAN LASAGNA

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
• Bechamel sauce:
• In a 2-quart pot, melt 5 tablespoons of butter over medium heat. When butter has completely melted, add the flour and whisk until smooth, about 2 minutes. Gradually add the milk, whisking constantly to prevent any lumps from forming. Continue to simmer and whisk over medium heat until the sauce is thick, smooth and creamy, about 10 minutes. The sauce should be thick enough to coat the back of wooden spoon. Remove from heat and add the nutmeg and tomato sauce. Stir until well combined and check for seasoning. Set aside and allow to cool completely.
• In a saute pan, heat extra-virgin olive oil. When almost smoking, add the ground beef and season with salt and pepper. Brown meat, breaking any large lumps, until it is no longer pink. Remove from heat and drain any excess fat. Set aside and allow to cool completely.
• In a medium sized bowl, thoroughly mix the ricotta and eggs. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside.
• Into the bottom of a 13 by 9-inch baking dish, spread 1/3 of the bechamel sauce. Arrange the pasta sheets side by side, covering the bottom of the baking dish. Evenly spread a layer of all the ricotta mixture and then a layer of all the spinach. Arrange another layer of pasta sheets and spread all the ground beef on top. Sprinkle 1/2 the mozzarella cheese on top of the beef. Spread another 1/3 of the bechamel sauce. Arrange the final layer of pasta sheets and top with remaining bechamel, mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses. Cut the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter into 1/4-inch cubes and top lasagna.
• Line a large baking sheet with aluminum foil. Place lasagna dish on top, cover and put on the middle rack of the oven and bake until top is bubbling, about 30 minutes. Remove cover and continue to bake for about 15 minutes.
• In a large casserole pot or Dutch over, heat oil over medium high heat. Add onion and garlic and saute until soft and translucent, about 5 to 10 minutes. Add celery and carrots and season with salt and pepper. Saute until all the vegetables are soft, about 5 to 10 minutes. Add tomatoes and bay leaves and simmer uncovered on low heat for 1 hour or until thick. Remove bay leaves and check for seasoning. If sauce still tastes acidic, add unsalted butter, 1 tablespoon at a time to round out the flavors.
• Add 1/2 the tomato sauce into the bowl of a food processor. Process until smooth. Continue with remaining tomato sauce.
• If not using all the sauce, allow it to cool completely and pour 1 to 2 cup portions into freezer plastic bags. This will freeze up to 6 months.

LASAGNA THE IRISH WAY

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C) Gas Mark 5.
• In a medium skillet over medium heat, cook the meat until brown. Once cooked, drain and leave to the side.
• Mix your ricotta, egg, basil, thyme, garlic and oregano and half of the mozzarella cheese.
• In a 9x13 baking dish with a little of the spaghetti sauce. Place three of the lasagne sheets over the sauce. Spread a layer of the cheese mixture and then a layer of the meat mixture over it and repeat until mixtures are all gone. Top the lasagne with the left over mozzarella and parmesan cheese.
• Cover with foil and bake in a preheated oven for 30 minutes, remove foil and bake for a further 15 minutes until the cheese browns and the lasagne appears bubbly.

IRISH LASAGNA

Steps:

• Set aside 1/2 cup of cheese.
• Slice potatoes. slices should be about an 1/8 inch thick.
• We like to deep fry the potato slices, although you can use any cooking method that you prefer. The goal is to get them cooked, without having them fall apart. We've found deep frying to be the easiest method.
• Fry the chopped onion in the olive oil. If you like your green onions cooked, you can cook them up with your regular onion.
• Cook bacon until crisp, then chop into bacon bits.
• Use a large cake pan (lasagna pan).
• Put a layer of cooked potatoes on the bottom of the pan, then sprinkle some onions, green onions, and bacon bits on top of the potatoes.
• add a sprinkle of salt, pepper, and just a hint of garlic.
• now sprinkle some cheese on top.
• that completes one layer. add another layer of potato slices, then more onions, green onions, etc --
• keep going until you reach the top of the pan or until you run out of ingredients.
• The very top layer should be only potatoes.
• Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes, or until all of the cheese is meted throughout.
• Take the 1/2 cup of cheese you set aside earlier, and sprinkle on top.
• Return to oven until top layer of cheese is melted.
• cut and serve like regular lasagna.

BRENDA'S LASAGNA

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente; drain.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). In a large skillet over medium-high heat, brown beef and season with salt and pepper; drain. Stir in spaghetti sauce and garlic and simmer 5 minutes.
• In a medium bowl, combine mozzarella, Cheddar and ricotta; stir well. In 9x13 inch pan, alternate layers of noodles, meat mixture and cheese mixture until pan is filled.
• Bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes, or until cheese is melted and bubbly.

EASY LASAGNA

Steps:

• In a large bowl, combine the cottage cheese, egg, Parmesan cheese, parsley, oregano and basil. In a greased 13x9-in. baking dish, layer a third of the noodles, sauce, cottage cheese mixture and mozzarella. Repeat layers twice. , Cover and bake at 350° for 30 minutes; uncover and bake 15-20 minutes longer or until bubbly. Let stand for 15 minutes before cutting.

ALL-IN-ONE LASAGNA

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In large mixing bowl combine water, crushed tomatoes, diced tomatoes, Italian seasoning and salt.
• Cover the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking pan with 1 1/2 cups of sauce mixture. Arrange 1/3 of noodles on top of sauce, slightly overlapped. Top with 1/2 of ricotta cheese, 1 cup of mozzarella cheese and 1 cup of sauce. Repeat layers and top with last 1/3 of noodles and the remaining sauce. Sprinkle with remaining mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses.
• Cover tightly with foil and bake for 1 to 1 1/2 hours; until noodles are cooked. Let stand for 10 minutes before serving.
• The recipe makes 12 servings, but you could divide the recipe into two 9x9 inch baking dishes and freeze one for a wintry night supper.