Lasagne with sausage ragu

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PRESENTATION

Ragu alla bolognese is surely one of the best-loved sauces when it comes to making lasagne. But this week, for Sunday lunch, we’ve got an ace up our sleeve. Your friends and family will be wowed when you place a steaming pan of this lasagne with sausage ragu on the table!  Sausage is much more flavorful than ground meat, plus it doesn’t crumble apart once cooked like ground meat does; it stays dense and with every bite, it gives you a truly special flavor and nuance. Even though the sausages you can find might vary from place to place and some contain more spices than others, don’t worry – whichever kind you use, this dish is bound to be a hit! The layers of pasta alternate with layers of the ragu and creamy béchamel sauces, just like in the traditional lasagne recipes... but do you prefer to follow tradition to the letter or are you open to putting a little twist on it, as we’ve done here? And if you happen to end up with some leftover sausage ragu, try using it on bucatini pasta!

INGREDIENTS

Ingredients for a 9x13 inch (20x30 cm) pan
Green egg lasagna sheets 0.5 lb (250 g)
Grana Padano PDO cheese 5 tbsp
Thyme to taste - (fresh)
Oregano to taste - (fresh)
For the béchamel sauce
Whole milk 4 cups (1 l)
Butter 7 tbsp (100 g)
Type 00 flour 2.6 cups (100 g)
Nutmeg to taste
Fine salt to taste
For the sausage ragu
Sausage 1.75 lbs (800 g)
Tomato purée 7 oz (450 g)
Celery 1 stalk
Onions 1
Carrots 1
Red wine 1 glass
Extra virgin olive oil to taste
Fine salt to taste
Black pepper to taste
Preparation

How to prepare Lasagne with sausage ragu

To make the lasagne with sausage ragu, first peel the carrot, onion, and celery and chop them roughly 1. Add a couple of tablespoons of olive oil to a frying pan 2, then add the chopped vegetables and brown over high heat for at least 5 minutes 3

Meanwhile, take the sausage, make an incision in the skin 4 and remove it carefully using your hands 5. Once the vegetables have turned golden brown, add the sausage to the pan 6,

increase the heat, and break up the sausage using a wooden spoon 7. Let it brown for about 5 minutes. Then, pour in the red wine 8 and simmer until it evaporates completely. Next, add the tomato puree 9,

season with salt and pepper 10, and stir to combine 11. Cover the pan with a lid 12 and cook for about 10 minutes. 

In the meantime, start making the béchamel sauce: Pour the milk into a saucepan, season with salt and add the nutmeg 13, then bring to a boil. Melt the butter in another small saucepan 14, then sprinkle in the flour 15,

stirring quickly using a whisk 16. Next, add the hot milk 17 and, stirring continuously, cook the béchamel until it has thickened 18.

Once the ragu is ready 19, all you have to do is assemble the lasagne. Spread a little béchamel on the bottom of a 9x13 inch (20x30 cm) pan and arrange the lasagne sheets on top 20. Cover with the sausage ragu, another layer of béchamel 21,

and a tablespoon of grated Grana Padano cheese 22. Repeat these steps another five times 23, alternating the direction of the lasagne sheets 24 each time.

Once you’ve put the final layer of pasta in place, cover with the remaining ragu sauce 25, béchamel 26, and Grana Padano 27. Bake in a conventional oven preheated to 425°F (220°C) for 20 minutes, then switch to broil mode at the highest setting and cook for another 3 minutes. 

When the lasagne with sausage ragu is golden brown, take it out of the oven 28, decorate with oregano and thyme leaves 29, and serve 30!

Storage

The lasagne can be kept in the fridge for up to 2 days. 

It can also be frozen if all the ingredients you used were fresh. 

Tips

Add fresh caciocavallo cheese between layers to get strings of melted cheese when you cut into it! If you’re not a fan of tomato sauce, you can leave the tomato passata out and just have a “white” version of the ragu with the sausage and vegetables. 

For the translation of some texts, artificial intelligence tools may have been used.