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Wednesday, June 22, 2011

Béchamel Lasagna With Arugula



Sometimes an idea captures an imagination and simply will not depart, like a terrier puppy demanding playtime. After the little treat of a glorious white pizza Friday evening, I became totally focused on the idea of a white lasagna. While following a pizza menu with a session of lasagna baking might not have been the most sensible of ideas, I decided I could make the dish healthier, at least, with plentiful greens and mushrooms, a lighter cream sauce, and whole wheat pasta, all the while still paying homage to the luxurious image persisting, calling insistently in my mind until wondrous, tantalizing lasagna was created...


Béchamel Lasagna With Arugula

2 1/2 cups whole milk
1 bay leaf
6 tablespoons SmartBalance Light
1/4 cup all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt


2 medium onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 T olive oil
10 oz arugula, roughly chopped

10 oz crimini mushrooms, sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 links Italian-style chicken sausage, casings removed OR vegetarian Italian style soy-sausage, such as Tofurky brand, finely chopped

1 (15-ounce) container fat-free ricotta cheese
6 ounces part-skim Mozzarella cheese, coarsely grated (about 11/2 cups packed), divided
8 tablespoons finely grated Parmesan cheese, divided
Whole Wheat No-Boil Lasagna Noodles (I find these at Target - they're amazing)

~ To make the bechamel sauce, bring milk and bay leaf to simmer in medium saucepan; remove from heat. Melt the SmartBalance Light in heavy large saucepan over medium-low heat. Add flour and whisk to blend. Cook 2 minutes, whisking almost constantly (do not let roux brown). Gradually whisk milk with bay leaf into roux. Add salt, bring to simmer. Cook until sauce thickens enough to coat spoon, whisking often, about 3 minutes. Remove bay leaf, cover, and set aside.

~ Heat the olive oil in heavy large skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion, 2 cloves minced garlic, and sauté until onion is limp and translucent. Mix in arugula and continue to saute until the arugula is wilted and tender, but still bright green - not dark green and mushy. Season to taste with coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper, remove from the heat, and set aside.
~ Coat a heavy large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat with cooking spray. Add mushrooms, 2 cloves minced garlic, and chicken sausage or vegetarian soy-sausage. Sauté until mushrooms are brown and tender, 7 to 8 minutes. Season with coarse salt and pepper, remove from the heat, and set aside.

~ Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
~ To assemble your lasagna, spray a 13x9x2-inch glass baking dish with cooking spray to coat. Spread 3 tablespoons béchamel sauce thinly over bottom of dish. Arrange whole wheat no-boil lasagna noodles in dish to cover the bottom (I find the number of noodle sheets needed will actually vary depending on the brand of your pan and thus the shape of your corners, etc, as well as the dimensions of your particular pasta sheets). Spread half of arugula mixture over pasta, then half of mushroom mixture. Drop half of ricotta over in tiny dollops (fat-free ricotta is lovely in lasagna, but doesn't spread well, so I simply used a knife to create little slivers which I scattered across). Sprinkle with half of the Mozzarella, followed by 4 tablespoons Parmesan; spread 3/4 cup béchamel over. Repeat layering with noodles, remaining arugula, mushroom mixture, ricotta, Mozzarella, Parmesan, and 3/4 cup béchamel. Cover with a final noodle layer and remaining béchamel.

~ Cover and bake for 30 min, then uncover and bake until heated through and golden brown on top - approx 20 more minutes. Allow the lasagna to sit for 10 minutes before slicing, then share and enjoy! :-)

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