Culinary Hotline - Fresh Pasta to Homemade Lasagne

The best lasagne is made with fresh ingredients and love! Carlotta Sabbalini shows us how.

Ingredients:

  • 1 onion
  • 1 carrot
  • 1 celery stick
  • 500g beef mince
  • 1 pork sausage (salsiccia), casing removed, optional for extra flavour
  • 1 can peeled tomatoes
  • 1 tbsp tomato paste
  • ½ glass white wine
  • Olive oil, for cooking
  • Salt and pepper, to taste
  • A pinch of sugar, to balance acidity
  • Fresh basil, added at the end
  • Water, as needed

How To Make Carli’s Ragù

  1. Blend the onion, carrot and celery until finely chopped. Put in a pot with a drizzle of olive oil and a splash of water. Cook slowly over low heat until soft, adding a little water if needed to prevent burning.
  2. In a separate pan, cook the salsiccia first, if using. Add the beef mince and brown over high heat.
  3. Deglaze with the white wine and allow it to reduce. Add the softened vegetables, hand-crushed peeled tomatoes, tomato paste, salt, pepper and a pinch of sugar.
  4. Mix, reduce the heat to low and simmer for 2–3 hours. Stir occasionally and add a splash of water if needed.
  5. Add fresh basil only at the end. Taste and adjust the seasoning.

Ingredients:

  • 100g butter
  • 100g flour
  • Approximately 1 litre hot milk, adding more if needed for a smooth, pourable sauce (suggested quantity to confirm with Carlotta)
  • Nutmeg, salt and pepper, to taste

How To Make Béchamel

  1. Melt the butter in a saucepan. Stir in the flour and cook for 1–2 minutes, stirring without browning.
  2. Gradually whisk in the hot milk until smooth. Simmer gently, stirring, until thickened but still spreadable; add more hot milk if needed.
  3. Season with nutmeg, salt and pepper.

Ingredients:

  • 1 full batch Carli’s ragù from part one, cooked ahead
  • 1 full batch béchamel from part one
  • Fresh lasagne sheets, enough for 4–5 layers in the selected baking dish; roll thinly and cut to fit ahead of the show

How To Make Fresh Pasta Lasagne

  1. Preheat the oven to 180°C. Spread a little ragù and béchamel over the base of an ovenproof dish.
  2. Add a layer of fresh pasta, followed by ragù and béchamel. Repeat the layers, spreading the sauces evenly and covering the pasta right to the edges.
  3. Finish with béchamel over the final ragù layer so no pasta is exposed.
  4. Bake for approximately 35–45 minutes, until bubbling throughout and golden on top. Cover loosely with foil if it browns too quickly. Timing will depend on the thickness of the pasta and depth of the dish.
  5. Rest for 10–15 minutes before slicing and serving.