Things have been rather frenzied for me lately. There has been a lot going on, at work, with family, life in general. A week or two ago I finally had a moment to come up for air one glorious weekend day, and it was time for some much-needed kitchen therapy. I wanted to make something with multiple components and multiple steps to because for me, it was mostly about enjoying the process. This turned out to be the perfect choice.
This dish is involved, yes, but it was actually far less taxing than I might have imagined. It was just the sort of lazy day in the kitchen that I love. Make the bolognese, let it simmer, wandering back in every so often to stir and add more liquid. Plenty of time to play with the kids and do a bit of cleaning. Then, when the kids went down for their naps (at the same time, hooray!) I made the pasta dough, the bechamel sauce, and suddenly there was an assembled lasagna going into the oven. (Pretty sure I missed a layer somehow in my excitement but for the record, the noodles taste pretty great dipped in excess béchamel as a pre-dinner snack.)
Be sure to use a wine worth drinking because its flavor will permeate the dish. I used a red made by my father-in-law (a recumbent bicycling enthusiast) – how fun is that? The end result is so very different from all other lasagnas I’ve tried before. The paper-thin sheets of lasagna noodles, the hearty bolognese and the light, creamy béchamel come together in perfect harmony – none of the components overpowers the others. It’s hard to find words to do justice to this meal. If you appreciate the process of cooking, just make this yourself, have a wonderful time, and you’ll see that this is so worth it. Be sure to invite friends over to help you eat it. This sort of thing is best enjoyed with company.