A recipe from Lello Favuzzi, Head chef at Mortimer House Kitchen, London.
Ingredients
- For the Béchamel
- 1.5 litres milk
- 1 pinch grated nutmeg
- 1 pinch salt
- 90 g butter
- 90 g flour
- For the lasagne
- 1.5 kg pumpkin or squash peeled, deseeded and chopped into medium diced
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 big bunch rosemary leavespicked and chopped
- salt and black pepper
- 300 g Cavolo Nero
- 60 g butter melted
- 220 g grana padano grated
- 1 kg dried lasagne
- 200 g ready-cooked and peeled chestnuts
- 550 g mozzarella diced, about 4½ balls
Servings:
Instructions
- First make the bechamel. In a saucepan, bring the milk, nutmeg and salt to a boil, then turn off the heat. In a second pan, gently melt the butter, then add the flour and stir slowly to make a roux.
- Slowly pour the milk mix into the roux, stirring all the while, then cook gently, stirring, until smooth and thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.
- Heat the oven to 200C (180C fan)/390F/gas 6. Put the pumpkin on an oven tray, pour over the oil and season well. Scatter over a small handful of rosemary and toss to coat.
- Roast until cooked through and slightly caramelised at the edges – about 20 minutes, but check after 15 or so.
- Discard and discard any tough cabbage stalks, then blanch the leaves in salted boiling water for five minutes. Drain, dunk in iced water to cool down as quickly as possible – this helps retain its colour – then drain again.
- Brush butter over the base of a large, deep baking tray and sprinkle over a handful of grated cheese.
- Put a layer of pasta in the base of the tray, cover with bechamel – you’ll need a couple of ladlefuls – top with pumpkin, followed by a small handful each of chopped rosemary, chopped chestnuts, chopped cabbage, grated grana padano and diced mozzarella.
- Repeat until you’ve used up all the ingredients – in about five layers, ideally — but make the top with only pasta, bechamel and pumpkin topped with melted butter and grana padano.
- Bake the lasagne in two stages, as we do in Italy, so it stays firm when served. Heat the oven to 150C (130C fan)/300F/gas 2, bake for 25 minutes, remove and leave to cool; 40 minutes before serving, heat the oven to 200C (180C fan)/390F/gas 6, then re-bake the lasagne for 25 minutes more and take to the table.
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