Polenta lasagna with swiss chard ala Spice Marrakesh

When the package of spice blends from Juliet Mae Fine Spices and Herbs arrived, I tore into it. I was looking forward to one of their newest offerings: Spice Marrakesh - An Aromatic Spice Blend for Winter Stews. The possibilities of what I could do with a North African blend of nutmeg, cinnamon, turmeric, black pepper, cardamon and clove seems endless. But stew? Yes, that would be nifty too - after I try all the other things that came to mind.

I had another lasagna idea noodling around in my cranium - one with rich, creamy, comforting polenta rather than the usual wide noodle. Hmmm. Could I bring it together? Would it be any good?

The answer: “Yes!”

 

I wanted a couple of things from this recipe. It had to be relatively easy, use commonly available ingredients, budget friendly and have a ‘Wow’ factor. I think it succeeds on all markers. The soulful, and mildly exotic Marrakesh spice blend really warms on a cold winter night without ringing the three-alarm bells.  This is more of a deeply comforting flavor palette that can still delight and surprise guests, even with something so everyday as a lasagna.

The recipe I’ve developed here has two basic components, the lasagna itself and the rich tomato sauce that it nestles in for serving. I didn’t want to mess with pre-cooking the polenta, and then worrying with cooling it. I want fast. So I used the pre-cooked sleeves of polenta that you simply slice. You can certainly choose to prepare your polenta the traditional way to keep the costs down.

Ingredients for the lasagna

Two 18 ounce roll packages/sleeves of cooked polenta - available at Whole Foods and other markets

One 28 ounce can of crushed tomatoes - San Marzano, Muir Glen or Hunts

1/2 pound ground beef

1/2 pound ground pork

One small onion, finely chopped

2-3 cloves of fresh garlic, finely minced

3 cups of chopped, blanched, drained swiss chard (you’ll need two small bunches or one humongous one)

1/2 cup golden raisins ( or green Afghan raisins if you can find them)

1/2 cup white wine

1 tablespoon poultry demi-glace

One small 6 ounce can of tomato paste

4 cups of grated cheese - I used whatever was in the fridge: parmigiano-reggiano, swiss, pieces of this n that.

4 tablespoons of cooking oil - olive, canola or grapeseed

3 tablespoons of Juliet Mae Spice Marrakesh

1 tablespoon italian herb blend

Salt to taste

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Start some lightly salted water boiling in a medium size pot. When it breaks to a boil, reduce the heat and add the chopped swiss chard. Let it cook, with a couple stirs, for about three minutes. Remove from heat and drain. Reserve.

In a hot skillet, add the oil and sauté the onions until they are translucent. Remove them to another dish. Begin to sauté the beef and pork. Add the spice Marrakesh, a dash of salt, garlic,  the italian herb blend, the poultry demi-glace, the raisins, tomato paste and the wine when the meat has begun to turn brown. Stir to combine, and reduce heat to a simmer.

Open the polenta sleeves with a knife, and slice them into slices about 1/3 of an inch thick. Open the can of crushed tomatoes - I prefer the sweetness of the San Marzano brand, although Muir Glen would also work, as would Hunts.

In an eight by eight metal baking pan, you can begin to assemble your lasagna. Place a layer of polenta rounds on the bottom, then a scatter of chard, then the meat mixture, then cheese. Pour about half the crushed tomatoes over that, then repeat the next layer. At the end, I pour the remaining crushed tomatoes over the top, before adding the remaining cheese to brown. I also dusted a bit more of the Spice Marrakesh on the top before popping it into the oven for 40 to 50 minutes.

Remove the lasagna when the top has browned nicely, and let it sit to cool down a bit before slicing.

Ingredients for sauce

One 8 ounce can of tomato sauce - unless you’re going to serve the entire lasagna. Then use a 15 ounce can of tomato sauce and approximately double the rest of the ingredients. The eight ounce can will make enough sauce for three servings.

1/2 cup finely chopped onion

2 cloves of fresh garlic, finely minced

3 tablespoons cooking oil - olive, grapeseed or canola

1 teaspoon of Spice Marrakesh

1/3 cup white wine

1 teaspoon poultry demi-glace

1 tablespoon brown sugar

1 teaspoon italian herb blend

salt and pepper to taste

In a small saucepan add the oil and, over medium high, saute the onions and garlic and deglaze with the wine. Reduce heat to simmer and add the can of tomato sauce, the spice Marrakesh, demi-glace, herbs and brown sugar. Adjust salt and pepper to taste. Stir and let it simmer and reduce for about 10 minutes over very low heat.

To serve, spoon about a third cup of the sauce onto a plate, then add a nice square of the lasagna. You might like to garnish with fresh, chopped parsley.

This would be perfect, served with a simple salad of lettuces, paired with sliced oranges and dates, in a very light viniagrette.

Now, what else can I try with the Juliet Mae Spice Marrakesh? Hmmmm. A pistachio nut ‘brittle’? An olive oil and ground almond spice cake? What about a stuffed baby sugar pumpkin or squash? Oh, yes, there’s always stew, too.

-maven

This lasagna freezes very well, wrapped first in plastic wrap and then tightly wrapped in foil, for a fast weeknight meal.

I always have demi-glace on hand - beef, poultry, veal and mushroom. It’s one of my must-have kitchen staples that live in my refrigerator. You can easily get it these days. The little packets are available on the same aisle as the broths and boullions, but I rely on the jars from Williams-Sonoma. They seem to go a lot further.

Lasagna from the freezer is OMG good with a Vodka sauce!

Just a few weeks back, I gave you the lasgna recipe to die for. Well, I froze some and it’s been every bit as good out of the freezer. But here’s the kicker - a vodka cream sauce with sauteed mushrooms and veggies (zucchini in this case) to frame it in. It’s soooo good, and so very easy.

Here’s another reason to pull my signature West African Base out of the fridge. I use a few tablespoons of that to saute my mushrooms and veggies in for this quick but very satisfying sauce.

For this sauce, you will need:

1/4 cup West African Base (onions, olive oil, bay leaf, ginger, garlic)

Chopped and diced veggies - mushrooms, zucchini or whatever - about one to 1-1/2 cup

Vodka. Absolute? Of course. About 1/2 cup.

A bit of half n half. About 1/3 cup more or less.

Tomato paste. About 3 tablespoons. I always keep the tubes of tomato paste in the veggie drawer for things like this.

Salt and pepper to taste.

Italian seasoning - about 1 teaspoon more or less.

Optional: a couple of anchovies, mashed. Or more, if you’re me!

You’ll need a non-stick pan over medium heat. Add the African Base and a bit more olive oil - about 2 tablespoons. Add the veggies and saute to almost al dente.  Add the anchovies now, if you’re using them. I do. I love anchovies. Add the vodka and bring to a boil to reduce for a few minutes. Reduce the heat and add the tomato past, salt and pepper, italian seasoning and half n half. Stir. Let it simmer over low for about 5 minutes. Adjust seasonings to taste.

Spoon this sauce into the plate, and set the warmed ( as in microwaved) lasagna into the center. Sprinkle with some Parmesan and then set it under the broiler until the cheese melts and begins to brown.

Serve.

This takes less than 20 minutes.

-maven

Ahhhhh, Lasagna! Comfort food that's guaranteed to please.

This is the classic lasagna. The one without the American twist of lots of oooey-gooey cheese and is well, better. Nick, I’m serious. This one is the real old-country deal. Mr. Maven was all oohs and ahhs, and went for seconds tonight. There was only lasagna and wine involved. Nothing naughty. Sorta.

I digress.

I was determined to make an ultimate lasagna yesterday. No holds barred. No healthy nonsense. Yet, it is healthy. Grass fed meat with loads of Omega-3’s, just a tiny touch of parmesan, veggies. Hmmmm. Maybe the Nonna’s way back in the day knew something we’ve forgotten.

This was lasagna with a rich mushroom infused ragu and topped with a classic Bechamel sauce … and just a hint of parmesan before baking. Yes, it satisfies. On the boatload level. For the entire week … taking the freezer into account.

Go along with me here.

First you want to craft the ragu … the deeply satisfying meat sauce with mushrooms three ways.

Grass fed beef, veal, and pork for 1 pound total combined

2 big, BIG cloves of garlic minced

1/2 small onion minced

1 stalk celery minced

1 carrot, minced

1/2 cup minced fresh mushrooms - wild forest nameko mushrooms if available (Whole Foods)These are mushroom umami flavor on steroids!

2 tablespoons mushroom demi-glace

3-4 tablespoons (optional) dried mushroom powder

5-6 tablespoons olive oil

1/2 cup white wine

28 ounce can of crushed Muir Glen or similar tomatoes

1/2 cup whole milk

Sea salt and pepper to taste

Saute the garlic, onion, carrot, celery and fresh mushrooms in the olive oil. I prefer a cast iron skillet. Add the meat and salt. Saute until the meat is browned and broken apart into bits. Add the wine and mushroom powder and let it evaporate. Add the tomatoes and the mushroom demi-glace, bring to a boil. Simmer - covered - for 45 minutes or so. Add the milk, stir and cook for another 10-15 minutes. Set aside, covered.

Get your salted water hot in a large pot for the pasta. I use a whole wheat pasta. The Bionaturae is very nice.

While the pasta water is coming to a boil - which takes longer here at 4,200 ft in Reno, Nevada - get your baking pan out for the lasagna and start your Bechamel (Besciamella in Italian) sauce.

4 tablespoons butter

4 tablespoons flour

1/8th teaspoon ground nutmeg

1-1/2 cups heated (microwaved) 2% or whole milk

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

1/2 teaspoon ground white pepper

Melt the butter in a sauce pan with a heavy bottom. Slowly stir in the flour while whisking over medium low heat for about 2-4 minutes. Slowly pour in the heated milk, whisking all the time, while adjusting heat to allow the sauce to come to a bubble. Add the nutmeg, salt and pepper. Whisk for about five minutes or until the Bechamel becomes thick. Remove from heat, cover and set aside.

Now boil the lasagna noodles. You’ll only need about 12 noodles for a 9 x 9 inch pyrex pan. At altitude here in Reno, it takes about eight to 10 minutes. I like them a bit al dente. Use about a tablespoon of olive oil in the boiling water. When done, drain and cover, ready for assembly.

In a buttered or oiled pyrex baking dish (9x9 inch) lay down a layer of noodles, and spoon a layer of the ragu over it and spread. Add another layer of noodles, and then another layer of the ragu etc.

Cover the top layer with a generous layer of the Bechamel sauce. Sprinkle the Bechamel with about 1/2 cup of shredded Parmesan cheese. Bake at 375 degrees for 40 minutes in a preheated oven, or until the top is a beautiful golden color that makes you want to swoon.

Let this stand at least 30 minutes once out of the oven. In fact, I suggest letting it sit in the fridge until the next night.

In the photo (at the top of this post), you’ll see the plated version. I reserved some of the ragu, which I reheated, spooned out on the plate and then set the warmed lasagna on the ragu. Oh so very chi-chi!

I’m telling you, everybody will go nuts for this lasagna. It’s a total keeper.

- slice out nice squares of the cold lasagna, wrapping it in plastic wrap and then foil. Put it into the freezer for a quick dinner later in the week. Now, that’s thrifty in both time and money.

*Health note- The glycemic-index rating for pasta is 55, while whole wheat pasta is 40. Comparatively, white rice is 82 and white bread is 100. The more you cook pasta, the higher the rating. Please test your pasta frequently and become accustomed to eating it “al dente”, as they do in Italy. Foods with a glycemic index of 100 or above are very quick to release sugar into the bloodstream.

Incredibly good eggplant lasagna at Bistro 7

I’m not kidding. This stuff is addictive. Even if you’re not vegan or sort of you really ought to try it.

Mr. Maven and I slipped into Bistro 7 for a late supper. He had the wonderful thin crust, wood oven baked red pizza with sweet Italian sausage. Just the right size for one person that’s hungry, enough as an appetizer or small plate for a two-some. The crust is so tender it melts in your mouth.

But the lasagna. Oh, baby, oh, baby, oooooh baby.

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