FOREVER LASAGNE

A dream trip from Italy's Amalfi Coast to Lake Como with a stop in Chianti for life-changing lasagne in between~grill ideas: duck & mangalitsa pork~how I almost destroyed the tacos on a “Taco Tuesday”

Lasagne with bechamel sauce

The Tuscan Village of Castellina in Chianti

Written by PHIL WAGGONER, a home-cook-BBQ-foodie. My SAE fraternity brother at Iowa State way back in 1965. He is the managing partner at HOOK, an award-winning ad agency/design firm in Charleston, S.C. Select photos by BEV WAGGONER.

A few years ago, we went on a road trip from the Amalfi Coast in the south of Italy to Lake Como in the north with good friends. About halfway in between is the Tuscan village of Castellina in Chianti, about 20 miles south of Florence and a part of the Chianti Hills between the valleys of the Arbia, Pesa, and Elsa rivers. The village, population of just under 3,000, dates back to earlier than the Middle Ages with origins in the 7th Century B.C. That was a long time ago . . . .

 Castellina in Chianti

Streets of Castellina

Castellina is as charming as you can get. And being in the middle of the Tuscan wine country, I don’t have to mention that the wine is plentiful and good, and you don’t even have to order it. They say, “Would you like some wine?” We say “yes,” and they bring us a bottle. Perfect.

This little tavern might be the tiniest joint I've ever been in. But then again, it is a very small town. We would eat there later that day. More on that in a minute. 

About a mile or so outside of town, there's a villa (one of many). This one is owned by a woman named Edith. I can't remember Edith's last name. The estate was, by no surprise, on a hillside. We stayed there just a few nights, but it was the best. Edith was not only an excellent host but also a seasoned chef and exceptional tour guide. I'll get to the food in a minute. She gave us some solid cooking instructions and a wonderful recipe for Lasagna. First, though, let me tell you about Edith, the tour guide.

We arrived at her place late on a Sunday afternoon, almost cocktail time. We got ourselves settled in. Did I say there were four of us? We were traveling with great friends from back home. We all lived in Minneapolis at the time. Anyway, we got settled in. We wanted to go into town and have a look around. We decided to see if Edith had suggestions on what we might do for the evening and where to find some wine and dinner. Nothing fancy. Just relaxed and good.

Osteria Il Re Gallo {photo by Bev Waggoner}

For food, she suggested the little place shown above, Osteria Il Re Gallo. So, we went there. It was about pasta, of course, and chicken. It was no surprise; it was so good. The surprise was that not only was it good, but it was also inexpensive. (Remember, this is an out-of-the-beaten-path small town of about 3,000 people who probably grow, raise, and ferment most of what they eat and drink. That may explain the reasonable pricing. Most wine bottles we were served didn’t even have labels.)  The bottom line was that it was all tasty and fun with friendly small-town people and cheap. Hard to beat.

So, that was dinner; what about the rest of the night? The tour guide side of Edith, suggested we be entertained at her church. What? Yes, her church. She was part of an organizing committee that summoned a semi-well-known opera singing soprano from Sweden to perform for the community that night. And the venue was her church, a church that was built sometime, we were told, in the 16th century. 

Now, understand. Having a chance to be entertained by an opera-singing Swedish woman wasn’t something that those of us from the fly-over part of America had the opportunity to enjoy very often. To say nothing of experiencing this in a medieval church in the hill country of Tuscany just after enjoying fabulous food and wine at the cool little tavern across the town square. Here’s a late afternoon shot of the Church of San Salvatore in Castellina in Chianti.

Church of San Salvatore

So, we had dinner. Now time for Sunday evening's entertainment. We had no idea what to expect. I'd never been to an opera in my life. I am ¾ Swede, so I get that part. We walked into the church. The concert had begun. It was pretty dark. We sat in pews (of course, it's a church). The place was beautiful. We were near the back of the room. Way up front was a grand piano, a guy in a tuxedo playing it, and this reasonably gorgeous blonde with a voice as powerful as she wanted it to be. Looking closely at the photo below, you'll see her in a black dress up front under the cross.

“The sound was unbelievable.” {photo by Bev Waggoner}

There are a couple of things worth noting at this point. First, the Church of San Salvatore made of stone was magnificent-- jaw-dropping. Second. The sound coming from that woman and that piano was unbelievable. The power and range of her voice were something this farm-town boy had never witnessed before. Know what else? There was no sound system. The stone, the arc of that room, was amplification a-plenty. It was emotional and exceptional. 

We saw Edith and said howdy on the way in. We hugged her on the way out! A night to remember.

Now on to the next day, and back to the food. I mentioned earlier that Edith was the chief chef of her home, the Fattoria Tregole. She did all the cooking for her guests. She also held cooking classes for her guests (if they wanted them). Here she is in her kitchen.

Edith in her kitchen. {photo by Bev Waggoner}

Her attack on Lasagna was kind of different. Different in two ways. First, it included Béchamel sauce on top of the bolognese sauce. I hadn’t heard of that before. And second. No cheese. No mozzarella, no parmigiana, no grana padano, no ricotta. I’m thinking, this can’t be. 

I’ve talked enough; let’s move on to the recipe. It’s a fun one but it has four parts). You make three parts before you make the fourth ... the dinner. Make the bolognese, the béchamel, the noodles, and the dinner. 

We liked her lasagna a lot and still do. We took the recipe home. We’ve made it for Christmas Evening dinner almost every year since the trip. Give it a try. I hope you like it as much as we do. Thank you, Castellina in Chianti. Thank you, Edith.

BOLOGNESE SAUCE

Ingredients

• 11 oz. ground beef

• 14 oz. peeled tomatoes

• 1 onion

• 1 celery

• 1 carrot

• 1 sprig parsley

• ½ cup red wine

• Olive oil

• Salt and pepper

Directions

1. Make a paste with the onion, celery, carrot, and parsley.

2. Place in frying pan with 5 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil.

3. When onion begins to blond, add the meat and cook, stirring frequently, until the water has retreated.

4. Add the wine, stirring frequently until it is evaporated.

5. Add the little chopped tomatoes. 

6. Add salt and pepper and cook slowly for about 40 minutes.

BÉCHAMEL SAUCE

Ingredients

• 5 tablespoons butter

• 4 tablespoons all-purpose flour

• 4 cups milk

• 2 teaspoons salt

• ½ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

Directions

1. In a saucepan, heat butter over medium-low heat until melted.

2. Add flour, stir until smooth.

3. Over medium heat, cook until mixture turns a light golden sandy color, about 6-7 minutes.

4. Meanwhile, heat milk in a separate pan until just about to boil.

5. Add the hot milk to the butter mixture 1 cup at a time, whisking continuously until very smooth.

6. Bring to a boil.

7. Cook 10 minutes, stirring constantly, then remove from heat.

8. Season with salt and nutmeg.

9. Set aside until ready to use.

FRESH TUSCAN PASTA

Ingredients 

• 7 oz. flour type 0

• 7 oz. wheat flour, semola

• 4 medium eggs (at room temperature)

Directions

1. Put flour in a circular pile on a steel or marble tabletop or noodle board.

2. Create a small well in the center of the flour.

3. Crack the eggs into the well.

4. With a spoon stir the eggs while gently working the flour into them from the edges to the center.

5. Once the flour is mixed with the eggs, squeeze the dough with your fingertips.

6. Add a little flour to the board.

7. Knead the dough (folding in from the edges) with the palms of your hands leaning on it with the weight of your body. 

8. To keep the dough from sticking sprinkle a little flour on the board from time to time while kneading.

9. Continue kneading until the dough appears smooth and elastic, shaping it into a ball.

10. Let it rest, wrapped in plastic wrap for 20-30 minutes.

11. Roll out the dough with machine or rolling pin until it is very thin (thinner the better).

12. Cut in 3-inch-wide strips (or your desired preference) that are 9-inches in length (to fit a 9” x 13” pan).

13. Cut enough noodle strips to make 4 layers total.

14. Set the noodle strips aside on lightly floured wax paper until ready to use.

TUSCAN LASAGNE

Ingredients

• 12 pasta sheets (9” x 13” each)

• 3 cups bolognese sauce

• 1 cup broth or water

• 3 cups béchamel sauce

• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.

2. Warm the ragu sauce and add a cup of water or broth to it (pasta will soak up a lot of the liquid).

3. Drizzle the olive oil so it covers the bottom of your baking pan.

4. Add a couple spoonfuls of the bolognese sauce and spread it all over the pan.

5. Lay in pasta sheets (3 in this case) to cover the bottom of the pan.

6. Top this with about ¾ cup of bolognese spread all over the pasta.

7. Add ¾ cup of béchamel in dollops here and there.

8. Sprinkle cheese on top. 

9. Repeat 2 more times.

10. Now for the 4^th layer.

11. Spread half the remaining bolognese on the pasta.

12. Spread on the the remaining béchamel. 

13. Add the remaining bolognese on the top.

14. Bake until the top is slightly golden and bubbly, about 30 minutes.

15. Let rest for 5 minutes before serving.

GRILLING IDEAS

DUCK BREASTS & LEGS

I like duck, but mostly eat it in cold weather. Gonna grill some in warm weather for the first time. I’ll start with secrets to grilling duck from The Spruce Eats, an all around primer for duck breasts. Then I’m going to venture into grilling duck breast from Allrecipes, or The Spruce Eats, or Food Network’s Guy Fieri or Asian spiced duck breast recipe from Bobby Flay. Maybe even Steven Raichlen’s Barbeque Bible or something at Traeger Grills.

Duck are available from Joyce Farms, Maple Leaf Farms, Regalis Foods, or D'Artagnan, if you can’t find them locally. Sources for duck legs include Regalis Foods. There are other duck recipes at Wildfowl.

MANGALITSA PORK

Mangalitsa pork is a special food. Mangalitsa pigs are a breed of hog that is renowned for their deeply flavored meat and for their high fat content. The name Mangalica literally means “hog with a lot of lard.” They are sometimes also known as “wooly pigs” because of the curly haired fleece that covers their body.

The Mangalitsa pig is genetically very similar to the Iberian pigs of Western Spain that produce the famous Jamon Iberico. And like their cousins, the Mangalitsa pig is renowned for the quality of the fat that it produces, which is low in saturates and high in oleic acid. This comes from the feed given to the animals, which primarily consists of wheat and acorns. Regalis Foods is one good source of mangalitsa pork spare ribs or pork tenderloin.

LAMB, FISH, GAME . . . AND A NOTE ABOUT BURGERS

Looking for some more variety in your grilling? Andrew Zimmern’s favorite meat, fish and game to grill is a place to begin.

No one but a grilling neophyte needs a recipe for beef burgers. However, I wait until tomatoes are at their peak to even think about grilling them. If you must before then, here’s some thoughts on how to make them from The Spruce Eats with the greatest chance of success.

KITCHEN DISASTERS

While embarrassing, I do like to pass on these tales of kitchen trauma to help prevent them from being repeated. I’ve cooked most meals in our home during our 53 years of marriage. My wife says she welcomes my efforts. I’ve got a record of cooking food that’s edible 99% of the time—my score, not hers. Fair warning so check these out. . . .

1. Salmon en Croûte

2. Tuna in Olive Oil

3. Broken Oval Ceramic Baking Dish

4. Grilled Cheese Sandwich

5. “Tuesday Taco” Meat with Red Wine

Taco meat with red wine added

Taco Tuesday has become a thing in this household. Restaurants serving all manner of them are inspiring. So, why not do a little experimenting at home. Since water has to be added anyway to the ground beef sprinkled with seasoning from one of those packets, why not add more flavor. Why not red wine? Don’t. Here’s why. All the seasoning in Mexican foods is spritsy-spicy-hotish. Red wine dulls all those flavors into something sweet. Gone are the Mexican flavors, not to mention the meat now has a Purple Rain all over it, as though Prince, himself, made it. That’s a good look for eggplant and cabbage, but not a good look for meat. I rescued the dish with a load of cilantro and a kicky salsa. Bravo!

Makes me wonder, however, when I’ll stop screwing up in the kitchen . . . .

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