Queen of Sauces

When I was in culinary school I was called the Queen of Sauces because that is what came easy to me, I believe it was because I understood how they could change a dish.   A sauce for me is the passion in a tango, is luxurious, is the soul of your dish.         


I will show you a few sauces you can make that can transform a dish to trully sublime.    A sauce works like a seasoning.  It enhances and accents the flavor of the food, it should not dominate or hide the food.


Sauces have 3 components: A liquid (stocks, water or clarified butter), a thickening agent (flour, cornstarch, roux, etc) and additional seasonings that gives it a flavor profile.


Sauces are classified as mother sauces and small sauces.  If you can remember this:

Liquid +  a thickening agent= mother sauce

Leading sauce + additional flavorings= small sauce

So if you learn your 5 mother sauces they will be the basis to make any sauce you want.   Each week we will do a dish featuring each of the five mother sauces and then we will move on to the small sauces so let's get started in this delicious dish.

Creamy meat Lasagna 

This dish is a lasagna that has bechamel sauce in it, I know most of you have made your lasagnas with just  ricotta cheese as your white sauce.   Try it this way its trully amazing!


Ingredients:

For the meat sauce:

1 1/2  pounds ground beef

1 lb of italian sausage

6 cups marinara sauce

1 small onion diced

3 garlic cloves

1/2 tablespoon of fresh thyme leaves

Bechamel Sauce:

5 tablespoons butter
5 tablespoons all-purpose flour
4 cups milk
2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

The rest:

2 cups of shreaded mozzarella cheese
2/3 cup freshly grated Reggiano-Parmigiano

1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley

1 teaspoon salt

1 lb lasagna noodles plus a few in case they break

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese to top


Preparation:


Meat sauce:


Saute the onions and garlic with olive oil, and thyme for about 5 mintutes then add the italian sausage and ground beef meats and cook for about 10 minutes or until cooked thru, add the marinara sauce and simmer for about 30 minutes covered at low to medium heat.   You can also cook this in a dutch oven and this can be placed in the oven at 350 degrees to cook for 30-45 minutes.  When meat sauce is ready sprinkle with chopped parsley.

Bechamel sauce:

In a medium saucepan, heat the butter over medium-low heat until melted. Add the flour and  cook medium heat, cook until the mixture turns a light, golden sandy color, about 5-6 minutes.  Meanwhile, heat the milk in a separate pan until just about to boil. Add the hot milk to the butter mixture 1/2 cup at a time, whisking continuously until very smooth. Bring to a boil then simmer for 10 minutes, stirring constantly, then remove from heat. Season with salt and nutmeg, and set aside until ready to use.  Add the cup of ricotta cheese and stir.  If it's a bit thick add 1/2 cup of warm water.


Lasagna assembly:

Follow package instructions for the lasagna noodles use at least a pound you may need a few extras in case they break.
If using the ready made add directly to the oven safe dish. 
Add a layer of the meat sauce, then lasagna noodles, then white sauce, then meat sauce noodles, white sauce, etc and repeat until you are to the top of your dish.   Top with Mozzarella cheese and parmesan cheese.  Cook covered for 45 minutes at 350 oven then uncover and cook for about 10 minutes if you want to brown your cheese turn on broiler and broil until brown.

Here is how to make Hollandaise sauce: