Daily Unadventures in Cooking » ham

Ham and Mushroom Lasagne Recipe

katerina — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 13:12:36 +0000

Every year for J’s birthday I give him his choice of what he wants for dinner, anything goes. Frequent choices are lamb shanks, spaghetti bolognese or penne with zucchini. This year he told me to cook whatever I wanted that I thought he would like. I chose to adapt a lasagne from Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking as he loves Italian food.

This lasagne is quite different then the traditional american lasagna with no tomato sauce at all. The dried mushrooms give the sauce a rich, earthy depth of flavour and the bechamel is creamy and delicious. While the ham is nice, I think a vegetarian version omitting the ham would also be fantastic. Oh and J was very pleased. Though he is fond of what he ate as a child, he said it might be the best lasagne he has ever had. Thanks again Marcella.

This is definitely a weekend meal as there are many steps and it probably takes at least 60 minutes of labor even before baking. If you are looking for something quicker and simpler it tastes quite similar to this creamy linguine with ham and peas. However, the work you put into the lasagna will be worth it, I promise.

Ham and Mushroom Lasagne Recipe
(makes 8×8 lasagna, about 6 servings)
(Adapted from Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking)

1/2oz dried porcini or boleto mushrooms
4 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1/2 small onion, chopped fine
1/2 cup whole Italian tomatoes, drained and chopped
1-2 tablespoons freshly chopped parsley
1/2 dozen large white or cremini mushrooms, washed and thinly sliced
1 portobello, washed and thinly sliced
1 package italian Lasagna noodles
4 tablespoons butter
4 tablespoons flour
2 cups milk (I used 2%)
salt and pepper
1/2 cup ham, thinly sliced into strips
1 2/2 cups freshly grated Parmiggiano Reggiano

Add dried mushrooms to 2/3 cup warm water. Allow to soak for at least 30 minutes. Carefully remove mushrooms without disturbing water too much. Pour soaking water through a cheesecloth or paper towel lined wire strainer and set aside. Rinse mushrooms under water and carefully remove any grit, squeeze dry, roughly chop and set aside.

In a large saute pan with a lid, melt butter and oil over medium heat. Add onion and cook until translucent, stirring regularly. Add chopped reconstituted mushrooms, tomatoes, parsley and mushroom soaking water. Turn heat down to medium low and partially cover. Simmer gently until liquid is gone. Add fresh mushrooms turn up the heat to medium high and stir regularly. The mushrooms will release liquid. Cook until liquid is absorbed again and mixture is generally dry. Taste and correct for seasoning. Remove from heat and set aside.

Cook lasagna noodles to package directions, leaving slightly al dente. Drain and set aside. (You can keep them from sticking in several ways, separated on damp dish towels or oiled parchment paper.)

Preheat oven to 400F. Make the bechamel. In a sauce pan melt the 4 tablespoons of butter, bring heat to medium and whisk in flour. Slowly whisk in milk and bring to a gently simmer, whisking until nice and thick. Add 1/4 teaspoon of salt to start. Than correct and taste for seasoning. Reduce heat to low and stir occasionally while assembling lasagna.

Now it is time to assemble the lasagna. First gently butter an 8×8 dish. Put down a layer of noodles then scatter with a layer of mushrooms, using about 1/4 of the mushrooms. Top with a quarter of the ham, then 1/5 of the bechamel and 1/5 of the cheese. Top with another layer of noodles. Do 3 more layers like this. The last layer should end with noodles, then the last of the bechamel topped with some cheese.

Bake for 20 minutes covered with aluminum foil, remove foil and bake for another 10 minutes. Let rest for 5-10 minutes before cutting and serving.

Black Bean and Ham Soup Recipe

katerina — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 15:02:00 +0000

Cooking with dried beans takes more time, but it produces a lovely texture in your beans rather than the mush that can result from canned beans – not to mention it’s cheaper! This is an easy soup made from black beans and a smoked ham hock. The spices bring out the richness in the beans and by blending some of the soup the texture is thick and pulpy. Like many stewy dishes this is even better the next day.

The black bean and ham soup recipe is very adaptable to different methods and substitutions. You could easily make this soup in a crockpot and since there are no tomatoes or other acidic components the beans will cook properly with little intervention. Instead of using a ham hock, you can also try this with leftover ham, and if you are in a rush canned beans.

Tortellini with Mushrooms, Ham, Red Peppers and Cream Recipe

katerina — Mon, 10 Mar 2008 12:51:00 +0000

This pasta recipe is a comforting, and simple dish fit for any weeknight supper. Sometimes I feel like adding cream to a sauce is cheating since nothing with heavy cream is ever bad. However, I love the richness which cream brings to a sauce, not only that but in this recipe the ham, mushroom, and pepper flavours are really enhance by the cream.

Tortellini with Mushrooms, Ham, Red Peppers and Cream
(serves 2)

2 tablespoons butter
4 cups mushrooms, roughly chopped or thickly sliced
1 cup cooked ham, cut into a large dice
1 red pepper, thinly sliced
1 cup cream
salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 package tortellini, (about 350g)

Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium low heat and add mushrooms with a healthy dose of pepper. Cook turning occasionally for about 10-15 minutes. Add ham and saute then add peppers and cook for 5 minutes. Add pasta to cook and pour cream over mushroom mixture. Bring to a simmer and simmer until the pasta is cook. Taste and correct if necessary.