asparagus lasagne
June 28, 2013 § 43 Comments
We have been cooking up bundles of asparagus this season. I am feeling as though we have come to the end of our season and this lasagne was my last act. I delighted in preparing this baked dish of luscious pasta layered with béchamel sauce, steamed asparagus, cheese and potatoes. The process was very satisfying and somewhat a test of my kitchen organizational skills. Preparing the layer ingredients prior to making the béchamel sauce helps to keep order in the kitchen. This is the first time I made a garlic, onion and thyme infused béchamel sauce and it is an especially nice flavor for the potatoes.
This is one of those posts. The dinner turned out perfect and the photographs didn’t. I almost scratched the whole idea of posting it and then something occurred to me. This lasagne is so delicious… I have to share the recipe!
I always have a sense of satisfaction and accomplishment when I place a lasagne in the oven. I just wish I had the same feeling about my photographs…
L a s a g n e
- 1 pound asparagus, trimmed
- 3 medium yukon gold potatoes, sliced into 1/8 inch thick rounds
- 12 ounces lasagne noodles
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 1/2 cup shredded aged white cheddar
- 1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into pieces
- chopped fresh parsley
Bring two large pots of salted water to a boil. In one pot add the asparagus and the other add the potatoes. Cook the asparagus 3-5 minutes until crisp tender. Remove using a skimmer and transfer to a bowl of ice cold water. Drain and pat dry. Keep the asparagus water boiling. Cook the potatoes until almost tender, 10 minutes. Drain and set aside. Place 1 tablespoon of olive oil into the boiling asparagus water and add the lasagne noodles a few sheets at a time stirring to keep separate. Cook until barely tender. Drain and set aside.
B é c h a m e l S a u c e
- 3 cups milk
- 1 small onion, sliced
- 2 garlic cloves, smashed and peeled
- 3 sprigs of fresh thyme
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 3 tablespoons all purpose flour
- 1/4 cup grated parmesan
Bring the milk, onion, garlic and thyme to a simmer in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Remove from the heat and allow it to sit and infuse of 10 minutes. Strain, discarding the solids. Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium low heat. Whisk in the flour and let it bubble without browning for 2 minutes. Whisk in the warm milk and bring to a simmer. Continue cooking whisking often until the sauce is smooth about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat, stir in the parmesan and season with salt and pepper. You may press a sheet of plastic wrap on top to keep a skin from forming.
A s s e m b l e
Preheat oven to 350°. Lightly butter a 13×9 inch baking dish. Spread a thin film of the béchamel sauce in the bottom of the dish. Arrange 3 or 4 pasta sheets in the dish, slightly overlapping as needed. Spread with one third of the sauce, half each of the potatoes, asparagus and aged white cheddar. Top with another layer of pasta, half of the remaining sauce and the remaining potatoes, asparagus and cheddar. Finish with a layer of pasta and spread with the remaining sauce. Sprinkle with the Parmesan cheese and dot with the butter.
Bake until the sauce is bubbling and the top is golden, about 30 minutes. Let stand for 10 minutes before serving.
Serves 6
buon appetite.
COTTAGE GROVE HOUSE 
I just learned how to make a butter-onion bechamel sauce in cooking class last night, and it tasted really good! (plus the sauce was made from start to finish in the microwave!) This lasagne looks lovely, seana!
happy weekend!
Really? How did you use the sauce? Thank you! Yes indeed..happy weekend! We finally have some sun here in Seattle! We are expecting 90° F temperatures. A rarity these days.
The sauce was used as a base for some sort of corn souffle – which was double-boiled in the oven. I watched as my classmate cooked it, so I’m not 100% sure how to make it! Enjoy your sun in the meanwhile!!
It looks delicious. I also like the details on the background. Beautiful ceramics. :)
By the way, did you read the last ‘French Heaven’ post on food photography? I was amazed, the photos looked really like paintings. Kind regards. Have a nice weekend over there!
Yes! I did see that post. Beautiful! She is such a wonderful photographer. I love her blog. You have a great weekend as well Rosa. :)
What’s not to like about this dish? Looks so GOOD! And it’s lasagne!
Exactly! Thank you.
Ah! Another beauty… a green lasagne! :P
I know! I love lasagne with a tomato sauce too (unless it is loaded with mozzarella) I guess I’m the same way with pizza. I do not prefer lots of cheese.
Love lasagna and believe it or not I have never had white lasagna, that must change. I love the asparagus and potatoes and the thyme in the bechamel must be so good.
I can not say whether I like white sauce over red in lasagne. I think both are equally good. Maybe you do need to try it! I think you’ll love it.
Looks like a lovely way to celebrate the end of a much-enjoyed Asparagus season!
I agree! :) It has been a great season!
Isn’t it funny, I’ve never had just a red lasagne. Here, they were usually made with both tomato and béchamel in differing layer. Have to admit I haven’t eaten anything like it in years.
I wonder if just a red lasagne is an American thing. You should see it! It is usually loaded with ricotta, stringy mozzarella and ground beef. It’s quite a gut bomb! :) I do enjoy the type you mentioned with both tomato / béchamel sauce.
Sounds delicious. I wouldn’t have thought of using potatoes in lasagna.
Years ago I used to frequent an Italian Restaurant and they had a pasta dish with potatoes in it. I thought it was so interesting to put the two starches together in one dish. It was fantastic though! Actually I think I sliced the potatoes a little too thick for this lasagne. I think 1/8″ slices would be best (if you are toying with the idea of trying it) :)
This sounds heavenly and I’m so glad you posted it! ;)
Thank you :)
Seana, this lasagne looks like an absolute masterpiece. Love the gorgeous fresh ingredients, the light flavours and the thyme in the bechamel… such a delicious combination. Don’t be so hard on your photos! I think they’re gorgeous… particularly the one with the beautiful fresh ingredients. You do a fabulous job. I get excited to read every post! xx
Thank you Laura. It was quite comical how I was kept “cropping” the photo until I couldn’t crop anymore and keep the lasagne in the frame! :) Your comments are always so sincerely and sweet. Very encouraging.
I really enjoy this time of year. WP is full of asparagus recipes, each better than the one before. Now this is some lasagna you’ve created. Love that you flavored the bechamel. It can be awfully bland sometimes and needs something more to perk it up. Here I bet it really ties all of the ingredients and layers together. Thanks for sharing your recipe.
Thank you so much for such a lovely comment. I agree about béchamel. I think it would be too bland for this lasagne. It worked so nicely here. The flavor was subtle enough to allow the potatoes and asparagus to “be themselves”. :)
Inspired!
Actually YOU inspire me! :)
Thank you, it’s mutual :)
Oh this looks wonderful! I know exactly the feeling you’re talking about as you’re finally putting the pan in the oven. Haha…I love it! Your photos are great and I bet the asparagus and flavored bechamel are incredible together! Nice! :)
Thank you! Here’s to “food blog photography!” :)
Genius! This looks amazing…
Thank you so much. I visited your Etsy shop and your work is so beautiful and inspiring. So charming how your inspiration comes from nature and natural elements. My style for sure. I found two or three I would love to own… I am feeling like I need to buy myself a gift. (you haven’t heard the last of me! :)
I loved the initial ingredients picture!! beautiful. This does look like another delicious recipe I need to try. thanks.
:) Thank you Rhonda. It went downhill from there! That’s alright though. While I certainly draw inspiration from all the amazing food photographers, I’ll just keep cooking…. :)
I love asparagus! This is such a neat way to cook it in. Looks delicious!!!
What a wonderful lasagna…I love your combination of ingredients.
Thank you so much Karen! Hope you are enjoying your summer. :)
I am so glad you’ve decided to post this. Your photos are great. And the lasagna looks very delicious! And it’s making me hungry :)
This recipe looks great! One of my favorite lasagnas is an asparagus one from Giada’s show. It uses a sun-dried tomato pesto instead of sauce and is super flavorful. This recipe looks like a nice contrast to it :)
Thank you so much! I like the sound of sun dried tomato pesto in a lasagne! May have to search for the recipe. :)
if you ever do, I recommend using only half the amount of asparagus called for. Whatever it calls for seemed like way overkill to me :)
so delicious! the sauce was amazing, thank you for sharing!!
Thank you Elena! So glad you made the lasagne. That bechamel sauce won me over too. I am glad to hear you all liked it…well, I know L&E’s palate has to grow up a little still. :) Hope to see you soon.
I LOVE it! Will be giving this a try soon seeing as asparagus is in full swing here.
You’ll love it Lidia! The bechamel sauce is so delicious…be ready to overeat. :)