Pesto Béchamel Lasagne
Inspired by techniques from America's Test Kitchen.
A green lasagne layered with basil pesto béchamel and topped with Parmesan and toasted pine nuts.
Always check the labels of the products you use.
Method
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Equipment
- medium saucepan
- whisk
- large pot
- spider or slotted spoon
- salad spinner or clean tea towel
- blender
- rimmed baking sheet
- 23 x 33 cm baking dish
- foil
Nutrition per serving (estimated values)
| Per serving | Amount |
|---|---|
| Energy | 494 kcal |
| Protein | 14.1 g |
| Carbohydrate | 40.7 g |
| of which sugars | 8 g |
| of which free sugars | 0 g |
| Fat | 31 g |
| of which saturates | 10.9 g |
| Fibre | 1.9 g |
| Salt | 1.17 g |
Protein per 100 kcal
2.9 g High Protein needs ≥ 10 g
Calculated from USDA FoodData Central ingredient values
Metric · 10 servings
Béchamel
- 100 g unsalted butter
- 55 g plain flour
- 1.3 l whole milk
- 1 tsp ground black pepper
- 1 pinch grated nutmeg
Pesto
- 110 g basil leaves
- 18 g fine sea salt or table salt, for blanching about 1 tbsp; most goes down the drain
- 120 ml extra-virgin olive oil
- 35 g pine nuts, toasted
- 2 garlic cloves, peeled
- 6 g fine sea salt or table salt about 1 tsp, for the pesto
- 55 g Parmesan, finely grated
- 2 tsp grated lemon zest
Assembly
- 17 dried lasagne sheets (curly-edged if you can find them)
- 30 g Parmesan, finely grated
- 35 g pine nuts, toasted
- 1
White sauce. Melt the butter in the saucepan over medium heat, whisk in the flour for 1 min without colouring, then slowly whisk in the milk. Bring to the boil, add the pepper and nutmeg and whisk 1 min more until smooth and thick. Pour into a large bowl to cool for 20 min.
- 2
Blanch the basil. Bring 4 litres water to the boil with the blanching salt, drop in the basil for 5-10 s, then lift it out and spin or squeeze dry. Keep the water. Blanching sets the green colour so the pesto stays bright through baking.
- 3
Pesto. Blend the basil with the oil, pine nuts, garlic and salt until smooth, then stir it into the béchamel with the 55 g Parmesan and the lemon zest.
- 4
Cook the sheets. Heat the oven to 190 °C (170 °C fan). Bring the basil water back to the boil and cook the sheets until fully tender. Drain onto the oiled baking sheet, turn to coat and cut 2 in half.
- 5
Layer. Spread a ladle of sauce in the oiled dish and make 5 layers of sheets and sauce, with a half sheet filling the gap each time, ending with sauce. Scatter over the 30 g Parmesan and the remaining pine nuts.
- 6
Bake. Cover with oiled foil and bake 20 min, then uncover and bake 25-30 min until spotty brown and bubbling. Rest 20 min before cutting.
Storage
Cool, cover and refrigerate within 2 hours for up to 3 days, or freeze portions for up to 2 months. Reheat covered in a 180 °C oven until piping hot (74 °C) in the centre.
