Flaherty Wines

We started crushing on Saturday, and for me that means there’s a crew to feed. I also wanted to help pick the Tempranillo, so dinner had to be something I could prepare ahead and then throw together at the last minute. Lasagna sounded like the perfect solution. I had some grilled chicken thighs left over from the night before, and I had recently made a batch of tomato sauce (that’s a staple in our house).  I cooked the eggplant and spinach ahead of time, which just left the bechamel and the assembly to be done at the last minute. I was then free to enjoy a glass of wine with the crew while the lasagna baked.

Saffron mortar

Everyone loved the combination of flavors. The saffron transformed the homey dish into something unusual, while the basil helped offset the richness of the bechamel. We paired it with our 2007 Flaherty (recently bottled but not yet released), followed by a Rioja.

I have recently become a fan of precooked lasagna noodles. I resisted for years because it just seemed wrong, and how hard is it to boil noodles, anyway? However, precooked lasagna is the only form of Italian lasagna sold here—and Italian pasta is far better than the Chilean brands. So I decided to give it a try. As it turns out, the precooked version is delicious, and it really is easier–with hardly any mess! One important difference is that you don’t layer the precooked pieces the way you would regular boiled noodles. And you need to add more sauce, since the pasta absorbs liquid as it cooks. The size of the pan is important, too, to help maintain the shape of the dish. I have a standard glass pan that just fits three sheets across, with four layers deep.

Chicken lasagna with a saffron bechamel

1 large eggplant
1 pound fresh spinach
1 1/2 cups chopped cooked chicken
4 to 5 cups tomato sauce
12 pieces precooked (or oven-ready) Italian lasagna
1 cup chopped basil
salt
Freshly grated Parmesan

For the bechamel:

3 cups milk
1/2 small onion
3 garlic cloves, peeled and smashed
1 bay leaf
Generous pinch of saffron threads (1/8 TBSP for a lighter flavor, or up to a scant 1/4 TBSP for a stronger effect)
5 TBSP butter
1/3 cup flour
Salt and white pepper, to taste

Generously salt the eggplant, weight down with a plate, and let sit for at least an hour. Rinse off the salt (thoroughly) and pat dry. Heat olive oil in a pan and sauté the eggplant on both sides.

Wash the spinach and then steam the leaves until they wilt. Let cool, then squeeze out as much water as you can. Chop and set aside.

When you are ready to put it all together, preheat the oven to 375. Prepare the bechamel: bring the milk, onion, garlic, and bay leaf to a simmer. Remove from the heat and let sit for 15 minutes (or longer) before straining the milk. (This can be done ahead of time if it’s more convenient. Just store the cooled milk in a covered jar so it doesn’t form a skin.) Crush the saffron threads in a mortar and cover with a couple tablespoons of hot water; set aside. Heat the butter in a sauce pan. Add the flour and whisk for two minutes to make a roux, being careful not to brown the butter. (If the butter starts to overheat, just pull the pan off the heat and keep whisking until it cools down. Then return the pan to the heat and continue.) Pour the milk into the roux all at once, whisking to smooth it out. Add the saffron/water mixture and season to taste with salt and white pepper.

Mix about a third of the bechamel with the chopped spinach and set aside.

To assemble the lasagna: spread a thin layer of sauce in the bottom of the pan (about 1/2 cup). Add a layer of lasagna (three pieces), being careful not to overlap the pieces. Add a generous layer of sauce, then a layer of eggplant. Scatter half the basil over the eggplant and top with another layer of lasagna and tomato sauce. Next spread on the spinach mixture, then another layer of lasagna and sauce. Add the chicken and the remaining basil. Add a final layer of lasagna and tomato sauce, then top with the saffron bechamel. Sprinkle generously with grated Parmesan.

Cover with foil and bake in the preheated oven for 45 minutes. (Note: the lasagna box says it cooks in 20 minutes, but I find it takes 40-45 minutes to heat the dish all the way through.) Remove the foil and lightly brown the bechamel. Remove the lasagna from the oven and let sit about 10 minutes before serving. Grate on additional Parmesan at the table.