Herbed Seafood Lasagna with Tomato-Cream Sauce

Categories: Pasta

Ingredients

• For the tomato sauce:
• 2 tbsp. unsalted butter
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 6 fresh plum tmoatoes, seeded and chopped or canned plum tomatoes, crushed
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
• 1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes
• 1/4 cup thinly sliced scallions
• 2 tbsp. chopped fresh basil or 1 tsp. dried
• 1 tbsp. chopped fresh tarragon or 4/4 tsp. dried
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/4 tsp. black pepper
• 1 tsp. sugar
• For the filling:
• 2 tbsp. unsalted butter
• 1 lb. bay or sea callops (if using sea, cut in half)
• 1/2 lb. shelled and deveined medium shrimp, cut in half
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
• 3/4 lb. sole or flounder fillets, cut in 1 1/2"chunks
• 1 tbsp. chopped fresh tarragon or 1 tsp. dried
• 1 tbsp. chopped fresh thyme or 1 tsp. dried
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/2 tsp. black pepper
• For the bechamel sauce:
• 4 tbsp. unsalted butter
• 4 tbsp. all purpose flour
• 2 1/2 cups heavy cream
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1/2 tsp. pepper, preferably white
• 1/8 tsp. grated nutmeg
• 1 pound fresh pasta sheets or 12 oz. dried lasagna noodles
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Directions

1. To make the tomato sauce, melt the butter in a large skillet. Add garlic and cook over medium heat, stirring for 1 minute. Add tomatoes, wine and red pepper flakes. Bring to a boil and simmer uncovered until the tomatoes give off their liquid and the sauce begins to reduce, 7-10 minutes. Stir in the scallions, basil, tarragon, salt, pepper, and sugar and simmer for 2 minutes. Set aside until ready to sue. (The sauce can be made a day ahead and refrigerated.

2. To make the filling, melt the butter in a large skillet. Add the scallops and shrimp and cook over medium heat, sitrring frequently, until the shrimp beings to turn pink, about 1 minute. Add the wine, bring to a boil and cook for 1 minute. Add the sole or flounder along with the tarragon, thyme, salt and pepper and conitnue to cook, stirring gently, just until all the seafood is opaque, 3-5 minutes. Remove the seafood with a slotted spoon to a bowl and reserve any liquid remaining in the skillet.

3. To make the bechamel sauce, melt the butter in a medium size pan. Add the flour and cook, whisking constantly for 2 minutes. Whisk in the seafood skillet juices and season with salt pepper and nutmeg. Set aside until ready to use. (If not using within 30 minutes, place a sheet of plastic wrap on the surface of the sauce to prevent a skin from forming.)

4. Very fresh pasta sheets do not need to be cooked before the lasagna is assembled. Cook dried pasatas (or fresh pasta that has begun to dry out)in a large pot of boiling salted water until slightly firm, 2-5 minutes for fresh, about 8 minutes for dried. Drain in a colander and spread pasta out on paper or linen towels.

5. eheat the oven 375. Coat a 3-4 quart baking dis (such as a 14×10 inch lasaagna pan) with butter or cooking spray.

6. Sppon about 1/2 cup of tomato sauce in the prepared dish, tilting to coat the bottom. Make a layer using 1/3 pasta, 1/2 seafood and 1/3 bechamel sauce, spreading the filling ingredients evenly. Make another similar layer. Then finish with the last third of the pasta and bechamel. Spread the remaining tomato sauce over the final bechamel layer and sprinkle with the parmesan cheese. The casserole can be assembled several hours ahead. Cover with foil and refrigerate.

7. Bake the lasagna, uncovered, until the cheese is golden and the filling is bubbly, 35-40 minutes. If the lasagna has been refrigerated, bake the foil covered casserole for 20 minutes. Uncover and continue to bake for 20-30 minutes until heated through.

8. Let the lasagna rest for aobut 15 minutes before cutting into squares.

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