Garden Tomato Lasagna with Pesto

Name: Garden Tomato Lasagna with Pesto
Yield: serves 8 to 12
Ingredients: 3 tablespoons olive oil; 1 tablespoon kosher salt; 1/2 pound dried lasagna noodles; 1/2 medium yellow onion, chopped; 4 small zucchini, thinly sliced (optional); 2 cloves garlic, minced; 1 pound bulk Italian sausage (optional); 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter; 2 cups freshly made breadcrumbs (from day-old bread) (see Tip); 3 large eggs; 2 (15-ounce) containers part-skim ricotta cheese; 1 cup mascarpone cheese; 1 teaspoon kosher salt; 1 tablespoon minced fresh oregano leaves; 1 1/2 cups homemade pesto (recipe follows) or purchased; 6 to 8 ripe medium farmstand tomatoes, cored and cut in 1/4-inch-thick slices; Parmesan curls, for garnish (optional); 4 cups lightly packed fresh basil leaves; 4 cloves garlic, quartered; 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt; 1/2 cup pine nuts; 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil; 1 1/2 cups freshly grated Parmesan cheese; (makes about 2 cups)

December 14, 2011

Here’s a great party dish that feeds a horde and can be made a day ahead and baked at the last minute. It can handle an endless amount of fiddling—from adding more vegetables (I’ve tucked in layers of sautéed sliced yellow and green zucchini, eggplant, red and green peppers, and mushrooms, to name a few) to tweaks like eliminating all cheese (including in the pesto) for a vegan version created for my lactose-intolerant daughter (see Variation). Buy prepared pesto if you want less prep work.

Recipe notes

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