I saw this Lasagna being made on the
Cooking Channel last weekend. I got so excited I ran from the TV room to the Office where Susan was working on the computer to say "I just saw the most amazing dish on Cooking. I got to make it!"
And I did. On Sunday March 4, 2012. Kind of a early birthday celebration with Susan, my daughter and her husband--and their dog, Bella. (My birthday is March 7.)
Here I am getting started (Notice Sock Monkey the Chef in the background; He just refused to face the camera!):
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
- 1 medium onion, finely chopped
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon ground cumin
- 1 3/4 cups low-sodium chicken broth (I used homemade.)
- 1 cup milk
- 2 cups shredded pepper-jack cheese, divided
- 6 ounces raw Mexican chorizo, casing removed removed, chopped
- 1 pound ground turkey
- 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 4 to 6 ripe black-skinned plantains, peeled, halved horizontally and thinly sliced lengthwise
- Paprika to taste
- Chopped fresh cilantro leaves, for serving
Here I am whisking the Pepper-Jack White Sauce (I heard Susan in the other room say, "Sounds like you are taking alot of self-portraits!"):
Directions
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Coat a 13 by 9-inchkaing dish
with nonstick cooking spray
and set aside.
Melt the butter in a saucepan
over medium heat. Add the onion and cook until soft, about 5 minutes;
season with salt and pepper. Stir in the flour and cumin and cook for 1
minute to remove the raw starchy taste of the flour. Gradually add the
broth, stirring to prevent lumps. Once all of the broth is added, stir
in the milk. Continue to stir constantly until the sauce thickens, about
8 to 10 minutes.
Add half of the grated cheese and stir the sauce until the cheese
has melted. Turn off the heat and transfer the sauce to a bowl. Place a
piece of plastic wrap
directly on the surface of the sauce to prevent a skin from forming.
Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat and add the chorizo.
Cook and stir until it starts to brown, about 4 minutes, using a wooden
spoon to break up any large pieces while it cooks. Add the turkey and
continue to cook until both meats are browned 8 to 10 minutes. Drain out
excess oil from the pan, if needed. Stir in the Worcestershire sauce, lemon juice, oregano
; season with salt and pepper.
Line the bottom of the prepared baking dish with 1 layer of plantains
(about 1/3 of the plantain slices), making sure that they don't
overlap. Top the plantains with half of the meat mixture, spreading it
out into an even layer so it covers the plantains. Top with half of the
cheese sauce, spreading evenly with a spatula.
Add another single layer of plantain slices side by side and cover with
the remaining meat mixture and the remaining sauce. Add the final layer
of plantains and sprinkle with the remaining cheese
and a dusting of paprika over the top. Bake until the sauce is bubbly,
about 45 to 60 minutes. Let cool for 10 minutes before cutting and
serving.
Here is a photo of the Latin Lasagna cooling on our kitchen counter:
And about 10 minutes later, we're about to eat, but first I have to take one more photograph!
"Good God. Good Food. Good Gosh. Let's eat!"
Each of us (Except Bella!) had seconds. I highly recommend making this Latin Lasagna. We served it with a fruit salad, which Susan made:
~Recipe courtesy of
Ingrid Hoffman.
