I am not given to hyperbole. (jk, hyperbole is life.) I may not be good at food photography. But it turns out, I can make a mean lasagna! This is the best lasagna I have ever made. And it's KETO. Chris got me Alex Guaraschelli's cookbook for Christmas, so I modified (and easified) her recipe to create this glorious ooey-gooey cheesy concoction, and I promise you, you will not miss the pasta. First of all - purchase some Palmini lasagna noodles. (I got them at a nearby Kroger).
Secondly, get your favorite low-carb tomato pasta sauce. My go to is Rao's. This is the thing. I HATE onions. So there won't be any in this recipe. If you like onions, feel free to modify. I won't judge your onion lovin' heart. I got the Rao's sensitive pasta sauce, which leaves out onions and garlic, and then I added in 5 cloves of garlic and several shakes of dried oregano and heated the sauce up on the stove. Perfection. This is the thing. This still takes time! Because it's not just a slurry of ground meat. You're gonna make tiny meatballs. Because that's how Iron Chef Alex Guarnaschelli's grandmother did it. And she was correct to do so. Tiny, little one inch diameter meatballs of glory.
RECIPE INGREDIENTS
Pasta
Palmini Lasagna Noodles
Sauce
Rao's Homemade Sensitive Marinara Sauce (Substitute for your fave.)
1 Tbsp Oregano
4 cloves garlic, minced
The Meatballs 1/2 lb ground veal
1/2 lb ground pork
2 tsp Kosher salt
1/2 cup smashed pork rinds (I used Bacon-Ets Honey Mustard chiccharones) 1/4 cup grated Jarlsberg cheese
1/2 cup finely chopped Italian parsley leaves
1 large egg
5 garlic cloves, minced
1/3 cup vegetable oil
Cheese Filling
1 lb fresh mozzarella, sliced
15 oz ricotta cheese
3 cups freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano Cheese
INSTRUCTIONS
First, the meatballs. With your hands, combine the meats in a large bowl. Spread it out so it's all up the sides of the bowl, because this lets you spread the seasonings easily. Salt the meat mixture. Toss in the pork rind crumbs. Throw in the parsley and grated cheese. Literally hand mix it again, get your fingers in there!
In a separate bowl, mix together the egg and the and the minced garlic. Then drizzle the egg mixture over the meat mixture. Again, mix the meat thoroughly with your hands.
Do a test meatball. Roll out a small meatball in your hand - about 1 inch in diameter. Heat up a scoosh of oil in a large frying pan on high heat. When the oil starts to smoke, turn the heat down to medium, and cook the test meatball for 2-3 minutes. If it's too wet, add a few more pork rind crumbs to the mixture. If too dry, add a splash of water. Adjust the seasoning as needed. Roll up the mixture into small 1 inch diameter balls. (You should have about 50).
Add in the oil, and start cooking! I had to do mine in batches, when you pull them out of the pan, let them drain on a plate with a napkin. Preheat your oven to 350.
In a buttered pan, place a layer of palmini. Add a thin layer of tomato sauce. Add in 1/3 of the cheese, just layer them up right pretty. Add a thin layer of tomato sauce. Add in a layer of meatballs.
Repeat. On the final layer of Palmini, arrange your final cheeses. Cover your baking dish tightly with aluminum foil. Place your lasagna in the center of your oven and bake for 45 minutes.
Raise the oven temperature to 450. Remove the foil. Bake 10-15 minutes longer to get that crispy, browned, caramelized cheese topping.
Remove from oven, and allow the lasagna to cool for at least 15 minutes before serving.
*chef's kiss*
Nutrition Information
I have a subscription to CarbManager, so I used their recipe builder. This ended up being 10 servings of lasagna.
Calories: 369.7
Total Carbs: 7.9, Net Carbs: 5.7
Fiber: 2.1, Protein: 35.8, Fat: 29.7
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