Baked pasta with artichokes, greens and too much cheese

Name: Baked pasta artichokes greens cheese Alison Roman
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 70 min
Total time: 85 min
Yield: 8
Ingredients: 12 lasagna sheets, fresh or dried, or 340g pasta; Kosher salt or sea salt; 1/3 cup (80ml) olive oil, plus more for drizzling; 1 large onion, thinly sliced; Freshly ground black pepper; 1 bunch spinach (about 280g), stems removed, leaves chopped (about 3 cups; 1 bunch kale (about 225g), stems removed, leaves chopped (about 4 cups); 6 garlic cloves, finely chopped; 400g jar marinated artichoke hearts, drained, chopped; 2 cups (480g) fresh full-fat ricotta cheese; 1/2 cup (125ml) thickened cream; 2 cups (160g) finely grated parmesan or pecorino cheese, plus more as needed; 225g good mozzarella cheese, shredded

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15m

1h 10m

Baked pasta with artichokes, greens and too much cheese

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This dish will only be as good as the cheese you use. Cheap ricottas just isn't going to cut it here, so seek out the kind that is fresh and most definitely full-fat, says Alison. This recipe is an extract from DINING IN by Alison Roman. Copyright © 2017 by Alison Roman.

12 lasagna sheets, fresh or dried, or 340g pasta
Kosher salt or sea salt
1/3 cup (80ml) olive oil, plus more for drizzling
1 large onion, thinly sliced
Freshly ground black pepper
1 bunch spinach (about 280g), stems removed, leaves chopped (about 3 cups
1 bunch kale (about 225g), stems removed, leaves chopped (about 4 cups)
6 garlic cloves, finely chopped
400g jar marinated artichoke hearts, drained, chopped
2 cups (480g) fresh full-fat ricotta cheese
1/2 cup (125ml) thickened cream
2 cups (160g) finely grated parmesan or pecorino cheese, plus more as needed
225g good mozzarella cheese, shredded

Method

1.

Preheat the oven to 200°C.
2.

Working in batches, cook the sheets of pasta in a large pot of salted boiling water (if you crowd the pot, they will most definitely stick together), just to al dente, 5-8 minutes, depending on the brand and type of pasta. If you’re using fresh pasta, it’ll be more like 30-60 seconds, just enough to soften.
3.

Once it’s ready, transfer each sheet, one by one, to a paper-towel-lined baking sheet. Don’t let the pasta sheets touch or they’ll stick together. Drizzle a small amount of olive oil onto each sheet of pasta before separating each sheet with paper towels. Set aside while you prepare the filling.
4.

Heat 2 tbs of olive oil in a large frypan over medium heat. Add onion and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until onion is totally softened and caramelised, 15-20 minutes.
5.

Working in batches, add handfuls of greens to frypan, seasoning with salt and pepper, and letting them wilt down before adding the next handful (when the frypan becomes too crowded even after wilting, transfer cooked greens to a bowl and continue wilting raw greens in the pan). Once your last batch of greens has finished cooking, add garlic and any cooked greens you set aside, and toss to coat. Add artichoke hearts and mix well; set aside.
6.

Mix the ricotta, cream and parmesan together in a medium bowl; season with salt and pepper.
7.

Drizzle olive oil into the bottom of a 23cm x 13cm x 6cm baking dish. Place a layer of cooked pasta on the bottom and top with one-third ricotta mixture. Top with one-third of the greens and artichokes, and top that with one-third of the mozzarella. Repeat until you have a layer of pasta on the top. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle more parmesan over the top.
8.

Cover with foil and bake until everything is warmed through and the cheese has started to melt, 15-20 minutes. Remove the foil and raise the oven temperature to 250°C. Bake until the top is browned and the filling is bubbling along the edges, 8-10 minutes longer. Let cool slightly before slicing and eating.