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Homemade Italian Greek Lasagna

The lasagna is a combination of traditional Italian lasagna and Greek moussaka. Layered with fresh egg pasta, bolognese sauce, bechamel sauce, grilled eggplant and mozzarella cheese. It is a labor of love to make but very satisfying to eat. You will feel so accomplished and proud of yourself for making it.
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Prep Time 1 hour
Cook Time 47 minutes
Servings: 12 slices
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Italian, Mediterranean
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

Lasagna Noodles
  • 1 ½ cup semolina flour or organic kamut flour
  • ½ teaspoon sea salt
  • 2 eggs room temperature
  • 2 tablespoons filtered water
  • 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Bolognese Sauce
  • 1 24oz jar of marinara sauce my favorite is Trader Joes Organic Tomato Vodka Sauce or Victoria's Organic from Costco
  • 1 lb grass fed ground beef optional if you don't like meat
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1 teaspoon sea salt
  • pinch red pepper flakes
Bechamel Sauce
  • 3 tablespoons butter
  • 6 tablespoons organic all purpose unbleached flour
  • 3 cups milk
  • ½ cup parmesan cheese
  • ½ cup ricotta cheese or mozzarella cheese
  • ½ teaspoon sea salt more if needed for taste
  • ¼ teaspoon black pepper
  • ½ teaspoon garlic powder
Roasted Egg Plant
  • 2 eggplant washed and sliced
  • extra virgin olive oil
  • sea salt
  • black pepper
Topping:
  • 8 oz mozzarella cheese grated

Equipment

  • 1 Baking Sheet
  • Parchment Paper
  • 1 Dough Scraper
  • 1 Rolling Pin
  • 1 Traditional Pasta Machine
  • 1 large skillet
  • 1 Medium Sauce Pan
  • 1 Whisk
  • 1 Wooden Spoon
  • 1 Cheese Grater
  • 1 9x13 pan

Method
 

Roasted Eggplant
  1. Preheat the oven to 450 F
  2. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and lay out the sliced egg plant onto it.
  3. Drizzle the egg plant with olive oil, sea salt and pepper. Flip the egg plant and season the other side.
  4. Bake the eggplant for 15-20 minutes until lightly browned and softened.
  5. Remove the eggplant from the oven and turn the oven down to 375 F.
  6. Let the eggplant rest while making the pasta dough.
Lasagna Noodles
  1. Start by mixing the semolina flour and sea salt together. Dump the two onto a clean countertop and use a measuring cup to create a well.
  2. Crack the eggs into the hole of the flour. Add the water and olive oil too.
  3. With a pastry scraper mix the wet ingredients into the flour. Once the dough comes together start kneading the dough with your hands for about 10 minutes until smooth and stretchy. No cracks.
  4. Cover the dough in plastic wrap and let the pasta dough rest for at least 20 minutes.
Bolognese Sauce
  1. While the pasta dough is resting prep the bolognese sauce. Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add a tablespoon olive oil. Let the oil heat up for a minute. Then add the ground beef, seasonings and sautee until cooked through.
  2. Add the marinara sauce to the meat along with the bay leaves. Turn the heat down to a simmer and cover the pan with a lid while preparing the bechamel sauce. Make sure to remove the bay leaves from the sauce before using it to layer the lasagna.
Bechamel Sauce
  1. Add a medium sized sauce pan to the stove over medium heat. Once warm add the butter. Once melted stir in the flour. It should be like a thick paste. Slowly pour in the milk while whisking to avoid clumps. Then bring the mixture to a boil and keep mixing until thick and saucy.
  2. Remove the sauce from the heat and mix in the sea salt, black pepper and garlic powder. Then stir in the parmesan cheese and ricotta cheese (or mozzarella cheese) until it dissolves. Cover the sauce with a lid and set aside to roll out the pasta.
Shape the Pasta Dough
  1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
  2. Now that the pasta has rested, remove the plastic wrap and divide the dough into 6 equal portions. Take one of the portions and cover the rest of the dough so it doesn't dry out.
  3. Lightly flour a clean surface and roll the dough out into a rectangle. Run it through a pasta maker on setting 1 twice, setting 3 once and setting 4 twice. You should have a nice and long lasagna noodle. Repeat 5 more times.
  4. Lay the noodles flat on the counter but not on top of each other.
Assemble the lasagna
  1. To the bottom of a 9x13 glass pan add a thin layer of bolognese sauce. Then add one of the large sheets of pasta. Add 1/3 of the bolognese sauce onto the pasta sheet. A layer of roasted eggplant over the bolognese. And 1/3 bechamel sauce over the eggplant. Repeat this two more times. There should be three layers of lasagna sheets, bolognese, eggplant and bechamel.
  2. Now sprinkle 8 oz of grated mozzarella cheese over the third layer. It should be bechamel sauce. Grate a little more parmesan cheese too.
  3. Wrap the lasagna in tin foil, shiny side down.
  4. Place the lasagna into the 375 F oven for 45 minutes. After 45 minutes remove the tin foil and broil for 2 minutes to crisp up the cheese.
  5. Remove the lasagna from the oven and allow it to cool for 20 minutes before serving. After 20 minutes slice and enjoy.

Notes

If you don't like meat feel free to leave out the beef of the bolognese sauce. If you are gluten intolerant leave out the pasta. It makes this dish more traditional Greek Moussaka that is still extra delicious!