Daniel's Dish: Italian Update

By sallycohen

Daniel Boulud's Chicken Lasagna Recipe
Written by Daniel Boulud • Styled by Quy Nguyen; Food preparation by AJ Schaller • Photographed by Kana Okada

Ingredients

• Ingredients:
• Daniel Boulud's Chicken Lasagna Recipe
• Written by Daniel Boulud • Styled by Quy Nguyen; Food preparation by AJ Schaller • Photographed by Kana Okada
• Lasagna with Chicken, Wild Mushrooms, and Fontina Cheese
• Makes 10 to 12 servings
• 5 T extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 medium onions, finely diced
• 2 stalks celery, finely diced
• 1 lb. fresh wild mushrooms (such as chanterelle, black trumpet, or hen of the woods, also called maitake), trimmed, washed, and roughly chopped
• 1/2 lb. spinach leaves, stems removed, washed
• 4 T butter, plus extra to grease pan
• 2 lb. boneless, skinless chicken thighs cut into approximately 1/2-inch pieces
• 1 cup dry white wine
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 3 cups milk
• 1/2 bunch Italian parsley leaves, roughly chopped
• Freshly grated nutmeg to taste
• 16 dried lasagna noodles
• 1 lb. fontina cheese, cut into small dice
• 1 cup grated Parmesan
• Salt and freshly ground white pepper

Details

Servings 1
Adapted from elledecor.com

Preparation

Step 1

In a large Dutch oven or stockpot, heat 3 T of the olive oil over medium-low heat. Add the onion and celery with a sprinkle of salt and pepper, and cook, stirring, until translucent, about 3 minutes. Increase heat to medium high, and add mushrooms. Cook, stirring, for 3 minutes, then add the spinach with a sprinkle of salt and pepper. Cook until spinach is wilted and mushrooms are tender. Remove the vegetables from the pot and reserve.

Add the butter to the same pot, and adjust the heat to medium. Season the chicken on all sides with salt and pepper, and add to the melted butter. Cook, stirring, until the chicken is almost cooked through but not browned, about 6 minutes. Add the wine and simmer until almost completely reduced. Sprinkle the flour over the chicken, and cook, stirring, for about 5 minutes, allowing the flour to coat the chicken and absorb the liquid. Gradually stir in the cream and milk, scraping the pot to release any cooked flour from the bottom and sides (if necessary, stir with a whisk to break up any lumps). Simmer for 5 minutes, stirring constantly, allowing the liquid to thicken. With a spoon or ladle, reserve 1 cup of liquid. Remove the pot from the heat, and add the cooked vegetables and mushrooms. Add the chopped parsley. Season with nutmeg, salt, and pepper to taste.

To Assemble the Lasagna:

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook the noodles for about 8 minutes; they should be not quite cooked through (al dente). Strain the noodles in a colander, and rinse in cold water. Drain, then toss noodles with 2 T of olive oil to prevent sticking. Center a rack in the oven and preheat it to 350°F. Butter a 9" x 13" baking pan. Place a layer of 4 noodles on the bottom, overlapping them slightly. Top with one third of the chicken mixture, then one third of the diced fontina. Repeat layering twice, finishing with a layer of noodles. Spread the reserved sauce on the noodles and then sprinkle with Parmesan. (At this stage, the lasagna can be refrigerated overnight. Cover tightly with aluminum foil or plastic wrap.) Cover with aluminum foil or a lid and bake for 30 minutes. Increase heat to 400°F, remove the foil, and continue to bake until golden brown, 10 to 15 minutes more.
For me lasagna is the quintessential family-style dish—it’s simple, hearty, and a crowd-pleaser with young and old alike. It’s also the ideal entrée for a dinner party on a cold winter night. The best thing about the dish is that you can assemble it the day before, which allows you to relax with your guests while it’s baking in the oven. My version combines tender chicken with spinach, wild mushrooms, and plenty of fontina cheese, which adds an extra layer of richness. (You can make this vegetarian by leaving out the chicken.) This lasagna is cheesy, gooey, meaty, and full of vegetables—all the things that give you pleasure in a meal.

“Mushrooms give the lasagna a deep, woodsy flavor, but I still think of this as a dish that calls for white wine,” says Daniel Johnnes, wine director of Daniel Boulud’s restaurants. Johnnes suggests choosing a wine from the Campania region of Italy, such as the 2009 Fiano di Avellino from Feudi di San Gregorio ($19). An alternative is Occhipinti SP68 IGT Sicilia Bianco 2009 ($26). “Both of these choices are medium bodied with bold flavor and a soft texture,” he adds.