Swiss Chard & Italian Sausage Lasagna

Ingredients

Filling

• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 1/4 lbs sweet Italian sausage, removed from casings
• 3 whole shallots, peeled and sliced
• 3 lbs swiss chard, I used 3 bunches
• 3 large garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tablespoon lemon zest
• 1 tablespoon coarse salt
• fresh ground pepper
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

Bechamel

• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1/2 onion, diced
• 1 1/2 teaspoons coarse salt
• 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1/2 cup flour
• 4 1/2 cups milk (i used nonfat and it works great)
• 12 ounces fontina
• 1/2 cup parmesan cheese
• 6 fresh lasagna sheets or 9 sheets cooked regular lasagna noodles or no-boil lasagna noodles

Directions

1. 1

   Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

2. 2

   Make the filling: heat oil in a large saute pan over med-high heat.

3. 3

   Add sausage, crumble and cook til golden, 6 minutes.

4. 4

   Transfer to paper-towel lined plate.

5. 5

   Reduce heat to medium, add shallots to pan with drippings still in pan, cook til translucent, about 4 minutes.

6. 6

   Add chard and cook, til starts to wilt, 2 minutes.

7. 7

   Add garlic, lemon zest, salt and pepper, cook 3 more minutes.

8. 8

   Stir in lemon juice and remove from heat.

9. 9

   Make bechamel: Melt butter in sauce pan over medium heat.

10. 10

    Add onion, salt, red-pepper flakes, cook and stir occasionally for 5 minutes.

11. 11

    Stir in flour and cook til a little golden, 2 minutes.

12. 12

    Whisk in milk and simmer on medium for about 6-10 minutes til thickened, til it nicely coats back of spoon. Remove from heat, stir in 1/2 cup of shredded fontina cheese.

13. 13

    Butter 9x13 pan.

14. 14

    Spread about 1/2 cup of bechamel on bottom of plan.

15. 15

    Put one layer of lasagna noodles.

16. 16

    Top with half of the chard mixture.

17. 17

    Then top with half of sausage mixture.

18. 18

    Then 1/3 of shredded cheese.

19. 19

    Then another 1/2-1 cup of the bechamel.

20. 20

    Repeat with another layer of noodles, the rest of the chard, the rest of the sausage, another 1/3 portion of the cheese and more bechamel.

21. 21

    Finish with a last layer of lasagna noodles, pour the rest of the bechamel sauce over and top with remainder of shredded fontina cheese.

22. 22

    Sprinkle sparingly another 1/2 cup of parmesan over top.

23. 23

    Bake until golden browned and bubbly, about 30-35 minutes.

24. 24

    Let cool for 10 minutes before serving.