lasagna Archives - Good Food St. Louis

Brio for Tuscan-Inspired Cuisine

May 13, 2022

One of the many Northern Italian items on Brio’s menu: Lasagna with Bolognese meat sauce, ricotta and mozzarella. Their version tastes much like the recipe I’ve made for years.

Take Note

It’s worth mentioning, however, that Brio can be noisy at times. Not inside, mind you, but on the patio. The busy corner at Clayton Road and Lindbergh comes alive depending on the time of day and traffic density.

I grew up in a big city, so the sounds of the town make me feel at home. But if you’re sensitive to that sort of thing, you might want to eat indoors.

Lunch Munching

On the lunch menu, I was attracted to the half-portion entrée with soup or side salad. (Yes, can you believe it, that’s a half portion of lasagna in the photo above!) Unless you’re extremely hungry, you’ll want a take-home box to enjoy the remains.

Put this one on your list.

Chopped Salad with greens, tomatoes, cucumbers, olives, onions, and feta with red wine vinaigrette. (Warm bread in background)

Grilled Salmon Salad with field greens, tomatoes, grilled asparagus, feta, shoestring potatoes, and balsamic vinaigrette.

Wedge Salad

Tiramisu made with espresso-soaked lady fingers, mascarpone, anglaise, and cocoa.

A patio seat on a pre-COVID autumn day.

Brio Italian Grille. 1601 S. Lindbergh in Frontenac. (Also among their 34 locations in 15 states, is one on The Plaza in Kansas City.) Open: Everyday 11a-10p.

Skillet Lasagna

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Skillet Lasagna

An updated version of the traditional lasagna recipe.

Course Pasta

Cuisine Italian

Ingredients

Kosher salt
Freshly ground pepper
12 oz. lasagna noodles
20 oz. frozen chopped spinach thawed
2 cups ricotta 16 ounces
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese 1 1/2 ounces, plus more for serving
1 Tbs. extra-virgin olive oil
1 lb. ground beef
Two 24 oz. jars Rao’s Homemade Marinara sauce
8 oz. low-moisture mozzarella grated

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 425 with a rack in the top third. In a large pot of boiling, salted water, cook noodles, stirring a few times until al dente, about 6 minutes. Drain.
Meanwhile, wrap thawed spinach in a clean kitchen towel and wring out as much excess liquid as possible. Transfer to a medium bowl and combine with ricotta, Parmesan, 1 teaspoon of salt, and ¼ teaspoon of pepper.
Heat oil in a 10-inch, high-sided, ovenproof skillet over medium-high. Add beef and season with salt and pepper; break up into small pieces with a wooden spoon and cook, turning a few times, until meat is browned, about 8 minutes.
Drain excess fat from skillet and scrape browned beef into a large heatproof bowl. Set aside 1 ½ cups sauce and stir the remaining marinara into the bowl with browned beef.
Using the same skillet, (do not return to the heat) spread about 1 cup of the sauce mixture in a thin layer at bottom of skillet. Arrange a third of the noodles over the sauce, breaking the noodles up to fit if necessary, and spread half of the remaining sauce mixture over the noodles.
Spread on half the spinach-ricotta mixture and sprinkle with a third of the mozzarella. Repeat layering one time with another third of the noodles, the remaining half of the meat sauce mixture, the remaining half of the spinach-ricotta and another third of the mozzarella.
Top lasagna with remaining third of the noodles. Spread atop that reserved marinara sauce you earlier set aside. Sprinkle with remaining third of the mozzarella. Bake lasagna until golden and bubbly, about 25 minutes.
Let sit 10 minutes before serving. Sprinkle with Parmesan. Cut leftovers into slices and wrap in plastic to freeze. Rewarm individual slices in microwave by first defrosting and then heating on high for 2-3 minutes.