Categories: Pasta- Pasta Sauce- Pizza- Flatbread

Ingredients

• 2 1/2 lb. thin asparagus, trimmed
• Salt
• 2 Tbsp. butter
• 2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
• 3 medium shallots, peeled, minced
• Ground black pepper, to taste
• 1/4 cup minced fresh basil leaves
• 1/4 cup shredded fresh mint leaves
• 1 lb. fresh lasagna noodles
• Nonstick cooking spray
• 1 3/4 cups béchamel sauce, divided use
• 1 1/4 cups grated parmesan cheese, divided use (use fresh, and best quality available)

Directions

1. In a large pot, bring 4 quarts of water to a boil.

2. Cut asparagus spears in half lengthwise, if spears are very thick, cut them into quarters. Cut halved spears into 1-inch pieces.

3. When water comes to a boil, add asparagus and salt to taste. and cook until tender-crisp, about 1 minute. Using a slotted spoon, remove asparagus; drain and set aside. Do not discard cooking water.

4. heat butter and olive oil in a large pan over medium-high heat. Add shallots and saute until golden, about 5 minutes. Add asparagus and salt and pepper, to taste. Cook, stirring constantly, about 1 minutes. Stir in parsley, basil and mint. Set aside.

5. Return pot of water used for cooking asparagus to a boil. Add 3 to 4 sheets lasagna noodles and cook, stirring occasionally, for 2 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer noodles to a bowl of cold water. Let noodles cool about 30 seconds then transfer to a clean kitchen towel to dry. Repeat with remaining noodles.

6. Heat oven to 400 degrees. Coat a 9 × 13-inchbaking dish with nonstick cooking spray.

7. Spread 3 Tbsp. of béchamel sauce across bottom of prepared baking dish. Line dish with 1 layer of noodles, trimming noodles as necessary so they touch, but do bot overlap. Spread 1 cup of the asparagus-herb mixture over noodles. Drizzle about 1/4 cup béchamel sauce over asparagus and sprinkle with 3 Tbsp. of the grated parmesan. Repeat layers 4 more times. For the sixth and final layer, coat remaining noodles with remaining 5 Tbsp. sauce and 5 Tbsp. cheese and place on top.

8. Bake until golden brown and bubbly, about 20 minutes. Let stand 5 minutes before cutting.

9. Notes: To shred basil or mint, stack leaves on top of each other and roll leaves into a tight cylinder. using a sharp knife, slice cylinders vertically to form thin strips.

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