Holiday feast-wortHy

with eggs in a blender, then mix the bright green liquid with flour to make a soft, easily kneaded emerald-hued dough. As the dough rests, I whisk up a quick bechamel sauce. It‘s important to season the bechamel thoroughly with salt and pepper, nutmeg and a tiny pinch of cayenne. It must not be too thick, so be prepared to thin it with milk to the consistency of a milkshake (creamy, but still drinkable through a straw). Keep the sauce warm in a double boiler (it can be makeshift) so it doesn‘t thicken upon standing.

You‘ll need a full 0.9kg of fresh spinach to produce bright, leaf-green pasta. If preferred, substitute chard or mustard greens. Combine the greens with ricotta and a bit of grated lemon zest.

Next, roll the pasta dough into thin foot-long sheets. Dust the uncooked pasta sheets lightly with flour to keep them from sticking when stacked. (Of course, you may use store-bought fresh pasta sheets rather than make the pasta yourself, if desired.)

You‘ll cook the pasta for only a minute, to keep it undercooked, and then cool it in ice water and blot on kitchen towels. When the lasagne is baked, the pasta will cook further, and the result will be perfectly tender.

I find it easiest to cook the pasta in small batches, two sheets at a time, enough to build one layer, and then continue to boil two sheets for the next layer, and so on. Once the lasagne is assembled, you may bake it straight away, or keep it refrigerated up to 24 hours. Alternatively, it may be baked well in advance of serving and reheated.

Rather than put the tomato sauce inside, I like to surround small squares of the lasagne with a light buttery tomato coulis. This keeps the spinach-rich interior fresh and green, and gives the dish a bit more elegance. For a vegetarian approach, I sometimes replace the sausage with roughly chopped green olives or sauteed mushrooms.

A pretty picture in green and red, this luscious lasagne is quite festive for a holiday meal.