California Fig Lasagna with Pistachios

Servings: 8 to 10

Prep Time
Cook Time

Cream Sauce

  • 1/3 cup unsalted butter
  • 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
  • 3 cups hot chicken stock
  • 1/2 cup heavy cream
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • 1/2 teaspoon white pepper
  • 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
  • 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

Lasagna

  • 1 quart California Fresh Figs, stems removed and quartered
  • 1 pound prosciutto, coarsely chopped
  • 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
  • 1/2 teaspoon sugar
  • Juice of 1/2 lemon
  • 1 pound curly lasagna noodles, cooked according to package directions
  • 1 cup shredded gruyère cheese
  • 1 cup shredded asiago cheese
  • 8 ounces sliced provolone cheese
  • 1/2 cup toasted salted pistachios, coarsely chopped
  • Chopped fresh basil for garnish

Directions

  1. For the sauce, melt butter in a 2-quart saucepan over medium heat. When butter foams, whisk in flour. Cook and whisk for 3 minutes or until golden. Add chicken stock, and whisk until thickened. Stir in heavy cream, bay leaf, nutmeg, and white pepper. Simmer for 5 minutes. Add salt and fresh lemon juice and simmer for another 2 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside. Discard the bay leaf before preparing the lasagna.

  2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper, and spread fig quarters and chopped prosciutto evenly on it. Drizzle with olive oil, toss gently, and spread into a single layer. Sprinkle with sugar and squeeze lemon juice over all. Roast for 15 minutes, set aside.

  3. In a lightly oiled 9-by-13-inch baking or lasagna pan, spread a thin layer of sauce evenly over bottom of pan. Cover with a single layer of noodles, overlapping by a 1/2 inch. Sprinkle roasted figs and prosciutto evenly over all and scatter nuts on top. Then, sprinkle gruyère and asiago cheeses on top; layer with provolone slices. Spoon more sauce on top and spread evenly. Arrange another layer of noodles over all, and repeat layers until ingredients are all used, ending with a layer of noodles, sauce, figs and nuts, topped with shredded cheeses and sprinkled with a few figs and nuts.

  4. Cover with foil and bake for 35 minutes until bubbling. Allow to stand for 10 minutes. Cut in squares and serve garnished with basil.