Beet and Garlic Scape Lasagna

Note: this recipe makes homemade lasagna noodles so you’ll need a pasta maker for it. Or you can use store bought noodles as an alternative.

For the beet layer:
Chop the beets into eighths and boil them for 10 minutes, or until tender. Pour off the water and put the beets into the bowl of your food processor. Add the ricotta, Parmesan, black pepper and salt and pulse until it is as smooth as possible. There can still be some bits of beets. Set aside.

For the garlic scape layer:
Chop the garlic scapes into rough pieces and saute them in a skillet over medium heat with the peanut oil until fragrant and slightly golden. Put them into the clean bowl of your food processor and puree them with the olive oil, water, pine nuts, Parmesan, savory, pepper, salt,and garlic powder until creamy and the texture of thick pesto. Set aside.

For the pasta:
Mix the flour, water and salt in a medium-sized bowl and knead the dough with additional all purpose flour (if needed) until smooth and firm. Form the pasta into sheets using a pasta maker (according to manufacturer’s instructions) and cut into nine sheets the length of your large 9×13 baking pan. Boil each sheet individually for one minute each.

For the assembly:
Preheat the oven to 525 F. As the pasta sheets are cooked layer them in the baking sheet. Layer three for the first layer, as evenly as possible, but don’t fuss too much. Place the beet layer on top and be careful not to mess up the pasta. Layer the next three pasta sheets on top, then add the garlic scape layer. Lay the final three sheets on top and top with the tomatoes and shredded mozzarella.

Bake for 10 minutes or until the cheese is melted and bubbly.