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My sister reads my blog, more because she likes me than because she likes cooking.  She doesn’t hate to cook; but she has a full-time job, two toddlers, and the normal allotment of hobbies, friends, and family to balance.

I try to keep her in mind when I need perspective, so I don’t say things like “this extra step is worth the effort.”  It’s all relative.  It’s worth it to me, sure, but I like cooking enough to have a blog about it.  What’s worth the effort for her is very different than it is for me.

For example, my sister would not make this lasagna. This lasagna is a lot, a lot, of effort. It was worth it to me, sure, not just because the lasagna turned out amazing and it made enough food for a week, but because I had all kinds of fun making it.

There are a whole lot of components. A béchamel sauce, which is no problem. The seafood mixture – crab legs steamed in the oven, scallops sautéed on the stove, shrimp that was supposed to be poached, but instead I sautéed them quickly on the stove after the scallops. Cheese needs to be grated and shredded, spinach needs to be cooked, dried, and chopped (I never like the frozen blocks). Fresh pasta needs to be made (or purchased, I suppose, but man, that’s a lot of money for what are actually very cheap ingredients). Only once all of that is finally prepared can the ingredients be layered and baked.

The end product was so, so good. There are so many flavors all supporting and enhancing each other. The seafood wasn’t overshadowed by the other rich ingredients. The sweetness of the scallops stood out, as well as the salty ocean flavor of the crab. What’s more, we ate two dinners worth of leftovers, plus several lunches. (I was surprised by how well it reheated, but by slightly undercooking the lasagna the first time and then heating individual portions in the oven on low heat just until hot, the seafood didn’t overcook and the top didn’t burn.) All in all, it was a lot of effort, but I had fun and I made delicious meals for almost a week. One might even say that it was worth all the effort. You know, if you’re into that sort of thing.

One year ago: Salmon Clubs with Avocado Butter

Seafood Lasagna (adapted from Foodie Bride, who adapted it from the Food Network)

Serves 10-12

If you’re as stubborn as I am about frozen spinach (too stemmy!) and purchased fresh pasta (too expensive!), you can find preparation instructions for both of those ingredients here. (You’ll want to make half the dough recipe and all of the spinach.) The only change I’d consider making to this recipe for next time is cutting the scallops into smaller pieces. As it was, there were occasional bites of pure scallop, which isn’t as fun as scallops + other lasagna goodness.

Seafood mixture:
3 king crab legs
1 tablespoon butter
12 ounces scallops
12 ounces shrimp, peeled, deveined, tails removed
salt
freshly ground white pepper

Béchamel:
6 tablespoons butter
2 teaspoons chopped garlic
6 tablespoons flour
4 cups milk
1 ounce (½ cup) grated parmesan cheese
salt
freshly ground white pepper

Cheese mixture:
10 oz frozen spinach, thawed and squeezed of excess water
15 ounces part-skim ricotta cheese
1 egg
1 ounce (½ cup) grated parmesan cheese
salt
freshly ground white pepper
8 ounces grated Mozzarella cheese

8 ounces lasagna noodles, cooked and drained

1. Cook the seafood: Preheat the oven to 350F. Form a large foil pouch around the king crab legs. Before sealing tightly, add ¼ cup water. Heat in the oven for 8-10 minutes. Remove the pouch from the oven and carefully open it to vent the steam. Let it cool for a few minutes, then crack the shells and place the meat in a medium bowl. Lightly shred any large pieces but don’t overshred.

2. Heat the butter in a sauté pan over medium-high heat. Pat the scallops dry with a paper towel. Place them in the pan and cook, without stirring, for 3-4 minutes, until golden brown. Flip the scallops and cook on the second side until browned, another 3-4 minutes. Drain the scallops and place them in the bowl with the crab meat.

3. Add the shrimp to the same pan (no need to wash or even rinse) used for sautéing the scallops. Cook, stirring occasionally, just until the shrimp are opaque, 5-6 minutes. Place them in the bowl with the crab meat and scallops. Add a pinch of salt and some white pepper, them toss to mix.

4. Make the béchamel: Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the garlic, and cook until very fragrant, but don’t let the garlic brown (about 3 minutes). Whisk in the flour and cook 2-3 minutes, stirring constantly. Gradually add the milk, whisking continuously. Cook an additional 4-6 minutes, stirring frequently and taking care that the bottom does not scorch. Remove from heat and whisk in salt and pepper to taste and ½ cup (1 ounce) of Parmesan cheese.

5. Make the ricotta filling: Mix the spinach, ½ cup (1 ounce) Parmesan, ricotta, egg, all of the mozzarella, salt, white pepper, and 1 cup béchamel in a bowl until thoroughly combined.

6. Assemble: Spread 1 cup of the béchamel sauce in the bottom of a 9×13 pan. Arrange 3 lasagna noodles in the pan and spread half of the ricotta-spinach mixture over the noodles, covering completely. Top with ½ cup béchamel. Arrange 3 lasagna noodles in the pan and add all of the crab-shrimp-scallops, spreading to distribute evenly. Sprinkle half of the remaining parmesan cheese over the seafood layer and top with ½ cup béchamel. Arrange 3 lasagna noodles in the pan and spread the remaining ricotta-spinach mixture over the noodles. Top with ½ cup béchamel. Add the remaining 3 lasagna noodles, remaining béchamel, and sprinkle the remaining Parmesan cheese over the top.

(A simple breakdown of the lasagna structure: sauce, noodles, ½ of the cheese mixture, sauce, noodles, all of the seafood, ½ the remaining parmesan, sauce, noodles, the rest of the cheese mixture, sauce, noodles, the rest of the sauce, the rest of the parmesan.)

7. Place in the oven and bake until bubbly and golden, about 55 minutes. Remove from the oven and let sit for 15 minutes before serving.