Make melt in your mouth Crepe Lasagna with layers of paper thin crepes and a classic meat sauce and you'll never go back to pasta sheets!
Origins of Crepe Lasagna:
This amazing lasagna was taught to me by my husband's aunt from the Abruzzo region of Italy. She visits frequently and each time she's here I invite her over for the day so we can cook together. The day begins with a trip to the grocery store as she searches for ingredients that most resemble what she uses back home. We then move on to my kitchen where we attempt to find adequate sized pots, pans, bowls and so on. Mine, of course, are usually too small.
"Watch and learn" she says in Italian. You see, I don't get to cook in my kitchen when she's here. I'm demoted to kitchen assistant. The day is a whirlwind of activity and by supper time I am exhausted and my freezer is full of meals. I can't get over how much energy this women in her mid-seventies has! T
This recipe for crepe lasagna is my favorite. I was never able to document the recipe in her presence. She simply adds a bit of this and a bit of that until it is just right. After having watched her make this several times, this recipe is my recreation of her crepe lasagna.
Making crepes for Crepe Lasagna:
If you haven't tried before, making crepes is quite easy. Prepare a simple pancake like batter, although much thinner, consisting of eggs, melted butter, flour, a combination of milk and water and salt. Mix with a hand held mixer and let rest for about half an hour.
The cooking of the crepes can be lengthy unless you have mastered the art of having two pans going at the same time. I use an 11 inch non stick pan. This makes a larger crepe which fits into a lasagna pan. The key to a thin crepe is to pour the batter into the hot pan lightly greased with butter or oil. Swirl it around until the entire pan is coated. Next, tilt the pan over the bowl with the batter and allow the excess to drip out.
After about a minute, the edge of the crepe starts to detach from the sides of the pan and the center will begin to bubble. That's when you know it's time to flip it over. There is really no special way to do this. I basically use my fingers to pull the crepe from the edges and flip it over. If the crepe sticks to the pan it either means you have flipped it too soon or your pan needs a brushing of oil or butter. However, the crepes should not stick in a non-stick pan. Your first couple of crepes may not turn out great, but you'll see, it's just a matter of practice.
The crepes are piled on top of one another and covered with a tea towel. You don't need to separate them with parchment paper as they will easily separate.
How to assemble Crepe Lasagna:
Prepare a basic meat sauce (I shared my aunt's recipe below in the recipe card). Let it cool slightly before assembling the lasagna. Scoop a ladleful of sauce on the bottom of a rectangular lasagna pan (10 x 12 inches). Place a crepe over the sauce, top with more sauce and some grated mozzarella.
Continue layering until you reach the top of the pan, this is usually about 8-9 crepes for me.
Bake in a preheated 350F oven for 30-40 minutes until the cheese is bubbling. If the cheese begins to darken, cover with foil for the remainder of the baking time. Serve hot!
Tips and suggestions for the perfect Crepe Lasagna:
- I used an 11-inch non-stick pan for my crepes which fit well in a 10 x 12-inch lasagna pan. This helped me avoid cutting and pasting crepes. But if you're using a different sized pan and need to do a little cutting and pasting, it's no problem at all. Once you've covered the crepes with sauce and cheese you will never be able to detect the pieces of crepes you've used to patch corners.
- You can then use the crepes right away or wrap them in plastic wrap, once cooled. Place them in the refrigerator until you're ready to assemble your dish.
- The lasagna can be assembled in stages. Make the crepes one day; the sauce the next day and assemble the day after that.
- The recipe also makes 10-12 crepes and I used 8 for my lasagna. My children readily gobbled up the extra crepes filled with Nutella or ricotta.
- Unlike most commercial lasagnas, this one is not drowning in sauce. I was impressed as I watched my aunt lightly coat each crepe with sauce, spreading it with her fingers. The same goes for the mozzarella. You won't find a 1 inch thick coating of cheese here. But if you're partial to tons of mozzarella, just go for it and add as much as you'd like!
- You can freeze the lasagna before baking it. Defrost in the refrigerator over night the day before you want to bake it. It will take a little longer to bake. To check if the interior is hot, place the blade of a knife in the center of the lasagna, if it comes out hot the lasagna is ready.
Here's the other wonderful recipe she taught me: Creamy Pineapple Layer Cake!
Since you're going to put in all that effort to make crepes, I definitely recommend making a couple of these and freezing one. Trust me, your family will ask for more! If you try out this recipe, please share your photos with #mangiabedda or @mangiabedda on Facebook or Instagram. Buon appetito!
Ingredients
For the crepes:
- 4 eggs
- 2 tablespoons butter melted
- pinch salt
- 1 ½ cups all purpose flour
- 2 cups combination milk and water (I usually use half of each)
For the meat sauce:
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 onion
- 1 carrot
- 1 celery stalk
- 2 cloves garlic
- 500 grams ground meat trio beef, veal, pork (about 1 pound)
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 700ml jar tomato passata (puréed tomatoes)
- 1 cup water
- salt and pepper to taste
For assembling:
- 2 ½ cups mozzarella shredded
- ¼ cup parmesan cheese grated
Instructions
For the crepe batter:
- Begin by preparing the crepe batter. In a large bowl combine the eggs, butter and salt. Whisk until combined and add the flour. At this point, it may be easier to use an immersion blender if you have one. Add the milk and water and combine well until there are no lumps. Let rest for half an hour.
For the meat sauce:
- Meanwhile, prepare the meat sauce. Cut the onion, carrot, celery and garlic in large chunks and, using your food processor, process until finely chopped but not puréed. Alternately, chop finely with a knife. The sauce will be smooth and free of large chunks of vegetables. Heat the oil on medium high heat in a large dutch oven and sauté the vegetable mixture until the water has evaporated, about 5 minutes. Add the ground meat and cook, stirring to break up any large chunks, until it is no longer pink. Stir in the tomato paste. Add the tomato purée and rinse the bottle with a cup of water and add to the sauce. Cook partially covered for 1 hour, stirring occasionally. Season with salt and pepper.
Make the crepes:
- Preheat a 11-inch non stick pan over medium heat. Grease lightly with vegetable oil or melted butter. When the pan is hot, scoop 1 ladle full of batter onto the pan. Swirl the batter to completely cover the pan. Then tilt over the bowl of batter to allow the excess batter to drip away.
- Cook for about 1 minute until the edges start to detach from the side of the pan and the crepe begins to bubble in the centre. Lift the crepe from the sides of the pan and flip it over. Cook for 30 more seconds. Place in a plate and cover with a tea towel. Continue until all the batter is used.
To assemble:
- To assemble the lasagna: Preheat oven to 350°. Ladle 1 scoop of meat sauce on the bottom of a 12 X 10 inch lasagna pan. Place a crepe on the sauce and evenly cover with 1 ladle of meat sauce.
- Cover with mozzarella and parmesan cheese. Repeat with 7 more crepes, mozzarella and parmesan. Bake for 30-40 minutes until the cheese is bubbling. If the top begins to brown, cover with aluminum foil until done.
Notes
- I used an 11-inch non-stick pan for my crepes which fit well in a 10 x 12-inch lasagna pan. This helped me avoid cutting and pasting crepes. But if you're using a different sized pan and need to do a little cutting and pasting, it's no problem at all. Once you've covered the crepes with sauce and cheese you will never be able to detect the pieces of crepes you've used to patch corners.
- You can then use the crepes right away or wrap them in plastic wrap, once cooled. Place them in the refrigerator until you're ready to assemble your dish.
- The lasagna can be assembled in stages. Make the crepes one day; the sauce the next day and assemble the day after that.
- The recipe also makes 10-12 crepes and I used 8 for my lasagna. My children readily gobbled up the extra crepes filled with Nutella or ricotta.
- Unlike most commercial lasagnas, this one is not drowning in sauce. I was impressed as I watched my aunt lightly coat each crepe with sauce, spreading it with her fingers. The same goes for the mozzarella. You won't find a 1 inch thick coating of cheese here. But if you're partial to tons of mozzarella, just go for it and add as much as you'd like!
- You can freeze the lasagna before baking it. Defrost in the refrigerator over night the day before you want to bake it. It will take a little longer to bake. To check if the interior is hot, place the blade of a knife in the center of the lasagna, if it comes out hot the lasagna is ready.
Nutrition
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Tatiana Perez
Omg I am originally from Uruguay and our food has a lot of Italian influences. We make our lasagna with crepes only, I thought it was an Uruguayan thing. That’s so cool to learn it’s delicious and better than the pasta sheets in my opinion. Thanks for sharing
Nadia
Hi Tatiana, that is good to know, I didn't know that. I agree, I also prefer it to pasta, much lighter!
Rob DeRosa
I couldn't believe how good crepes are for lasagne. I use crepes for Manicotti
Nadia
Hello Rob, I totally agree! They simply melt in your mouth, so glad you enjoyed this lasagna!
Dawn
I made this and it was delicious- I modified it slightly in that I used Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free flour blend in the crepes. No one could tell it was gluten free.
Do you ever use ricotta in the layers?
Nadia
Hi Dawn, I'm so glad you enjoyed this lasagna. The paper thin crepes are a game changer in this recipe. I have never actually tried it with ricotta in the layers, but I don't see why it would not work. Be sure not to use too much so as to not overwhelm the delicate thin crepes. Thank you for your comment!
Martha
Made this recently and everyone said it was the best ever. I do have a question though, I want to take this on a road trip to a friends house some distance away. I am trying to decide if I should bake it at home and refrigerate then reheat it at my friends the next day. Or do you think it would work to assemble it, refrigerate then bake at my friends?
Nadia
Hi Martha, so glad you enjoyed it! I often prep it, refrigerate and bake it the next day when I want to serve it, no problem!
Joe Corradi
If I'm not mistaken, lasagna made with crepes is called timballo, and it's delicious!
Nadia
Hello Joe, you are correct it is definitely known as timballo in Italy and it is delicous!
MARYANN
This "almost identical" crepe recipe was given to me by my Aunt. She was from Sciacca, Sicily. I would love to know the nutritional breakdown of the crepes because they seem a lot healthier than store bought carb-heavy pasta. But, I don't know how to do that. If you do, would you let me know? Thank you so much for sharing your recipes and for the work you do to keep these treasures alive
Nadia
Hi Maryann, I plugged in only the ingredients for the crepes and this is the results per crepe: 55 calories; 1 gram saturated fat; 35 mg cholesterol; 1 gram sugar; 7 grams carbs; 25 mg sodium; 2 grams protein; 2 grams fat; 1 gram fiber. Hope this helps and thanks for your comment!
Kelsey
Best lasagna EVER!
Nadia
Thank you Kelsey, of course I must agree with you. So glad to hear you enjoyed it!
Marion Gaetano
U said 2 cups of combination of milk and water. But u only use half of each. Please explain Looks delicious
mangiabedda@gmail.com
It’s 2 cups of liquid in total. So it can be 1 cup of each as I use, or 1 1/2 cups milk plus 1/2 cup of water. As long as you have a total of 2 cups of liquid. Thanks!
Marion Gaetano
This looks great. But u say 2 cups combination of milk and water. But u use half of each. Please explain.
mangiabedda@gmail.com
Hi Marion, you can vary the proportions if you’d like for example, more milk and less water. This would work as well. However I tend to stick to one cup of each. Hope this is more clear. Thanks for your question and for stopping by my blog!
Joyce Tomaselli
Hi! Nadia, what size ladle do you use for making the crepes and what size ladle do you use for each layer for the meat sauce? Your recipe sounds delicious and looks beautiful!
mangiabedda@gmail.com
Hello Joyce, that's a great question! So I measured the standard ladle that I use and 1/2 cup or 4 ounces of liquid fits in there. I use it for both the crepes and the sauce. Take note for the crepes, as I mention in the recipe, I swirl the batter around in the pan and flip it over to let the excess drip out. Thanks for stopping by my blog!
Rita Reade
Great recipe but instead of mozzarella I added besciamella.
Rita
mangiabedda@gmail.com
That sounds wonderful! Did you add parmigiano to your besciamella?
Jack
Hi Nadia. Thank you so much for this recipe. I was in Bologna some time ago and had a lasagna with spinach crepes at a local restaurant. I never forgot the texture of those ‘noodles’! I will try this recipe as it looks really good!
mangiabedda@gmail.com
Hi Jack, yes the crepes do make quite a difference in the texture. They melt in your mouth! I like the idea of spinach crepes, I will have to try that as well. Thanks for stopping by my blog and Happy New Year!
Kathleen
We recently had this delicious version of lasagna in Italy... all home made. I will be making it on Sunday for company. The sauce is already done, thank you summer tomatoes. I'll make the crepes tomorrow and assemble on Sunday. Can't wait. Thanks for the tips on the crepes.
mangiabedda@gmail.com
Lucky you! I hope you enjoy it. I’d love to see a photo of it!
Lana-Once Upon a Spice
Very clever, Nadia! Looks wonderful!!
Nadia
Thanks Lana!
Marisa's Italian Kitchen
I have never had a crepe lasagna! It looks melt-in-your-mouth good 🙂