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00:04Cook's Country is about more than just getting dinner on the table.
00:09We're also fascinated by the people and stories behind the dishes.
00:14We go inside kitchens in every corner of the country to learn how real people cook.
00:20And we look back through time to see how history influences the way we eat today.
00:25We bring that inspiration back to our test kitchen so we can share it with you.
00:31This is Cook's Country.
00:37Today on Cook's Country, Christy makes Bridget a fresh and bright pesto lasagna.
00:43And I talk about the history of lasagna.
00:46Hannah reviews electric wine openers.
00:49And Morgan makes the ultimate Caesar salad.
00:52That's all right here on Cook's Country.
01:04You don't have to put tomatoes in a lasagna.
01:08Just ask the Italians.
01:09In the northern city of Genoa, where basil pesto is king, that's what they use to flavor a beautiful light
01:16version.
01:17Now, Christy's here, and she's going to show us how to make this new-to-me version of lasagna at
01:22home.
01:22Well, Bridget, lasagna's delicious, but it's often really heavy.
01:27Right.
01:28But when you start with a bright, flavorful pesto, then it really lightens everything up.
01:33And it can almost feel like a summery version of your hearty, hearty lasagna.
01:39Okay.
01:39I'm intrigued.
01:42Some lasagna start with ricotta, some start with cottage cheese.
01:45For this one, we're going to start with a bechamel.
01:47All right.
01:48I've melted seven tablespoons of unsalted butter over medium heat.
01:54And then we know that to thicken, we need to start with a roux.
01:58So we have our fat, and we need an equal amount of flour.
02:02So I have seven tablespoons of all-purpose flour.
02:05We're just going to whisk this in to make sure that the flour and the butter have combined,
02:11and we have a chance to cook out any of that raw flavor.
02:14We only want this to go for about a minute.
02:17Okay.
02:18So that's come together.
02:20Now I'm going to slowly add some milk.
02:24So I have five and a half cups of whole milk.
02:27We just want to go slowly at the beginning so that we can make sure that the milk gets worked
02:32in
02:32and we don't have any big clumps.
02:35So I'm going to turn my heat up to medium-high and just bring this to a boil.
02:39Okay.
02:40You can see that we're just about at a boil, so I'm going to add my last two ingredients to
02:45the bechamel.
02:46I have a teaspoon of ground black pepper.
02:49Okay.
02:50And an eighth of a teaspoon of ground nutmeg.
02:53Now I'm going to whisk this constantly until it gets nice and thick,
02:57and you'll definitely be able to tell as soon as that happens.
03:00It should only take about a minute.
03:02All right.
03:03We have thickened, and now we're going to transfer to a big bowl
03:06so it'll cool down a little bit while we make our pesto.
03:09Okay, great.
03:09So we'll let it sit here for about 20 minutes.
03:12Great.
03:13The bechamel's done.
03:14Now it's time to talk about pesto.
03:16Yes.
03:16When you're prepping basil, you know, as soon as you start to cut into it or tear it,
03:21it starts to bruise and starts to get brown.
03:25Right.
03:25It's the oxidation.
03:26Exactly.
03:26And pesto does the same thing.
03:28As soon as it's all mixed up, it's great for two seconds, and then it's brown.
03:31Right.
03:31So we found that if we blanch the basil before we make the pesto,
03:36it's going to hold that nice green color a little longer.
03:38Okay.
03:39Now, I happen to have my water from my pasta already boiling.
03:43Okay.
03:43There's four quarts of water here.
03:44So I'm going to add a tablespoon of salt to the water.
03:49And obviously, we're going to use that to season the pasta eventually.
03:52It's also going to help to set the color in the basil.
03:56And I have four beautiful ounces of basil leaves here.
04:00I'm going to pop the whole thing in.
04:05And I'm just going to give it a quick dunk.
04:07And we're talking like five to ten seconds.
04:10It really doesn't need a lot of time.
04:13So we want it while it's emerald and really not much longer than that.
04:17So I'm going to use my spider.
04:18You could use a slatted spoon if you don't have one of these.
04:21I have a salad spinner here.
04:24Now we spin.
04:29Applying the brakes.
04:30Yep.
04:31All right.
04:32So now we're going to pop this in our blender.
04:34Now we can add the rest of our pesto ingredients.
04:37So to the basil, I'm going to add half a cup of extra virgin olive oil.
04:42Here's one of my favorite ingredients for this.
04:45It's a quarter cup of toasted pine nuts.
04:47And not every version of pesto uses pine nuts.
04:50And they don't all toast them.
04:51But boy, do you get a great flavor when you do.
04:54Definitely.
04:55And I have two garlic cloves.
04:57And you can just leave them whole because the blender will do the job.
04:59All right.
05:00And then another tablespoon of salt.
05:03We'll blend until everything's nice and smooth.
05:06About a minute.
05:07Okay.
05:11Look at that.
05:12Gorgeous.
05:13Nice and smooth.
05:14Our bechamel has cooled.
05:16And so now we're actually going to combine these two sauces.
05:19Instead of separate layers?
05:21Right.
05:21It's one super sauce.
05:23Which also makes building the lasagna a lot easier.
05:26Okay.
05:27Look at that color.
05:28This is emerald.
05:29Mmm.
05:32All right.
05:33So we'll mix these together.
05:34Oh.
05:35And as I'm mixing this in, I'm going to add my last two ingredients.
05:38I have two ounces of grated Parmesan cheese.
05:40Okay.
05:41It's about a cup.
05:42And then two teaspoons of grated lemon zest, which kind of leans into that whole idea of
05:48just lightening everything up, keeping the flavor really fresh.
05:51And we'll just fold in the cheese.
05:55So now the final thing we have to do is cook our pasta.
05:58Now we're using curly lasagna noodles.
06:00I have 17 noodles here.
06:03So we'll add these.
06:04And we're going to cook these until they're fully tender.
06:08Right.
06:08I'll go in and give them a stir every now and then just to make sure they're not sticking together.
06:12Okay.
06:14Well, let's check one of these noodles.
06:17Wow.
06:17See how floppy it is?
06:19Floppy bendy.
06:20Yes, absolutely tender.
06:22So we're going to take it off the heat and I'm going to go drain the noodles.
06:25Okay.
06:27Now we don't want the noodles to stick.
06:29So I'm going to spray my sheet pan a little bit with some vegetable oil spray.
06:34And then we're going to turn out the noodles onto the pan.
06:39And I'm going to give it another spray.
06:43And I'll just toss them a little bit to make sure that they're separated.
06:49So noodles are sprayed.
06:51I think we're ready to start assembling.
06:53Fantastic.
06:54We're building this in a 13 by 9 inch baking dish.
06:57We made a few extra noodles in case your dish is a little bit bigger than the length of the
07:02noodles.
07:02Okay.
07:02So first thing we're going to do is load up some sauce in a one cup measuring cup.
07:08We want a good heaping cup.
07:13So this is the base.
07:14So make sure you get in there and kind of smush it all the way into the corners.
07:21All right.
07:22So now we'll take three of our noodles.
07:26So we're going to repeat this three more times with the sauce and the noodles.
07:31Okay.
07:31Three noodles each layer.
07:32Yes.
07:32All right.
07:34All right.
07:35So this would be our last layer of noodles.
07:39So now we should have about a cup of sauce left.
07:43So I think we're good here.
07:45Now the last thing, I have another ounce of grated parmesan here, which is about half a cup.
07:51And we'll sprinkle that over the top.
07:56And then we want to call back to that yummy toasted pine nut flavor that was in the pesto by
08:02topping the lasagna with another quarter cup of toasted pine nuts.
08:07I have my oven rack set at the middle position.
08:10It's heated to 375 degrees.
08:13We're going to bake this until we start to see some bubbling around the edge.
08:17We're going to look for some spotty browning on the top.
08:19And that's going to take somewhere between 40 and 50 minutes.
08:33Lasagna is an ancient Roman dish.
08:35Its wide, flat noodles are likely the earliest version of pasta, appearing in texts as early as the 15th century.
08:43The dish was originally prepared with rich ingredients and warm spices like cinnamon, making it popular among the wealthy.
08:50Centuries later, when Italians migrated to the United States, they formed new communities and shared their unique regional cooking styles
08:59with one another.
09:00Greater access to cheese and meat enabled them to make the dish more often.
09:05Cooking lasagna became a way to honor Italian heritage while also celebrating newfound wealth in America.
09:12As they blended American ingredients and methods with their ancestral ways, lasagna began to evolve.
09:18Today, an American lasagna often contains ground beef, ricotta cheese, and tomato sauce.
09:25It's become such a weeknight standard that it's even sold in the freezer aisle.
09:30Here at Cook's Country, we embrace the spirit of culinary adaptation with our version, pesto lasagna.
09:44Let me get that rack for you.
09:47Oh my goodness.
09:48Let me get this for you.
09:51Whoa.
09:55Whoo, baby.
09:57See how it's bubbling around the sides?
09:59You've got some nice spotty browning all over it.
10:03But you know that, A, we have a molten center in there, which if we cut into this now, the
10:09sauce will go all over the place.
10:10So we really do need to give it time to set up, which is about 45 minutes.
10:16I will wait for this.
10:17It's worth waiting for it, definitely.
10:21We've been so patient.
10:2345 minutes patient.
10:25That is cool enough, I'd say, to eat.
10:27Okay.
10:27I think we're good.
10:28I think we're great.
10:29All right, so I'm going to cut this, baby.
10:35Little crispy edges.
10:40Moment of truth.
10:46Now the thing about Christy is she's known for her stingy slices.
10:52Hubba, hubba.
10:56Cuts beautifully.
11:04Look at those layers.
11:09I was not expecting that.
11:11The texture inside with the bechamel and the pesto, it's ethereal.
11:16It's almost puffed a little bit.
11:19It's rich but not heavy.
11:21No, it's silky on the inside.
11:25The flavor is out of this world.
11:27It's still vibrant.
11:28Still basil pesto.
11:30No doubt about it.
11:32And aren't the pine nuts really nice?
11:35They're lovely.
11:36I love the juxtaposition of the softness of the pesto inside with the bechamel, that luxury
11:42inside.
11:43Little pops of toasted nuts on the outside.
11:46And the pasta itself is cooked beautifully.
11:48It's cohesive.
11:49It's fresh.
11:50It's inviting.
11:51It's everything I want.
11:53It's pesto perfection.
11:55Wow.
11:56I'm done.
11:57I'm done.
11:57I think I need to retire.
12:00There you go.
12:00I'm not quite done.
12:01I've got to eat this.
12:02But thank you so much.
12:03You're welcome.
12:04Now, if you want to make this beautiful lasagna, it starts by blanching basil to ensure bright
12:09green color.
12:10Stir the pesto into a thick bechamel and then layer between sheets of curly lasagna noodles.
12:16And don't forget to top it with those pine nuts and bake until brown and bubbly.
12:20So from Cook's Country, the big, the bold, the beautiful pesto lasagna.
12:32The first recorded use of a bottle opener dates back to the ancient Egyptians.
12:36They sharpened a reed, stabbed it into the cork, and pulled it out with their hands.
12:41And boy, have we come a long way.
12:42Now we have something as easy as an electric opener.
12:45And Hannah's here to tell us more.
12:47Yeah, I think I can do a little better than the reed for you.
12:49Yes.
12:50So we tested electric wine openers, which are very popular now.
12:53Very gifty, too.
12:54I see these everywhere.
12:55And there are a ton on the market.
12:57We tested eight, priced from $20 to $110.
13:01Ooh.
13:02Yeah, big range there.
13:03And guess what?
13:04What?
13:04Our favorite was the cheapest.
13:05Oh, I love it when that happens.
13:06Me too.
13:07Me too.
13:07So here's how we tested.
13:09We opened hundreds of bottles of wine with these because durability has been an issue historically.
13:15And we looked at natural corks and synthetic corks because synthetic are very hard and slippery
13:20and they can be very challenging for these openers.
13:22There are two different styles.
13:23The first is automatic.
13:25Here.
13:26Here's the rabbit.
13:27This is an automatic bottle.
13:28Go ahead and open this bottle of wine for me.
13:30All right.
13:31No buttons.
13:32No nothing.
13:33All right.
13:40It's coming back at me.
13:41Yep.
13:42You didn't tell it to, right?
13:42No.
13:43It's coming back out?
13:44I kind of like that.
13:44It's like a little robot.
13:46It is a little robot.
13:47Oh.
13:47Yeah, not bad.
13:48That was really easy.
13:49The second style is manual.
13:51So let me have you open a bottle of wine with this model right here.
13:54Okay.
13:55I like that you can see where you're putting the end of the corkscrew.
13:59All right.
13:59Two buttons.
14:00Down.
14:07So do you notice a difference there in the manual versus automatic as far as what you're
14:11required to do?
14:12Well, I was able to center this and I was able to also start it when I wanted to start
14:18it.
14:19And that just gave me a little more feeling of control.
14:21This one started going before I was ready, but it worked out just fine anyway.
14:25We had a strong preference for the manual style because we just wanted to know that we were
14:29perfectly positioned before we started.
14:31So we preferred manual because we were able to align it and then shoot off the cork at the
14:36end right into the trash when we were ready versus it just like coming out when it's ready.
14:40That makes sense.
14:40Come over here.
14:41I want to talk about worms.
14:43This kind.
14:44Yep.
14:45This part is actually the worm.
14:47And there was a big range in sharpness and sharper worms were able to dig in faster and
14:53more effectively.
14:54Shape was also a huge factor here.
14:56We preferred models that were slim and straight up and down like this one.
14:59No fancy ergonomic bumps like this one has.
15:02Try that one out.
15:04See these ridges right here?
15:05You're supposed to put your fingers on there as you hold it.
15:08Yeah.
15:08Well, that's a little limiting.
15:11That doesn't work for me, actually.
15:12That's very awkward.
15:13I'd actually want to move my hand around and those would get in the way.
15:16Exactly.
15:16Weight was also a factor.
15:18Pick up that Peugeot right there.
15:19Tell me what you think about it.
15:20Ooh.
15:21Yeah.
15:21This is a weapon.
15:22You could hurt an intruder with that if you needed to.
15:25Yeah.
15:25This is a lot heavier than these other two.
15:28Right.
15:28And you're holding them for, you know, 20, 30 seconds, a minute.
15:31So weight really matters.
15:33We preferred those that weighed under a pound.
15:35That was about the sweet spot where they weren't taxing our wrists.
15:38And remember, some folks are buying these for diminished hand strength reasons.
15:42So it's really helpful to have a lighter model there.
15:44Height was also important.
15:45We preferred those that were under 12 inches.
15:48You want to have these things out.
15:49They need to charge.
15:50It needs a little space in your home.
15:52So we wanted that space to be as small and contained as possible.
15:55Speed was a huge factor with these.
15:57So it takes an experienced person about 20 seconds to open a bottle of wine.
16:00And some of these matched that.
16:03Some of them.
16:03Uh-oh.
16:04Others took 40 seconds.
16:07Peugeot over here took a minute 30 with a synthetic cork.
16:10But still, that's a long time to wait.
16:13And speed was something that our winner had in its favor.
16:16The Secura right here opened bottles of wine in 20 seconds.
16:19So the same as a pro.
16:21Here, let me have you hold this.
16:22Okay.
16:23It had a really sharp worm that pierced corks, synthetic, natural, anything with ease.
16:29We really liked being able to align it perfectly and then throw the cork out right in the trash
16:33when we were ready.
16:34Okay.
16:35You're noticing something else?
16:36What are you noticing?
16:36Yeah, well, it's not too heavy.
16:37Nice and light.
16:38Yeah.
16:38It cracked our hands less.
16:40And it also has this stand right here.
16:42Stored nicely on the countertop.
16:43It comes with a foil cutter to open the top that has its own little spot right there so you
16:47don't lose it.
16:48Very compact.
16:49Fitting our counters nicely.
16:50And this was our overall pick.
16:51Okay.
16:51Thanks, Hannah.
16:52There you have it.
16:53If you're in the market for a new electric wine opener, check out our winner.
16:57The Secura electric wine opener at just $21.
17:07Caesars Salad has been popular on restaurant menus for decades and for good reason.
17:13The creamy, punchy dressing, the crisp romaine, the crunchy croutons.
17:17It's a winning combination.
17:19And today, Morgan has promised to show us how to make the ultimate Caesars Salad, which is a high bar.
17:24It is a high bar, but I'm here for it.
17:26I'm a big Caesars Salad fan.
17:27You are.
17:28And I do feel like you have to give every ingredient some love.
17:31So I'm starting with the croutons.
17:33Here I'm taking four ounces of ciabatta.
17:34This is a little bigger than that, but I'm just going to use four ounces of it.
17:37I'm going to cut it into half-inch pieces.
17:39So I really like using ciabatta just because of the texture of it.
17:42Like it's really nice and airy.
17:44It's a little more tender than something like baguette when you can get that like sort of tough piece in
17:48there.
17:49And no tough croutons in here.
17:51All right.
17:52So I've got about four ounces over here.
17:54Now I want to toss them in something flavorful.
17:56So here I've got a quarter of a cup of oil.
18:00And then I've got a garlic clove.
18:02And then I've got a quarter teaspoon of salt and a quarter teaspoon of pepper.
18:06Oh, so you're just making a flavored garlic oil.
18:08Yeah, exactly.
18:09That's it.
18:11I'm just going to give this a nice little whisk.
18:12And actually, do you mind grabbing that bread and dumping it in here for me?
18:15You bet.
18:16Mm-hmm.
18:18And just get this nice and tossed together.
18:21All right.
18:22And I'm just going to dump this out onto a rimmed baking sheet.
18:26So I'm going to bake these in a 350-degree oven.
18:29I'm just going to look for them to get nice and golden brown.
18:31It'll take about 18 minutes.
18:33I'm going to get in there and stir halfway through.
18:41Oh, those look good.
18:43I know.
18:43And they smell nice and garlicky.
18:45They really do.
18:46All right.
18:47They're definitely firmed up.
18:48You can hear them.
18:49It's a good sign.
18:50They sound crunchy.
18:51Exactly.
18:52Now let's talk Parmesan.
18:54So here I'm actually going to grate it two different ways.
18:57Huh.
18:58I'm going to try to get about a half cup on the large holes of the box grater.
19:00And this I'm actually going to mix into the salad so I get these nice, bigger hunks of
19:05Parmesan in the salad.
19:07All right.
19:08So that's a quarter and a half.
19:11And then we're going to use this fine grater for the Parmesan for just a little bit more.
19:15This is actually going to go into the dressing to flavor the dressing.
19:19Aha.
19:20It almost dissolves in there so you get this really nice Parmesan flavor in your punchy
19:24dressing.
19:25And one more piece I want to do over here.
19:28Anchovies.
19:28So I'm just taking them.
19:30I'm doing like some really nice long cuts and then turning them the other way just
19:33to get a really nice mince on here.
19:35Mm-hmm.
19:35Okay.
19:36So now time to get into our dressing.
19:40So this is just the same bowl from earlier.
19:42I just wiped it out.
19:43What I'm doing is I'm taking this damp towel and I'm going to give it a nice little twist.
19:47And then I'm going to place this under the bowl.
19:49It's going to give me a lot of nice traction and it's going to hold this in place.
19:53It gives you kind of a surface once we're whisking.
19:55Mm-hmm.
19:55So I am doing a classic Caesar, which starts with a raw egg yolk.
19:59It'll help emulsify everything.
20:01And if you want, you can use a pasteurized egg yolk here.
20:03To that, I'm going to add a tablespoon of lemon juice.
20:07I'm going to add two teaspoons of Worcestershire sauce.
20:10Two teaspoons of Dijon.
20:12I'm going to add a nice little kick in here.
20:14I've got my anchovies.
20:16I have a garlic clove that I'm also adding in.
20:19That looks like it was really minced to a paste, too.
20:21It was.
20:21It was really nice and fine.
20:23Quarter teaspoon of pepper.
20:24On our team, we talk a lot about the flavor cliff.
20:27Like, you want to take food to the cliff of flavor and, like, as punchy as you can get it
20:31without going over where it's, like, too salty or too spicy.
20:33And, like, this is hanging on to the cliff.
20:35Is it?
20:36Yeah.
20:36So it's, like, got a lot of punch going on.
20:38And a quarter teaspoon of table salt.
20:41Okay.
20:42So I'm going to whisk this up.
20:43Make sure everything's really nice and combined.
20:45And then, actually, since I have you here, can I have you start drizzling?
20:48I was just going to offer.
20:49Yeah.
20:49So it's a half cup of olive oil.
20:51Again, using the best quality oil you can.
20:53And if you could, just drip real slowly.
20:54It's really important to drizzle it in really slowly like this because it does emulsify it.
20:58Like, the egg yolk's doing the work here.
21:00It'll keep it nice and even.
21:01But you do want to drizzle slowly so that the egg yolk has the time to catch all the oil
21:06and contain it.
21:08All right.
21:09All right.
21:09There you go.
21:10Okay.
21:11And then, will you do me one more favor and grab the fine parm?
21:13Oh, yeah.
21:14May I?
21:15You may.
21:17Let's see.
21:17Let's whisk that on in there.
21:20All right.
21:21And our dressing is complete.
21:24So, one more piece.
21:25Mm-hmm.
21:26The lettuce.
21:27The lettuce.
21:27Here I've got romaine.
21:28I have two hearts.
21:29It's about 12 ounces total.
21:31I'm just going to cut this into one-inch pieces.
21:33So, sometimes I always am a little off on how exactly much an inch is.
21:36I'm going to cut it down lengthwise.
21:38I'm going to use the guide for my one-inch.
21:41And then, I can fit another here.
21:44I'm going to turn it.
21:45And this way is a little thinner.
21:46So, I'm just going to do one cut down the center.
21:50And then, again, I actually don't feel like I need this anymore.
21:54I've got my measurement down.
21:55I'm just going to go through now and do my one cut.
21:57And it's kind of going to fall apart itself.
22:00So, you get these, like, nice one-inch chunks.
22:02Perfectly sized.
22:04Okay.
22:04Time to assemble.
22:05Just adding in the lettuce, the cheese.
22:07And now, I'm adding these croutons right in here.
22:10Mm-hmm.
22:10And now, you can hear the crunch.
22:11Yeah.
22:12Good sign.
22:14Yeah.
22:14So, I always kind of just like to go in and actually do a little turn with my tongs.
22:18Nice and coated.
22:19All right.
22:20Do you see any dry leaves in here?
22:21I don't.
22:22That looks perfection.
22:24Then, let's serve.
22:25Okay.
22:27Let me get you some.
22:28I'm going to make sure I get you a lot of croutons up in here.
22:31You do want a crouton with every bite.
22:33Yeah, exactly.
22:34You can smell the garlic from here.
22:37Yeah.
22:37Yeah.
22:38This is definitely punchy food.
22:39Like, you can't be afraid of garlic.
22:41You can't be afraid of anchovies.
22:43You can't be afraid of flavor.
22:46That's delicious.
22:47It does take you right to the edge.
22:49But it's not sharp.
22:50It's really round on the backside.
22:52And I think that's because you use the right amount of olive oil.
22:54And you started with the yolk.
22:56Yeah, it's all about balance.
22:57It's like you want to have those punchy ingredients, but you also want to balance them out.
23:01And so we played a lot with ratios in the salad just to get it exactly, you know, hanging on
23:05the cliff.
23:06And the Parmesan flavor is so present.
23:10It doesn't overtake everything, but you get Parmesan with every flavor.
23:13And again, it kind of softens the sharp edges of the dressing.
23:18You set the bar high, but you exceeded it.
23:20This is a fantastic Caesar.
23:23Thanks, Julia.
23:25There you have it.
23:26If you want to make the ultimate Caesar salad, season and toast cubes of ciabatta to make your own croutons.
23:32Make a punchy, emulsified dressing with egg yolk, anchovy, and garlic.
23:37And use Parmesan in two different ways.
23:39Finely grated in the dressing and shredded in the salad.
23:42From Cook's Country, a recipe for the ultimate Caesar salad.
23:46You can find this recipe and all the recipes from this season, along with select episodes and our product reviews
23:53at our website, cookscountry.com slash TV.
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