[AD] Mini Grana Padano Pancake Lasagne Muffin Cups: These clever little bakes are actually mini lasagne cups baked in a muffin tin and are perfect for a light lunch, family supper or even a picnic. They are made with pancakes, which are layered with a mixture of vegetables and bacon in a tomato sauce, grated Grana Padano cheese and are topped with Béchamel sauce and more Grana Padano cheese!
Perfect for a Light lunch or Family Supper
As regular readers will know, I am a “cheeseaholic” and I have more of a savoury tooth than a sweet tooth; which means, I usually gravitate towards the sausage rolls or cheese board on the buffet table! And, I am pretty fussy about what cheese I eat (and cook with), being more of a fan of traditional, local and smaller artisan cheese producers. The Italian cheese, Grana Padano, is one of favourite cheeses, and I always have a large slab in the pantry and several packets of grated Grana Padano cheese in the fridge too. I’ve used Grana Padano cheese in my cooking (and baking) for many years now, as I love the flavour and the fact that you can choose from three “vintages”; you can choose from the milder Grana Padano 9 month cheese for the salads and for sprinkling on pasta, the more mature Grana Padano 16 month cheese for general baking and cooking, and my personal favourite, the Grana Padano “Riserva” which has been aged for a minimum of 20 months, which is very robust and nutty with a wonderful texture and is amazing when served on the cheese board with wine. Grana Padano is also naturally free of lactose, due to the characteristics of its production and ageing process. The galactose content is less than 10 mg per 100g, which means those people with lactose intolerance can enjoy eating Grana Padano cheese.
Today’s recipe for Mini Grana Padano Pancake Lasagne Muffin Cups is the first of a trio of special, bespoke recipes I have created as part of an ongoing collaboration with Grana Padano. These clever little bakes are actually mini lasagne cups baked in a muffin tin and are perfect for a light lunch, family supper or even a picnic. They are made with pancakes, which are layered with a mixture of vegetables and bacon in a tomato sauce, grated Grana Padano cheese and are topped with Béchamel sauce and more Grana Padano cheese! Serve these little Grana Padano Pancake Lasagne Muffin Cups with fresh salad, olives and an Italian dressing. Once they are made, they can also be frozen for up to two months, and with Christmas looking on the horizon, these would be very handy to serve over the festive period, and will save you time when you are at your busiest.
Grana Padano cheese is an EU certified PDO product, (Protection Designation of Origin) and has been since 1996. This ensures that the cheese is linked to a specified production area and is made following traditional methods that are linked to the climate, culture and the people that make it. This also ensures its quality, authenticity and traceability. The Protected Designation of Origin of GRANA PADANO defines the production area, method and characteristics of a cheese produced all year round from raw cow’s milk, partially skimmed by allowing the cream to rise naturally. The consistency is hard, the cheese matures slowly and can be used as part of a cheese board or as a grating cheese. (Grana Padano PDO is produced in 5 regions of the Po River Valley (Pianura Padana) in Northern Italy: Piedmont, Lombardy, Veneto, the provinces of Piacenza in Emilia Romagna and Trento in Trentino.)
My first recipe for Mini Grana Padano Pancake Lasagne Muffin Cups are shared below, in a printable recipe card, and if you do make these, please let me know how you and your family enjoyed them. I’ll be back soon with my next two Grana Padano recipes, and as I’ve worked with Grana Padano before, I have shared other bespoke recipes that use Grana Padano cheese below too, buon appetito, Karen
*Paid collaborative post – all opinions are my own*
Mini Grana Padano Pancake Lasagne Muffin Cups
Print recipe
| Serves | 12 |
| Prep time | 30 minutes |
| Cook time | 55 minutes |
| Total time | 1 hours, 25 minutes |
| Allergy | Milk, Wheat |
| Meal type | Lunch, Main Dish, Snack, Starter |
| Misc | Child Friendly, Freezable, Pre-preparable, Serve Hot |
| Occasion | Casual Party, Christmas, Easter, Thanksgiving |
| Region | Italian |
| By author | Karen Burns-Booth |
Ingredients
- 4 large crepe style pancakes, cut into 36 x 1” (2.5cm) rounds
- 1 carrot, peeled and diced
- 1 red pepper, trimmed and diced
- 125g smoked pancetta
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 125g grated Grana Padano cheese
- 225g ready-made tomato sauce/pasta sauce
- 4 tablespoons Béchamel sauce
- 60g grated Grana Padano cheese
Note
These clever little bakes are actually mini lasagne cups baked in a muffin tin and are perfect for a light lunch, family supper or even a picnic.
Directions
| Step 1 | Line a 12 x hole muffin tray with baking paper. Pre-heat oven to 200C/180C Fan/Gas 6. |
| Step 2 | Place the carrot, pepper and pancetta in an roasting tin and add the olive oil; bake for 20 t0 25 minutes until they are soft and cooked. Add the cooked vegetables to the tomato sauce and mix well. |
| Step 3 | Place a pancake round each paper lined muffin try, and layer each lasagne cup with the vegetable, pancetta and tomato sauce mixture, grated and Grana Padano cheese ending with a pancake round. |
| Step 4 | Spoon the Béchamel sauce over the top and scatter the remaining Grana Padano cheese over each lasagne cup. |
| Step 5 | Bake in the pre-heated oven for 25 to 30 minutes until the sauce is bubbling and the Grana Padano cheese has melted and is golden brown. |
| Step 6 | Allow to cool slightly before easing them out of the muffin tin, discarding the baking paper and serving them with salad. |
More Grana Padano Recipes on Lavender and Lovage:
Roast Tomato & Grana Padano Bruschetta with Capers
Grana Padano Chicken & Artichoke Gratin
Rustic Tuscan Bean Casserole with Grana Padano and Cheese Croutons
Grana Padano PDO Fact File:
The Protected Designation of Origin of GRANA PADANO defines the production area, method and characteristics of a cheese produced all year round from raw cow’s milk, partially skimmed by allowing the cream to rise naturally. The consistency is hard, the cheese matures slowly and can be used as part of a cheese board or as a grating cheese.
NUTRITIONAL PROPERTIES:
Grana Padano possesses unique nutritional features such as quality proteins, vitamins and mineral salts, especially calcium. It is an excellent natural, healthy and easy digestible food for children, teenagers, pregnant women, sports people and the elderly. Due to its production characteristics and long ageing, it is lactose-free making it ideal for people intolerant to this sugar. (It contains less than 10 mg/100 g of galactose)
– It takes 15 litres of naturally partially-skimmed milk to produce 1 kg of Grana Padano PDO
– 30g of Grana Padano PDO contain the same nutritional value to approximately half a litre of milk (1 pint of milk)
– 50g of Grana Padano PDO provides 600mg of Calcium – 60% of the daily requirement for adults, 50 % of an adolescent’s requirement. (1 and ½ pints of milk)
– Grana Padano is lactose free due to the characteristics of its production and ageing process. It contains a Galactose content of less than 10mg per 100g.
– Grana Padano also contains important proteins, iron, vitamins and minerals
CHARACTERISTICS:
When ready for sale, the cheese has the following characteristics:
– shape: cylindrical, wheel shaped, circumference rind slightly convex or almost straight, flat bases slightly rimmed;
– diameter of wheel: 35-45 cm;
– height of rind: 18-25 cm;
– weight: 24- 40 kg;
– rind: hard and smooth, 4-8 mm thick;
– texture: hard, with a finely grained structure, radial fracture into flakes, eyes hardly visible;
– fat content of dry substance: minimum 32%;
– rind colour: dark or natural golden yellow;
– colour: white or straw-yellow;
– aroma: fragrant; – flavour: delicate.
Apart from the typical characteristics of GRANA PADANO (PDO), the grated variety must have the following characteristics: – moisture: not less than 25% and not higher than 35%; – appearance: not powdery, even, particles with a diameter of less than 0.5 mm not more than 25%; – quantity of rind: not higher than 18%.
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