What sauce is combined with light béchamel in lasagne alla genovese? The answer is pesto.
Lasagne alla genovese combines a light béchamel sauce with pesto before the pasta is assembled and baked. The preparation is associated with Genoa and reflects Liguria’s most famous flavor pairing: fragrant basil pesto moderated by a creamy white sauce.
Traditional pesto genovese is made from Genovese basil, extra-virgin olive oil, Parmesan or Grana Padano, pecorino sardo, pine nuts, and garlic. Its name comes from the Genoese verb pestâ, meaning to pound or crush, referring to the mortar-and-pestle method traditionally used to make it.
The dish differs from lasagne alla bolognese, which is associated with ragù, béchamel, and Parmesan, and from many southern versions that use ricotta. Some modern Genoese preparations omit béchamel and use boiled pasta, but the classic version described in the question pairs pesto with light béchamel and bakes the layered dish.