Tangy Pickle Cheese Pasta Bake (Print Version)

# Ingredients:

→ For the Cheddar Cheese Sauce

01 - 1/4 cup unsalted butter
02 - 1/4 cup all purpose flour
03 - 1 cup whole milk
04 - 1 cup heavy cream
05 - 1 1/2 cups cheddar cheese
06 - 1 tsp salt
07 - 1/4 tsp black pepper

→ For the Dill Ricotta

08 - 24 oz whole milk ricotta
09 - 1 egg
10 - 1/4 cup chopped fresh dill
11 - 1/4 cup dill pickle juice
12 - 1/4 tsp salt

→ For the Lasagna Assembly

13 - 15 oven ready lasagna noodles
14 - 1 cup dill pickle juice
15 - 1 cup cheddar cheese, divided
16 - 20 stacker pickles (or about 80 dill pickle chips)
17 - 1/3 cup diced dill pickle

# Instructions:

01 - Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Sprinkle in flour and whisk to combine. Cook for approximately 1 minute, whisking often. Add the milk and heavy cream together in a measuring cup. Slowly pour in about 1 cup of the milk/heavy cream while whisking constantly, until smooth. Slowly pour in the remaining milk/cream, while whisking constantly, until combined and smooth. Continue to heat over medium heat, whisking very often, until thickened to a very thick consistency. Remove from the heat and stir in salt, pepper, and 1 1/2 cups cheddar cheese, stirring until completely melted and smooth.
02 - In a medium bowl, combine the ricotta, egg, chopped fresh dill, dill pickle juice, and salt. Mix all the ingredients together until fully combined. Set aside.
03 - Preheat oven to 375°F. Using a 9x13 baking dish, spread a third of the cheddar cheese sauce across the bottom. Pour the 1 cup pickle juice into a shallow pan, such as a pie plate. Dip 5 oven ready noodles into the dill pickle juice to wet them (this adds pickle flavor and helps soften them when cooking). Layer the 5 noodles in the pan. They may overlap in spots and gap in others, which is fine.
04 - Spread half the ricotta-dill mixture in an even layer over the noodles. Sprinkle with 1/3 cup cheddar cheese over the ricotta mixture as evenly as possible. Layer 10 dill pickle stackers, staggering them so that each bite will have pickle. Top with another third of the cheese sauce.
05 - Dip 5 more oven ready noodles into the dill pickle juice and layer them on top of the pickle layer. Add the remaining ricotta mixture and spread evenly across the noodles. Sprinkle another 1/3 cup cheddar cheese over the ricotta mixture. Layer the remaining 10 dill pickle stackers, staggering them for even distribution.
06 - Dip the final 5 noodles in pickle juice and layer them on top. Pour the remaining third of cheddar cheese sauce over the top. Cover with foil and bake at 375°F for 40 minutes.
07 - Remove from oven (keeping the oven on) and remove foil. Sprinkle the remaining 1/3 cup cheddar cheese and the diced dill pickle pieces over the top. Return to the oven and bake until cheese is melted and bubbly, about 8-10 minutes.
08 - Remove from the oven and let cool for about 10 minutes before serving. This resting time helps the lasagna set up for easier cutting and serving.

# Notes:

01 - This unique lasagna combines the sharp tanginess of dill pickles with the richness of cheddar cheese sauce for a truly distinctive flavor experience.
02 - Dipping the oven-ready noodles in pickle juice is essential as this recipe doesn't have the liquid of a traditional tomato-based lasagna sauce.
03 - For a milder pickle flavor, you can reduce the amount of pickle juice in the ricotta mixture.
04 - This lasagna can be assembled a day ahead and refrigerated before baking. Add an extra 10-15 minutes to the covered baking time if cooking from cold.

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