Lasagne with Seafood and Saffron

This unusual seafood lasagne is chock full of fish, shrimp, scallops, and clams in a creamy bechamel. Saffron gives it distinction.

3 pounds Barilla Wavy Lasagne
9 ounces butter
18 tablespoons flour
3 quarts milk
6 cloves chopped garlic
3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 1/2 cups grated Parmesan cheese
90 steamed, divided from juice littleneck clams
as needed salt
6 pinches saffron
as needed pepper
3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
1 1/2 pounds diced sea bass
1 1/2 pounds peeled and deveined shrimp
1 pound scallops
Instructions
  1. Spray a 2-inch deep hotel pan with non-stick cooking spray.
  2. Cook the Barilla pasta for half the time indicated on the package. Drain pasta and drizzle with some olive oil to prevent from sticking. Place pasta flat on sheet trays or hotel pans and cool in a blast chiller. Alternatively, cool it down in a walk-in cooler. Store in zip lock bags or sealed plastic container; refrigerate and use within several hours.
  3. Melt the butter in a pan and stir in the flour. Cook over low heat to make a light roux.
    Bring the milk to a simmer and stir in the roux; bring to a simmer again, stirring constantly, until the bechamel thickens.
  4. In a large rondeau, saute the garlic in the oil until golden. Stir it into the bechamel.
    Add the cheese, clam juice, parsley, saffron, and season with salt and pepper. Remove from the heat and let cool.
  5. Working in separate batches, saute the bass in some oil until just firm. Saute the shrimp, then the scallops, removing each type of seafood to a sheet pan to cool.
  6. To build the lasagne: Spread 1 to 2 cups bechamel in the hotel pan. Make a single layer of noodles, then top with a layer of mixed seafood and cover with sauce. Repeat these layers, ending with a layer of noodles and sauce.
  7. Bake in a 375 degree oven until bubbling but not browned, about 45 minutes. Let cool completely and reheat as needed, allowing the top layer to brown.