Vegetable Lasagne
Why this one?
I've always wanted to cook a vegetable lasagne but just never got round to it. However, lockdown and my current mission to cook from Gizzi Erskin's SLOW coincided to create the perfect vegetable lasagne storm.
I also really liked the look of this particular veggie lasagne as it didn't have mushrooms in it. I am not a fan so this was a bonus and meant I didn't have to be a recipe rule breaker yet again!
Find the recipe here............Sorry I cannot find it.
Any substitutes?
Well, this is pretty rare - only one deviance from the recipe, and for me a very minor one. I used dry lasagne sheets instead of fresh - I was using what was in the cupboard, didn't think it was an essential trip to the supermarket for fresh lasagne sheets.
The actual cooking of the dish
This was another dish which was cooked in stages - perfect as I managed to do it whilst the baby was asleep for a nap and then just popped it in to cook when it was bath time.
This time I had my wonderful sous chef (husband) helping out.
As I haven't made a vegetable lasagne before I don't have any reference as to whether this is a normal way to cook it or if it varies.
This recipe called for roasted peppers, made from scratch, not a jar - turns out its super simple. Put the whole pepper in the over for 25 mins at 220 degrees and then it becomes chard and so delicious. These were marvelous in this dish but would be brilliant in salads or any tomatoes based sauce really. The one thing I did which wasn't in the recipe which I think was useful was allowing the pepper to drain of the liquid before using them,. To do this I just pulled out the stalks and then stood them upside down to drain.
Then I cooked the other veg in a hot pan to caramelize on the outside but remain soft in the middle. The next was adding the already made slow cooked tomato sauce (I will upload that post soon).
I then made a bechamel sauce, I think this might have been the best bechamel I have ever made. It was super glossy and the perfect consistency - remember my issue with sauce thickness. This was perfect. I added mozzarella to the sauce, I've never done this before but it's a winner.
Then combine all the ingredients together - again different from how i'd normally construct a meat lasagne - more pasta and less bechamel sauce. I admit I was thinking it wasn't going to be moist enough as I am very liberal with the cheese sauce normally.
Where I ate it
I'm not even going to say but I bet your can guess.
What I thought
DE-LICIOUS! It had the homely security of a meat lasagne but with an added sweetness, depth and flavour of the vegetables. Adding nutmeg to the behamel hints to warming winter dishes, think Christmas spiced things but without being overwhelming. The whole dish felt complete. I think this is the first time, with the exception of the haddock mornay jacket potatoes that I felt every single ingredient was needed and could be tasted in the dish.
A big shout out needs to go to the roasted red pepper, I know I have gone on about this a bit already but its addition cannot be underestimated, it was such a exciting and unexpected joy. It really added the aforementioned sweetness to the sauce, blending sublimely with the slow cooked tomato sauce. I always think tomatoes are enhanced with a little bit of sweetness and this just worked.
The texture of the vegetable ragu made the food feel wholesome, a bit like the a hug from your best friend. Once its finished you feel instantly better and rejuvenated. The lagsagne did that for me. In these social distancing times, if a meal can be a substitute for a friends hug it needs to be made.
Difficulty: Easy - don't be frightened of making the bechamel it felt like it just couldn't go wrong.
Tastiness rating: 9/10
Next time i'd......Do nothing different. Maybe following a recipe completely really does work. Who know eh?!?
Why this one?
I've always wanted to cook a vegetable lasagne but just never got round to it. However, lockdown and my current mission to cook from Gizzi Erskin's SLOW coincided to create the perfect vegetable lasagne storm.
I also really liked the look of this particular veggie lasagne as it didn't have mushrooms in it. I am not a fan so this was a bonus and meant I didn't have to be a recipe rule breaker yet again!
Find the recipe here............Sorry I cannot find it.
Any substitutes?
Well, this is pretty rare - only one deviance from the recipe, and for me a very minor one. I used dry lasagne sheets instead of fresh - I was using what was in the cupboard, didn't think it was an essential trip to the supermarket for fresh lasagne sheets.
The actual cooking of the dish
This was another dish which was cooked in stages - perfect as I managed to do it whilst the baby was asleep for a nap and then just popped it in to cook when it was bath time.This time I had my wonderful sous chef (husband) helping out.
As I haven't made a vegetable lasagne before I don't have any reference as to whether this is a normal way to cook it or if it varies.This recipe called for roasted peppers, made from scratch, not a jar - turns out its super simple. Put the whole pepper in the over for 25 mins at 220 degrees and then it becomes chard and so delicious. These were marvelous in this dish but would be brilliant in salads or any tomatoes based sauce really. The one thing I did which wasn't in the recipe which I think was useful was allowing the pepper to drain of the liquid before using them,. To do this I just pulled out the stalks and then stood them upside down to drain.
Then I cooked the other veg in a hot pan to caramelize on the outside but remain soft in the middle. The next was adding the already made slow cooked tomato sauce (I will upload that post soon).
I then made a bechamel sauce, I think this might have been the best bechamel I have ever made. It was super glossy and the perfect consistency - remember my issue with sauce thickness. This was perfect. I added mozzarella to the sauce, I've never done this before but it's a winner.
Where I ate it
I'm not even going to say but I bet your can guess.
What I thought
DE-LICIOUS! It had the homely security of a meat lasagne but with an added sweetness, depth and flavour of the vegetables. Adding nutmeg to the behamel hints to warming winter dishes, think Christmas spiced things but without being overwhelming. The whole dish felt complete. I think this is the first time, with the exception of the haddock mornay jacket potatoes that I felt every single ingredient was needed and could be tasted in the dish.
A big shout out needs to go to the roasted red pepper, I know I have gone on about this a bit already but its addition cannot be underestimated, it was such a exciting and unexpected joy. It really added the aforementioned sweetness to the sauce, blending sublimely with the slow cooked tomato sauce. I always think tomatoes are enhanced with a little bit of sweetness and this just worked.
The texture of the vegetable ragu made the food feel wholesome, a bit like the a hug from your best friend. Once its finished you feel instantly better and rejuvenated. The lagsagne did that for me. In these social distancing times, if a meal can be a substitute for a friends hug it needs to be made.
Difficulty: Easy - don't be frightened of making the bechamel it felt like it just couldn't go wrong.
Tastiness rating: 9/10
Next time i'd......Do nothing different. Maybe following a recipe completely really does work. Who know eh?!?
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