Few Italian dishes have seen more variations than Lasagna, each one is delicious, each one has a distinct character.
From The Big Book of Pasta, published by Parragon Books Ltd in 2007:
Lasagne alle Verdure – Vegetable Lasagna
Detail from photo on page 258
Serves 4
Ingredients
- olive oil, for brushing
- 2 eggplants sliced
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 garlic clove, finely chopped
- 4 zucchini, sliced
- 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
- 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh marjoram
- 8 ounces grated mozzarella cheese
- 2 1/2 cups strained tomatoes
- 6 ounces dried no-precook lasagna sheets
- 2 1/2 cups Béchamel Sauce *
- 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmegiano cheese
- salt and pepper
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 400 F. Brush a large ovenproof dish with olive oil.. Brush a large grill pan with olive oil and heat until smoking. Add half the eggplants and cook over medium heat for 8 minutes, or until golden brown all over. Remove from the grill pan and drain on paper towels. Add the remaining eggplant slices and extra oil, if necessary, and cook for 8 minutes, or until golden brown.
- Melt the butter in a skillet and add the garlic, zuchini, parsley and marjoram. Cook over medium heat for 5 minutes, or until the zucchini are golden brown. remove from the skillet and let drain on paper towels.
- Layer the eggplants, zuchini, grated mozzarella, strained tomatoes, and lasagna sheets in the dish; season with salt and pepper as you finish with a layer of lasagna. Pour over the Béchamel Sauce, making sure all the pasta is covered. Sprinkle with the grated Parmesan cheese and bake in the preheated oven 30-40 minutes, or until golden brown. Serve immediately
* Béchamel Sauce
Makes about 1 quart
Ingredients
- 5 tablespoons butter
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 quart milk
- 2 teaspoons
- 1/4 teaspoon ground pepper (for a more Italian flavor, add ground nutmeg instead)
Directions
- Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Once melted, stir in the flour until smooth. Continue stirring as the flour cooks to a light, golden, sandy color, about 7 minutes.
- Increase heat to medium-high and slowly whisk in milk until thickened by the roux. Bring to a gentle simmer, then reduce heat to medium-low and continue simmering until the flour has softened and not longer tastes gritty, 10 to 20 minutes, then season with salt and pepper (or nutmeg).
Enjoy, gentle reader, enjoy!
CS
SERVES 8 TO 10 – A medley of just-picked summer vegetables layered between thin sheets of lasagne noodles gives this dish its garden-fresh taste. I like to use Delverde no boil lasagne sheets. For this recipe, you will need eight of the 7 by 6½-inch sheets. If using another brand, adjust the number of lasagne sheets as necessary to make four layers in the pan.
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Vegetable lasagna……the name evokes such wholesomeness and virtue but honestly that couldn’t be further from the truth! This rich creamy layered pasta dish is absolutely divine. And the fact that it has such versatility, with this one basic recipe you can literally make dozens of vegetable/lasagna creations, will soon have you adding this recipe to your own repertoire. If I haven’t got you sold yet, have ever wanted to try your hand at making fresh pasta? Well then, lasagna is the one to start with and this recipe is the one I would suggest you first use them in. The combination of fresh pasta with seasonal vegetables at their peak is exquisite. Ingredients (With a nice size salad and a loaf of Italian bread this will easily feed 10, so invite some friends over and share the calories, I am strong believer in the theory that sharing meals is the best kind of diet!)1 pound lasagna sheets (Fresh or Dried)olive oil 4 cups Balsamella (white sauce)3 cups cheese: All Parmigiana or 1/2 Parmigiana and 1/2 melting cheese such as Mozzarella, Fontina, or other.6 cups vegetables in season sliced thin or chopped small, plus herbs and aromatics to accompany I also like to add 1/2 cup white wine to hem at the end for added flavor.Topping: Melt 1 tablespoon butter and mix with 1 tablespoon olive oil. Mix 1/8 cup Parmesan cheese and 1 thick slice bread processed into crumbs together as well.Directions Preheat oven to 350Cook the pasta until just under done and drain or use the non pre-boil type of pasta. Split these into 3 even piles.Spread some olive oil in a large lasagna type pan.In a large skillet saute the aromatics and then vegetables until tender, 10-15 minutes. Add wine and cook out alcohol for a minute. Add salt and pepper to taste, set aside and reserve the cleaned, dried, and chopped fresh herbs for the layering.Spread 1 1/2 cups of the sauce over the pasta sheets.Spread on half the veggies and sprinkle on half the fresh herbs.
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