07/05/2009

Lasagne/Lasagna

Not sure on the spelling of that as both seem to be used willy nilly.
I made a roasted Vegetable and Spinach Lasagna - it was delicious. I didn't follow a recipe I just made it up as I went along (it's the magic of my new kitchen I tell ya!). I always make this Tomato Sauce though and I always make a big batch and freeze it up for easy convenient use later. This is enough for two Lasagnas or two Moussakas or two of whatever and each portion serves 4 people - so you can divide it up according to your own preferences
Tomato Sauce
serves 8 Ingredients 1 tsp Olive Oil 1 Large Carrot, peeled and diced 1 Large Onion, diced 2 Cloves of Garlic, crushed 2 x 400g Canned Tomatoes 5 fl oz Red Wine or Vegetable Stock (Red Wine is soooo much better!!) 1 Bay Leaf 1 Tbsp Fresh Basil, diced 1 tsp Dried Oregano Salt Freshly Ground Black Pepper
Method In a pan add 1 tsp Olive Oil and fry the Carrot and Onion for 10 mins stirring regularly. Add the Garlic, Tomatoes, Red Wine (or stock), Basil, Oregano and Bay Leaf and cook on a gentle heat for 20 mins. Take out the Bay Leaf and whizz with a hand mixer or in your blender. Season to taste.
Easy Peasy!
For the Lasagna/Lasagne I roasted a combo of veggies - Onion, Peppers, Aubergines, Courgettes, Garlic etc etc and I sauteed some Spinach and added some Roasted Garlic, Salt and Pepper to the Spinach then I layered up the dish starting with a layer of Tomato Sauce, then Lasagna, then Roasted Veggies, Tomato Sauce, Lasagne, Spinach, Lasagna, Tomato Sauce, Roasted veggies then topped it with my new creation which I shall call Chickpea Sauce. This is basically a Hummus recipe but with the addition of Soya Milk which makes it perfect for topping Lasagna with. It is seriously delicious and I was very happy with the result - so much so I wanted to share it with you right away. :) Chickpea Sauce 2 cups cooked Chickpeas 2 Cloves Garlic, diced 2 Tablespoons Olive Oil 2 Tablespoons Tahini About a cup of Soya Milk (more or less depending on how thick the consistency will be) Salt to taste Black Pepper to taste Squeeze fresh Lemon Juice Method Whizz up the Chickpeas, Garlic, Olive Oil and Tahini with a blender or stick blender. Gradually add in the Soya Milk to get the right consistency - you're after a thick dollopy kind of Sauce (you know what I mean, right?) Add the seasonings and adjust to your preference. And TAHDAH!
here it is served with a Green salad It was even better the next day where we had it with good old oven Chips :)
Cooking to Kasabian - Fire. Seriously GOOD CHOOOOON! GO VEGAN!

22 comments:

Penny said...

This looks SO GOOD, I wish I had more time today to make it, but I will do, very soon!
Bet you're enjoying using your lovely new kitchen (sighs enviously...)

jessy said...

my gosh, Jeni! your lasagna looks beyond glorious!!!!! i’m totally gonna have to try your chickpea sauce! i’ve never had anything like it before and it sounds wonderful! hooray for cooking so much rock’n food in your new kitchen! superw00t!

Tami said...

Awesome looking lasagna, however you want to spell it.

Carrie said...

Yum! I love lasagna! (or at least that's how I spell it...)

That chickpea sauce looks really interesting.

Oraphan said...

Your lasagna looks so delicious and chickpea sauce sounds really good, thanks so much for the recipes. Also thank you for commenting on my blog, you really made my day because I'm a big fan of yours!!!=D

Sal - AlienOnToast said...

oooh chickpea saucy lasagna/e. YUM! that looks sooo good, I could eat a bit of that for brekkie!!

DJ said...

Chickpea sauce - now that's a much better idea than boring old bechamel! We're having curly fries tonight for tea, gotta love oven chips!!! (^_^)

Felicity said...

Oh, this looks soo good. Brilliant idea using chickpea sauce on top!

Anonymous said...

Three words "YUM, YUM, YUM!"

Jen Treehugger said...

Oh guys - I LOVE getting your comments so so much. You make a heathen vegan very happy.
:)

Anonymous said...

It's like you can read my flippin mind! I have been craving lasagna and have been thinking I should make some soon - and there you go flaunting your goodness all over the place! I need to try the chickpea sauce idea - that rules!

Cyn said...

That looks so delicious! Using chickpeas in it is genius. And roasted veggies make everything taste so good.

wingraclaire said...

That looks totally delicious! I love lasagna/lasagne/whatever, and in fact just made it last night using the Fat Free Vegan's standard recipe. It came out awesome, but I am ready for something new. And chickpea sauce is definitely a new idea! So I can't wait to try it. You are really having fun with that new kitchen. How wonderful!

p.s. I knew what an aubergine was but had to look up courgettes :)

EccentricEmma said...

oh wow i'm seriously hungry now!

question? do you need to cook the lasagne sheets beforehand? i have seen recipes where it says you should, then recipes where it doesnt mention it at all. and needless to say, the packet of lasagne doesn't say either!

Jen Treehugger said...

Emma! YAY!
Very good question that. You can do either. the only difference being the amount of time the whole dish will take to cook. I did pre-cook my Lasagna because I didn't want to wait an hour for it to bake in the oven and also because everything else was cooked and hot - the sauce, the veggies etc etc. It only took about 25 mins in the oven that way.
:)

Tracy said...

This looks and sounds amazing! I love your chickpea puree, I am so going to try this some time. Thanks!

Melisser; the Urban Housewife said...

Ooh, that looks fabulous!

STEPHANIE said...

1) I love Kasabian.
2) I have never even heard of chickpea sauce and cannot wait to try it
3) I'm so glad you have a new kitchen because your recipes are rockin!!!!

Amanda said...

Yum!! I can't wait to try this with the chickpea sauce!! Your kitchen IS magic!

aTxVegn said...

This looks fabulous, Jeni! I can't wait to make the chickpea sauce.

Bethany said...

omg! fries w/ lasagna, why has this never occured to me? mmmmmmm....

Monique a.k.a. Mo said...

Oh my goodness! That lasagna looks bomb. I am loving the idea of chickpea sauce.