Delia Smith Veg Lasagne Recipes

VEGETARIAN LASAGNE

Steps:

• To make the tomato sauce, heat the olive oil in a saucepan. Add the onions, garlic and carrot. Cook for 5-7 mins over a medium heat until softened. Turn up the heat a little and stir in the tomato purée. Cook for 1 min, pour in the white wine, then cook for 5 mins until this has reduced by two-thirds. Pour over the chopped tomatoes and add the basil leaves. Bring to the boil then simmer for 20 mins. Leave to cool then whizz in a food processor. Will keep, cooled, in the fridge for up to three days or frozen for three months.
• To make the white sauce, melt the butter in a saucepan, stir in the plain flour, then cook for 2 mins. Slowly whisk in the milk, then bring to the boil, stirring. Turn down the heat, then cook until the sauce starts to thicken and coats the back of a wooden spoon. Will keep, cooled, in the fridge for up to three days or frozen for three months.
• Heat the oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. Lightly oil two large baking trays and add the peppers and aubergines. Toss with the olive oil, season well, then roast for 25 mins until lightly browned.
• Reduce the oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Lightly oil a 30 x 20cm ovenproof dish. Arrange a layer of the vegetables on the bottom, then pour over a third of the tomato sauce. Top with a layer of lasagne sheets, then drizzle over a quarter of the white sauce. Repeat until you have three layers of pasta.
• Spoon the remaining white sauce over the pasta, making sure the whole surface is covered, then scatter over the mozzarella and cherry tomatoes. Bake for 45 mins until bubbling and golden.

LASAGNE AL FORNO

Steps:

• In a large sauté pan, heat 1 tablespoon oil over medium heat. Add onion and fry for about 10 minutes.
• While the onion is cooking, chop the pancetta. The best way to do this is to roll it up, cut lengthwise then across.
• Once onion is softened, add the pancetta and cook for another 5 minutes.
• Place the pancetta and onion in a 6 quart dutch oven, add another tablespoon of oil to the sauté pan and return to heat.
• Add the ground beef and cook until browned. Transfer to the dutch oven, add another tablespoon of oil to pan and return to heat.
• Add the ground pork and brown.
• Once pork has browned, add it to the dutch oven.
• Preheat oven to 275°F (140°C, Gas Mark 1).
• Place dutch oven on burner and stir ingredients together. Add the tomatoes, tomato purée, red wine, salt, pepper, and about ¼ nutmeg, grated. Stir all ingredients together and bring to a simmer.
• While bringing mixture to a simmer, tear half of the basil leaves from the stem, tear or chop the leaves and add them to the pot. As soon as the mixture is simmering, place in preheated oven. You do not need to cover the mixture.
• Here the recipe says to let simmer for 3 hours before giving a stir, I stirred every 45 minutes.
• When liquid has reduced to a concentrated sauce, season to taste with salt and pepper and add the remainder of the basil.
• About 20-30 minutes before the ragú bolognese is due to come out of the oven, begin the bechamel sauce.
• Place the milk, butter, flour, salt and pepper, and garlic in a large saucepan. Heat oven medium-low heat and whisk until simmering and thickened. Reduce heat as low as possible and simmer for 10 minutes more.
• Sieve the sauce into a large bowl and add the cream. Adjust seasoning and add another quarter of nutmeg.
• Preheat oven to 350°F (Gas mark 4, 180°C).
• Now for the assembly. Organize your materials in the order in which you will use them, with the baking dish on a cookie sheet (to catch spillage) in the middle.
• Spread a thin layer of the ragú bolognese on the bottom of the pan. Cover with ¼ of the bechamel sauce, diced mozzarella and a sprinkling of Parmesan cheese. Add a layer of lasagna noodles (They don't need to be cooked, the large amount of sauce cooks the noodles). Repeat in this manner, finishing off with a top layer of cream sauce and a coating of Parmesan cheese.
• Place in oven (be sure to keep the baking sheet underneath!) and bake for 45-50 minutes or until golden brown and bubbling.