The words “vegetable lasagne” can strike fear into anyone who’s ever endured a soggy rendition with limp veg, bland tomato sauce and watery bechamel. Many of us still shudder at the memory of early attempts to veggie-fy traditional comfort foods that did a disservice to both the diner and the ingredients. But it doesn’t have to be that way. These recipes show how vegetarian lasagne can be elevated into a true classic, with seasonal variations that right those past wrongs and let great ingredients shine. As the dishes in Feast’s pages prove week after week, we’ve come a long way when it comes to creative meat-free cooking, and baked pasta can pair beautifully with vegetables in every season.
Aubergine arrabbiata lasagne (pictured top)
For this summer vegetable lasagne, I’ve ditched the white sauce entirely and the tomato sauce is more arrabbiata than plain tomato – garlicky, fiery and thick enough to hold everything together. The sauce can be made up to two days in advance and kept chilled, or frozen for three months. You can assemble the whole lasagne ahead of time and chill it for up to two days, or freeze it unbaked. Cook from frozen at 200C (180C fan)/390F/gas 6 for 50-60 minutes, covering it with foil for the first half of the cooking. Leftovers keep well for two days and are excellent reheated.
Prep 20 min
Salt 20 min
Cook 1 hr 20 min
Serves 6
3 aubergines, cut into 1cm chunks
Salt and black pepper
6 tbsp olive oil
2 garlic cloves, peeled and thinly sliced
2–3 red chillies, stalks, seeds and pith discarded, flesh finely chopped
3 400g tins chopped tomatoes
1 tsp red-wine vinegar
1 pinch white caster sugar
1 small bunch fresh basil, leaves picked and chopped, stalks set aside, plus extra to serve
2 mozzarella balls, drained and coarsely grated
40g parmesan (or vegetarian alternative), grated
9 dried lasagne sheets – egg ones work best, because they go soft and silky
Put the aubergine chunks in a colander, add a good pinch of salt and toss well. Set the colander over the sink and leave for 20 minutes to draw out the moisture. (If you want, weigh down the aubergines with a plate and a couple of tins to squash them as they salt.) Once they’ve softened and browned, pat dry.
Put most of the oil in a large frying pan on a medium heat, then fry the aubergines for 10-12 minutes, stirring now and then, until golden brown and soft. Stir in the garlic and chilli, cook for two minutes more, until fragrant, then tip in the tomatoes; swill out each empty can with a small splash of water and pour that in, too. Stir in the vinegar, sugar and basil stalks, season generously and leave to simmer for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until thick and saucy.
Heat the oven to 210C (190C fan)/410F/gas 6½. To assemble, start with a layer of sauce in a medium-sized lasagne or gratin dish and scatter over a little mozzarella and parmesan. Sprinkle over half the chopped basil leaves and top with half the lasagne sheets – snap them to fit as needed. Repeat the layers once more, then finish with a final layer of sauce.
Load the top with all the remaining grated cheese and the rest of the basil, then bake for 35-40 minutes, until golden on top and bubbling at the edges. Let it sit for at least 10 minutes before slicing – it’s much better warm than piping hot, and it will be easier to slice.
Ligurian potato and pesto lasagne
I first came across this dish at a wedding in Liguria and was having problems recreating it, so I asked the don of pasta, Gennaro Contaldo, for advice. He talked me through the version you see below. The pesto and bechamel can both be made up to two days in advance and chilled, while the whole lasagne can be assembled and kept in the fridge for 24 hours before baking; it also freezes well. Leftovers reheat nicely the next day, too.
Prep 15 min
Cook 1 hr 15 min
Serves 6
300g green beans, trimmed
500g small waxy potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced
300g fresh lasagne sheets (about 8 large sheets)
50g parmesan (or vegetarian alternative), grated
1 small handful pine nuts
For the pesto
50g pine nuts
1 plump garlic clove, peeled
25g parmesan (or vegetarian alternative), finely grated, plus extra to serve
2 large handfuls basil leaves
200ml olive oil
Salt and black pepper
For the bechamel
50g butter
50g plain flour
600ml whole milk
1 parmesan rind, if you have it (optional)
Freshly grated nutmeg
First make the pesto. Toast the pine nuts in a dry frying pan for a few minutes, until golden all over, then tip into a food processor with the garlic, parmesan, basil and half the oil. Blitz to a paste while slowly pouring in the rest of the oil, until the pesto is pale green and creamy. Season to taste, then scrape into a bowl (cover with extra oil if making ahead).
Now for the bechamel. Melt the butter in a saucepan, stir in the flour and cook gently for a couple of minutes. Pour in the milk bit by bit, stirring between each splash, until you’ve got a smooth, creamy sauce. Add the optional parmesan rind, leave the sauce to bubble gently for a few minutes, then season with salt, pepper and nutmeg to taste.
Bring a large pan of salted water to a boil. Drop in the green beans, simmer for three to four minutes, until just tender, then scoop out with a slotted spoon and set aside. In the same water, simmer the potato slices for five or six minutes, until just cooked through, then drain.
Heat the oven to 210C (190C fan)/410F/gas 6½. Spoon a little bechamel over the base of a roughly 20cm x 30cm ovenproof baking dish and top with a layer of lasagne sheets. Drizzle over a generous spoonful of pesto, then scatter on a few green beans. Add a layer of sliced potatoes and some grated parmesan, seasoning lightly as you build up the dish. Repeat with more pasta, a little bechamel, more pesto and veg until the beans and potatoes are used up, but you still have plenty of bechamel and pesto left over. . Swirl the remaining pesto and bechamel over the top layer of pasta, then scatter on the remaining parmesan and the untoasted pine nuts.
Bake for 25-30 minutes, until golden and bubbling, then remove and leave to sit for five to 10 minutes before cutting the lasagne into squares.
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These recipes are edited extracts from One Dish Four Ways: Classic Recipes Reimagined For Every Season, by Barney Desmazery, published by Quadrille at £22. To order a copy for £19.80, go to guardianbookshop.com
