I cut the vegetables lengthwise and grill and season them first (I use a grill pan). Then, importantly, you have to pat them very, very dry with paper towels. Otherwise they will cook down further in the pan, and you'll have a soggy lasagna (which is still pretty good, actually, you just have to drain it somewhat.) Then you put a bit of sauce in your pan, and lay the veggies down as you would the noodles.
You can use any veggie you like: eggplant (which you don't have to salt and drain if you grill them), zucchini, yellow squash, even potatoes, which have starch and actually help thicken things up a bit. (I know, I should have cut these eggplant lengthwise, but I forgot. Still pretty good. Doesn't matter, really, as long as they are sliced thinly.)
You alternate the layers with the filling: a mixture of one medium tub of ricotta (again, drained very well), one egg, one cup of mozzarella cheese, a half cup to one cup of parmesan, a couple tablespoons of diced flat parsley, a little salt and pepper, and a dash of nutmeg. Don't use too much filling, or you'll have the water problem again.
I top mine with smoked gouda or mozzarella, some more parmesan, and bake it at about 375 degrees for 45 minutes.
You can also add ground turkey meat or ground sausage to the sauce, or simply add tomato paste to the drained ground meat, and use that as a layer (which again helps it to stay undiluted). Or, go on your merry veggie way and skip the meat.
The smoky flavor adds a little interest to it. Just steer clear of Trader Joe's Light Smoked Gouda. Terrible. I'll never go the way of light cheese again. Remember the Friends episode where one of the guys compares how much he hates something to Monica's feelings on light mayonnaise? (She says, "IT'S NOT MAYONNAISE!!") Well, that's how I feel about light cheese. Plastic doesn't melt, folks. If you wanna go light, I say eat real food and try portion control instead.
Or not... It IS veggies, after all.
Do you remember those old commercials for Encore forzen entrees where the shopper talks to the store worker, who was played by "Al" from "Happy Days" and he always ended the conversation with telling the person that he and his family would be over for dinner that night? That's how I feel when I read your entries.
ReplyDelete(Also, there's no way an Encore entree would feed more than 4 people in a satisfying way. Especially Al.)
As a side note, I still love Encore chicken parmigiana. I don't know why! But it's true, when you're the only one eating them, you have to chisel them out one at a time.
ReplyDeleteI need your family to come over and help me eat!
Yum...looks delish. Although I would get snarls from the rest of the family, the could just eat PB&J.
ReplyDelete