WHERE'S THE BEEF? - VEGETABLE LASAGNA

Hello again, friends!  Time for yet another trip to culinary Nirvana with this installment of the Blog.  I’ve decided to do something a little bit different (at least for me), and talk about a fresh twist on a classic dish. 

I’m a HUGE fan of Italian cuisine.  I love the flavors, the herbs, the freshness, and most of all the wide variety of Italian meats that accompany many of the dishes that I like the best.  Sit me down in front of a big ol’ plate of soppressata, Calabrese salami, cappocola, or prosciutto, with a big (and I do mean BIG) glass of Chianti and there’s nothing you can do to get the smile off my face.  And one of my absolute favorite things to make from scratch is Italian sausage.  I put it in everything from pizza to marinara sauce, and it’s a staple component in my…wait for it…LASAGNA!! 

But (of course there’s a “but”) today I have to force myself to set aside my carnivorous tendencies in order to share with you a wonderful way to make classic lasagna without a lick of meat anywhere to be found.  And before you shimmy your mouse up to the red X button to get rid of this page, just wait a second.  I promise that this recipe has just as much flavor and punch as the original, and is a great way to get your lasagna fix without it being chock full of meat. 

All you really need to get started is a few of your favorite vegetables (there are a few that are must-haves), some tomatoes, and some herbs.  Obviously you’ll need something for the filling like ricotta (or you can use cottage cheese if you prefer a thicker texture) and parmesan cheese, and you’ll need a box of standard-issue lasagna noodles.  You can get as sexy with the noodles as you want, and by that I mean you can go El Cheapo and get the $1 store brand, or you can splurge for the whole-grain, hoity-toity “healthy” pasta.  It’s entirely up to you. 

Vegetable Lasagna (Lasagne di Verdure in Italian) starts with a solid base of aromatics, and then adds layers and layers of flavors on top, ending with a beautiful bath of tomatoes and every chef’s favorite ingredient: time.  So, I’m not going to give you “the” answer to the question “how do I make it,” but instead give you a basic approach so that you can literally build your own.  What follows is one general approach to getting to a good veggie lasagna.

Get yourself a large dutch oven with a healthy glug-glug-glug of good extra virgin olive oil in the bottom.  Heat that baby over medium to medium-high heat and add one diced onion (or two if you like) and about 5 cloves of fresh garlic, minced.  Stirring frequently, cook the onions and garlic until soft, about 2-3 minutes.  Don’t forget to season as you go; layers of flavor are what you’re after.  I add a pinch or three of Kosher salt and a few turns of fresh black pepper at this point.

Next, you’ll want to start adding your veggies, and a good rule of thumb is to add them in the order of their relative strength.  By that I mean if a vegetable tends to break down under heat (e.g., squash, tomatoes), then add them toward the end.  Things like bell peppers, carrots, etc. are “harder” and take longer to break down, so add them first.  At this point I like to add some diced red bell pepper and soften it up for a couple minutes.  Then, diced yellow squash and/or zucchini, mushrooms (I like to use baby bellas, but morels or chanterelles would be great as well), tomatoes, and then any fresh herbs like basil.  I use an obscene amount of fresh basil in my Italian cooking.

Remember, season as you go, but also TASTE what you’re doing.  Don’t just add salt and pepper because I say so.  Your best gauge of seasoning is your own palette, so make sure to use it.  Also, as a technique, I like to use fresh rosemary in my sauces.  I just take 3 or 4 sprigs of the stuff and drop them right in after the aromatics are soft.  You can add fresh thyme as well, and if you don’t like fishing sticks out of your sauce, tie them all together with butcher’s twine and drop the whole thing in.

A quick note on the tomatoes.  I like to use San Marzano tomatoes when I cook Italian food.  These are peeled, whole plum tomatoes packed with basil, and are a wonderful addition to good Italian cooking.  The trick, though, is to crush them by hand as you put them into the sauce.  I also add the juice they’re packed in, realizing that I have to simmer it down more in order to thicken the lasagna filling.

Once everybody’s in the pool, put your heat on medium and just let everything get happy.  Stir about every 10 minutes or so, and make sure nothing’s sticking to the bottom.  This shouldn’t happen, but it’s good to be sure.  I like to keep it at a decent simmer, making sure that excess water from the veggies cooks out and helps the sauce thicken.

 

Meanwhile, as your pool party is in full swing, you make the other part of the filling.  Take about 32oz. of ricotta (or cottage cheese).  You can use the whole milk or part skim; I don’t really care which.  Add 2 eggs, beaten, about 8oz of grated fresh parmesan (you could use Romano or Asiago if you wish), and salt and pepper.  Mix thoroughly and set aside in the fridge until you’re ready to build the lasagna.

For the last step, bring a pot of salted water to a rolling boil and cook your pasta to al dente.  Make sure not to skimp on the salt.  Italians believe that pasta should taste like the sea.  Make it happen.  I usually add a wicked fist full of salt to my water.

And now, friends, the payoff.  Get yourself at least a 9x13 baking dish, if not an 11x15, depending on how much filling you have and how big of a pan you want to make.  I always rub some olive oil around the inside of the dish to ensure my pasta doesn’t stick when I serve it.  Place a layer of pasta on the bottom, covering all the surface area of the dish.  Slap a few globs of your ricotta mixture on top of the noodles and spread it around.  Then sprinkle a decent amount of shredded mozzarella (or sliced buffalo mozzarella) on top.  Finally (for this layer), spoon a healthy amount of your vegetable filling in there and spread it around.  Repeat this pattern as desired, ending with the vegetable filling on top.  You can dust it with fresh parmesan if desired.

Bake on 350 for about an hour and fifteen minutes.  That’s it.  Oh yeah…make sure to enjoy it too.

Well, friends, I hope that this inspires you to try something new.  As always, feel free to post a comment or shoot me an email.  fearnotyourkitchen@gmail.com

Until next time, friends!

LAISSEZ LES BON TEMPS ROULER!

Ok, friends, I’m well aware that Mardi Gras has come and gone, but that’s no reason not to talk about some of the best food – in my opinion – you can get in the South.  I am, of course, talking about the multifaceted, enigmatic, and myriad flavors that comprise…wait for it…CAJUN FOOD!

Make no mistake, friends, this isn’t for weak palettes.  Done correctly – again, in my opinion – the end result is a precision-guided flavor bomb that can rip your face off and leave you craving more.  The roots of Cajun food lead us back (as many foods do) to times when people used ingredients that grew or could be found near where they lived.  And in those times when people lived in cultural and ethnic pockets, they cooked communally, and the flavors and foods they produced came to define them in a culinary fashion.  That’s why when we think Cajun food, we immediately think New Orleans (or at least Louisiana), gumbo, jambalaya, etc.

When one considers the magnitude of culinary accomplishments we now enjoy – just open any cookbook of substance and flip thorough it – how we ended up with most of our gourmet cuisines is pretty amazing.  Cajun cooking is no exception.  As I mentioned before, we’re talking about small groups of people from common backgrounds making use of what they had available (and usually nothing more), and turning it into something amazing.  They didn’t set out to occupy a culinary niche in modern cookbooks, it just turned out that way.

And so, I will share what I know about getting into the Cajun spirit by providing some basic tips for how to get that huge mess of flavor all up in your business.

First, we have to get a handle on how to get to that flavor profile in the first place.  The best way to do that is to first break down the elements in what comprises Cajun seasoning.  The second thing we’ll go over is the aromatic flavor base called the Holy Trinity, which is nothing more than a “Cajun mire poix.”  And for those who don’t know what a mire poix (pronounced MEER-uh-pwah) is, it’s simply a combination of onion, celery, and carrot that form the flavor base for a lot of wonderful dishes.  In that same fashion, the Holy Trinity forms the flavor base for Cajun food.

Ok, so about that seasoning…

You can really go one of two routes with this: just buy your favorite Cajun blend and be done with it, or do what I do (which I firmly believe is dumb, but satisfying when you get it right), and that is the following:

·         Equal parts Kosher salt, cayenne pepper, paprika (not smoked), minced garlic (dry), and black pepper

·         Half the previous amount each of dried onion, dried oregano, and dried thyme

Now, not to insult anyone’s intelligence, but if you use a quarter cup of the first set, then use 2 Tbs. of the second set (1/4 cup = 4 Tbs.).  Mix thoroughly and store in a dry, airtight container until use.

Keep in mind that this is just one way to do it.  If you want more options – and I certainly encourage you to try a few to see which one you like best – just type “Cajun seasoning” into Google and start looking.

The second, and unequivocally most important, factor in making Cajun food is the Holy Trinity.  As I mentioned before, the Holy Trinity is the mire poix of Cajun food.  But instead of onions, carrots, and celery, the three components are onions, celery, and green bell pepper in equal quantities, diced and sautéed until their mystical flavor magic comes oozing out.  A technique that I personally use when sautéing is to use butter with 1-2 Tbs. of good olive oil to keep it from browning as fast.  I heat the oil/butter over medium-high heat and then toss the Holy Trinity in, stirring and tossing frequently to keep it from browning or burning.  The goal is to sweat the flavor out of the mix, not to just randomly apply heat to vegetables with no purpose in mind.

From here, you can really go a number of directions depending on which particular dish you have in mind.  Now, I could go into the culinary history of each dish (which I assure you is quite interesting), but I’ll leave that to Wikipedia since I’m already getting long-winded and in danger of climbing on the soap box.  A couple of easy ideas that come to mind are the following, all of which are delicious and will scratch that Cajun itch that you must have if you’ve read this far:

·         Gumbo

·         Jambalaya

·         Etouffee

Again, recipes abound on the Interwebs, so poke around and try a few.  I’d love your comments if you find a favorite.

And just to get you in the right frame of mind, here are a few ingredients you’ll absolutely want to have on hand for your excursion to Cajun country:

·         Good rice

·         Chicken and/or shrimp

·         Andouille sausage (pronounced “ahn-DOO-wee”) – a Cajun smoked sausage that’s out of this world!

·         Chicken stock - we make our own here at home, so just ask if you need pointers if you don’t feel like buying it

·         Onions

·         Celery

·         Green bell pepper

·         All the spices I talked about above for Cajun seasoning, or your favorite store-bought blend

·         Worcestershire sauce

·         Good Louisiana hot sauce

·         Fresh tomatoes – go the extra mile and get good ones on the vine if you can find them

·         Bay leaves

·         Fresh garlic – and don’t be afraid to use it…seriously

·         File powder (pronounced “FEE-lay”) – a thickener used in gumbo

Well, friends, that about covers the basics.  Don’t let the long bulleted lists scare you; it’s actually pretty simple when you get down to it.  The best way to do it is to just wade in and do it.  There are tons of great, authentic recipes online that can get you started, and I would love to hear about your experiences.

As always, shoot me a line at fearnotyourkitchen@gmail.com or post a comment if you found something you like, or if you have comments about this post.  Until next time, my friends!