Vegetable Lasagna
Why I Love This Recipe
Ingredients You'll Need
1 lb. carrots, washed, and cut into 1/4-inch disks
6 Tbsp. butter, plus additional butter for greasing pan
6 large garlic cloves, peeled and cut in half
Salt
1 lb. zucchini, soaked, washed and trimmed into 1/4-inch disks
1 lb. broccoli
Lasagna noodles
For the béchamel sauce:
3 cups milk
5 Tbsp. butter
4-1/2 Tbsp. flour
Pinch of salt
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1/8 tsp. grated nutmeg
1-3/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan
12x9” Lasagna pan or equivalent
Directions
Choose a skillet that can subsequently accommodate the carrots loosely.
Put in 1-1/2 Tbsp. of butter, 2 of the garlic cloves, and turn on the heat to medium.
When the garlic becomes colored a light brown, remove it from the pan.
Add the carrots and 3 Tbsp. of water.
Cook the carrots, stirring from time to time, until they are tender, but firm, somewhat shrunken, and a light brown in color.
Do not let them break up.
When done, add salt and transfer to a small mixing bowl.
In a clean skillet large enough to accommodate the zucchini loosely, put in 1-1/2 Tbsp. of the butter and 2 more garlic cloves.
Turn on the heat to medium.
When the garlic becomes colored a light brown, remove it from the pan.
Add the sliced zucchini and cook them as you did the carrots.
When they have shrunk, becoming colored a light brown, and are tender but firm, add salt, stir, and then transfer them from the pan to a small mixing bowl.
Wash the broccoli in cold water, and then peel away the hard green skin from the stems.
Bring a pot of water to a boil, add salt, and then drop in the broccoli.
Cook until nearly tender, but still very firm.
Drain; as soon as it is cool enough to handle, cut it into 1/2-inch pieces.
Put 2 Tbsp. of the butter and the remaining 2 garlic cloves in a clean skillet and turn on the heat to medium.
When the garlic becomes colored and light brown, remove it.
Put in the broccoli pieces and cook, turning them frequently, until they are tender, but not mushy.
Transfer them from the pan into a third mixing bowl.
Cook lasagna noodles according to package directions.
Make the béchamel sauce by melting the butter in a heavy 1-qt. saucepan over low heat.
Add the flour and pinch of salt to melted butter.
Over low heat, stir together until smooth.
Gradually stir in milk; cook, stirring constantly, until thickened and smooth.
When done, mix into it the grated nutmeg and 1 cups of the Parmesan cheese.
Set aside 1/2 cup of the béchamel and divide the rest into 3 equal parts.
Into each of the 3 bowls containing the cooked vegetables mix 1 of the 3 portions of béchamel.
Taste and correct for salt.
Smear the bottom of a 12x9-inch lasagna pan generously with butter.
Spread 1 Tbsp. of béchamel over the buttered bottom.
Line the bottom with a layer of pasta strips fitting them edge to edge, but making sure they do not overlap.
Preheat the oven to 400º F.
Spread half of the zucchini and béchamel mixture over the pasta.
It doesn’t matter if there isn’t enough to cover the pasta completely, as long as long as any gaps in the zucchini are filmed lightly with béchamel.
Sprinkle some grated Parmesan evenly over this layer.
Cover the zucchini with another layer of pasta—always edge to edge and without overlaps.
Spread half the carrot and béchamel mixture over the pasta in the same manner you spread the zucchini, topping the layer with a sprinkling of grated cheese, and covering it with another layers of pasta.
Spread half the broccoli and béchamel mixture over this.
Top again with pasta.
Repeat the above operations until you have used up all the vegetables.
Top with a layer of pasta.
Spread the remaining béchamel over the pasta, sprinkle the rest of the grated cheese over it, and dot with the remaining tablespoon of butter.
Place the pan in the uppermost level of the preheated oven. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until a light golden crust forms on top.
Allow to settle for at least 10 minutes before serving.
Can be assembled ahead a day before it is to be baked.
Delicious!
