myTaste.com
ll Cibo é L'essenza Della Vita....

"The rooms that you use on a daily basis are the rooms people will always want to sit in, because they have soul." --Bunny Williams

“VIVERE SENZA RIMPIANTI” LIVE WITHOUT REGRETS

"If you want to live forever and ever, drink wine and eat maccheroni." ~~~Sicilian Proverb

Monday, September 27, 2010

Meatless Monday!~ Fresh Vegetable Mousse Lasagna with Roasted Tomato and Red Pepper Tomato Sauce



Hi all! Hope everyone had a great weekend! We've had some very warm temps, but according to the weatherman Fall is actually on the way. 

Today we actually had rain! Lots of rain! 

Woo Hoo!

We haven't had a lawn in months- straw is the name of the game

So, today for Meatless Monday I decided that since I was spending this rainy day at home, I'd make one of Allie's favorite dishes- lasagna

But a completely vegetarian lasagna made extra light with fresh noodles and a fluffy vegetable mousse filling

I have to apologize for the lack of pictures. I made the mistake of turning my back for a minute (I was actually looking for the camera which had "mysteriously" gone missing) and the ravaging hordes got to the lasagna before I found the camera (which had "mysteriously"  found it's way to Allie's room)

"Ummmm....Mom, were you planning on getting a picture of this?"

S-i-g-h.......

You'll have to trust me- it looked much better in person than this picture shows- I managed to get this mid-air as the plate was being passed 



Fresh Vegetable Mousse Lasagna with Roasted Tomato and Red Pepper Tomato Sauce
This recipe is for an 8x8 baking pan.
For the pasta:
2 cups Italian 00 flour or unbleached all purpose flour
good pinch of salt
4 whole eggs
1 additional egg yolk- optional

I made fresh pasta using 2 cups flour, some kosher salt and 4 eggs, but feel free to use boxed noodles. For this lasagna I think the homemade are just lighter. If you do make your noodles, parboil them for 10 seconds then rinse with cool water. Lay on kitchen towels till you use them
For the sauce:
1/3 cup olive oil
4 large red and/or yellow bell peppers, roasted, seeded & coarsely chopped
6 garlic cloves
1 large can Italian San Marzano tomatoes (or 8-10 ripe plum tomatoes, if you can't find San Marzano) I actually used 1 can of tomatoes, 5 large roasted tomatoes, and 1/2 a jar of drained sun-dried tomatoes, sliced thin
handful fresh basil, chiffonaded

Heat oil in heavy large pot over medium heat. Add garlic, lower heat,  and cook slowly till it begins to soften and color. Stir in all tomatoes, peppers, and basil. Cover and simmer 25 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add salt and pepper to taste. Puree in a blender and pour back into pot. Simmer 30 more minutes. Allow to cool. I made it the day before and stored in the fridge overnight
La Besciamella (white sauce):
1/4 cup butter (1/2 stick)
1/4 cup flour
salt and pepper
2 cups whole milk

Melt butter in heavy medium saucepan over low heat, add flour, salt and pepper and whisk. Cook for 1 minute. Add milk slowly, whisking constantly. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer a few minutes, whisking constantly, until sauce has thickened up. Check seasoning.  I pressed some plastic wrap on the surface so a skin wouldn’t form till I was ready to use it
Vegetable Mousse:
1 cup frozen peas, thawed
1 bag baby spinach
1 small onion, chopped
1 tblsp butter
2 eggs
1/2 cup cream
4 ounces mascarpone
about 1/4-1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese- to taste
salt and pepper

Saute chopped onion in butter till translucent and soft.Wash spinach and put in a covered pot with the water that’s clinging to the leaves. Steam till wilted. Drain very well. Combine peas, spinach, onion mixture, eggs, cream, mascarpone, parmesan cheese, salt, and pepper in food processor and pulse to puree

To assemble:
Spray a baking dish with Pam.   Spread a thin layer of pepper sauce on bottom and layer with 2-3 noodles (whatever it takes to cover the bottom of your dish. spread with 1/2 of vegetable mousse mixture and sprinkle with shredded Fontina. Layer with more noodles then a layer of besciamella Continue with noodles, pepper sauce, noodles, vegetables and cheese, noodles, besciamella, and a final layer of noodles. Top with pepper sauce, cover with foil and bake at 375 degrees for 45 minutes. Uncover, sprinkle with Fontina and bake an additional 10-15 minutes. Allow to rest for 15 minutes before cutting

Tutti a Tavola!!!

Be sure to come back- we've got some great Fall dishes planned this week
Don't forget- shop your Farmer's Markets, shop local, and let us know what you're up to- we'd love to hear from you.
What's on your table this week?

Join our list of friends on Bramasole's Facebook fan page- Bonus Recipes every week!

As Always,

Buon Cibo, Buon Amici,

Pattie and Allie

10 comments:

  1. Maybe not a lot of pictures of this Pattie, but what I am seeing I am loving! This looks fabulous! I think I love vegetarian lasagna's most of all!

    ReplyDelete
  2. I don't make lasagna often and when I do it's usually a mushroom or vegetable lasagna. This sounds so delicious! I love the sound of the mousse filling. The plate may have been flying but I think you captured the the essence of it ;)

    ReplyDelete
  3. I LOVE moussse lasagnas..So easy to eat..I will try this..Thank you..Funny I JUST posted one too:) have a great day.

    ReplyDelete
  4. This looks great and can't wait to try it.I use bechamel often. Thank you for posting when I know you are so busy ~Emelia.

    ReplyDelete
  5. This is amazing....I'm going to try and make it for my family. Thanks for sharing. :-)Love your pictures.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Sounds like a great meatless meal. No one missed the meat, I am sure!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Oh, this looks so light and lovely. When we took our cooking class in Tuscany our favorite quote from our native Italian teacher was, "American lasagna is like a brick, lasagna should be like a cloud!" Truly making the noodles homemade and using the bechemel sauce makes it like that and now adding the vegetable mousse, I can't imagine the mouth feel of this.

    ReplyDelete
  8. This sounds so delicious! I love lasagna...Kisses

    http://chiara-lavogliamatta.blogspot.com/2010/09/lasagne-golose-con-pancetta-e-scamorza.html

    ReplyDelete
  9. Pattie
    I am so glad you managed to get a photo before your lasagna was devoured! I can certainly see why it was, it looks positively delicious! What a great way to make the filling and I love using marscapone..much better than ricotta! You never cease to amaze me with your creations....you should have your own tv show!

    ReplyDelete

We LOVE comments and it's a great way to lead us to your home! Thanks for visiting!