Summer vegetable lasagne

Portion size: Serves 6-8
Hands-on time 40 min. Oven time 35-40 min, plus simmering time 40 min
Difficulty: easy

Freezable

Vegetarian

Recipe by: Debora Robertson

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This summer vegetable lasagne from food writer Debora Robertson is packed with courgettes, aubergine and flame-grilled peppers. Serve with a crisp green salad.

Love a meat sauce? Here’s our classic lasagne recipe

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Ingredients

For the sauce

2 tbsp olive oil
1 large onion, finely chopped
6 garlic cloves, finely chopped
2 tbsp tomato purée
700ml jar passata
1 tbsp red wine vinegar
Pinch caster sugar
8 basil leaves, shredded

For the lasagne

60ml olive oil for brushing
2 medium aubergines, ends trimmed and cut lengthways into 5mm slices
3 medium courgettes, ends trimmed and cut lengthways into 5mm slices
400g fresh lasagne sheets
360g jar flame roasted or chargrilled peppers, drained and cut into thick strips
12-14 basil leaves, torn, plus extra to garnish
375g mozzarella (drained weight), roughly torn
150g parmesan or vegetarian equivalent, coarsely grated

Specialist kit

Deep 33cm x 23cm oven dish

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Method

Begin with the tomato sauce. Warm the olive oil in a saucepan over a low medium heat, then add the onion with a good pinch of salt. Cook gently for 15 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until softened. Add the garlic, cook for 1 minute, then the tomato purée and cook for another minute. Pour in the passata, swish 100ml water around the jar and add that too, then add the vinegar, sugar and a pinch of salt and pepper and simmer for 20 minutes. Stir in the basil.
While the sauce simmers, brush a little olive oil on the ribbons of aubergine and courgette and cook them in batches in a griddle pan over a medium-high heat for a few minutes on each side until soft and lightly charred. As you work, put the slices on a piece of kitchen paper to drain. Continue until all the ribbons are cooked.
Heat the oven to 180°C fan/gas 6. Brush the baking dish with the remaining oil and pour in a thin layer of the tomato sauce. Add a layer of pasta, followed by a layer of aubergines, courgettes and peppers, scattered with some of the torn basil. Sprinkle over some of the mozzarella and parmesan. Repeat this layering – sauce, pasta, vegetables, cheese – until everything is used up, ensuring the top layer is cheese.
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Put the lasagne on a tray and into the oven for 35-40 minutes until the top is golden and bubbling. Leave to rest for 10 minutes before serving, scattered with a few basil leaves.

Nutrition

535kcals Calories
28g (12g saturated) Fat
24g Protein
42g (13g sugars) Carbs
7.5g Fibre
0.9g Salt

Quick wins & tips

This recipe doubles or even trebles up, if you are cooking for a very large crowd.

“I use jarred flame roasted peppers here, but you can grill your own fresh ones as extra displacement activity if you want,” says Debora. “Char the peppers under the grill or directly on the gas hob until blackened, put them in a plastic bag to steam for 15 minutes, then rub off the skins, remove the stem and seeds and cut into thick slices. If you have the barbecue lit anyway, you can also grill the vegetables on that if you prefer.”