food to glow

Can I call this lasagne if it doesn’t have pasta? I don’t know, but what I do know is that those who think it is lasagne have happily tucked in and cleared their plates. That’s got to count for something, right? Although the naturally gluten-free and low-carb chickpea pancakes (farinata/socca) are a doddle to make, please use pasta sheets, or even loose slippery coils of cooked spaghetti if you can’t get your head around making the pancakes. Try and grab an end slice for yourself to enjoy the delightful crispy edge.

Just to give you fair warning this, like all homemade lasagne, is rather labour-intensive affair, but I really think it is worth the time and effort. You can make all of the fillings, and even the farinatas ahead of time, storing in the fridge for a couple of days until you wish to assemble and bake the lasagne. It also freezes very well so make a double batch and keep one for a time when you want something deeply comforting but have no energy to prepare a nourishing and satisfying meal from scratch. This would make a wonderful gift to a new mum or someone going through cancer treatment. xx

**You will need: 1 medium-sized cast-iron skillet or round ceramic/Pyrex dish (my skillet is 10.5 inch/27.5cm); one-two saucepans, 1 sauté pan (if not using a skillet), several mixing bowls, baking tray, hand blender (ideally) or blender/food processor**

2 quantities of farinata/socca batter

1 small-medium butternut squash (or other winter squash) – about 500g prepared weight – peeled, deseeded and chopped OR equivalent frozen squash pieces

Tomato Sauce

2 tbsp + 2 tsp extra virgin olive oil – divided use (some for squash)

3 medium leeks, finely sliced and chopped – divided use OR 1 ½ large sweet onions (some for squash)

4 garlic cloves, peeled and minced – divided use (some for squash)

½ tsp (or more) crushed red pepper flakes – optional

1 large carrot, very finely chopped

2 stalks celery, very finely chopped

½ red or orange pepper, very finely chopped

1 tsp dried oregano

1 tsp fennel seeds, lightly toasted and crushed

2 x 400g tins/cartons best quality whole tomatoes, crushed with your hands or cut up (tip: whole tomatoes are almost always sweeter than bought chopped)

15g fresh basil, torn (save a few nice leaves for garnish if you wish)

Salt and pepper, to taste (I don’t add salt)

Creamy Spinach

400g spinach leaves, wilted in a little water, drained, pressed of water and finely chopped OR equivalent frozen spinach

300g organic full-fat or half-fat cottage cheese or ricotta (or a mix of both) – blend the cottage cheese with a hand blender to smooth it

1/8 tsp freshly grated nutmeg – more to taste (I use about ¼ tsp, but I like it nutmeggy)

Zest of ½ lemon

1 tsp powdered vegetable stock (optional)

Black pepper, to taste

Top

50g sharp organic Cheddar cheese or vegetarian hard Italian cheese, grated

1 ball organic mozzarella, torn or sliced – optional

1 palmful of dry-cure black olives, stones out and torn – optional

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 200C/400F

2. First, the sauce: make it by adding 1 tablespoon of the oil to a medium saucepan and heat on a low-medium flame. Add two-thirds of the chopped leeks or sweet onions to the pan, along with half of the garlic, and soften for five minutes, stirring occasionally. Add in the chopped carrots, celery, sweet pepper, oregano and fennel seeds and sauté slowly for a further 10 minutes – until the carrots are tender. Pour in the tomatoes and bring to a fast simmer; turn down the heat to a steady bubble, stirring occasionally. If you have the time, simmer the sauce for an hour. Taste the sauce and see if it needs some honey or seasoning – I think a touch of honey is a good idea but you may not. Let it cool a bit, add the basil and blend until nearly smooth with a hand blender

3. While the sauce is simmering, toss the butternut squash pieces in the remaining tablespoon of oil and lay in a single layer on a rimmed baking tray. Bake in the oven for 20 minutes, until softened. Mash lightly with a potato masher, or transfer to a pan and blend to a rough mixture with a hand blender. Set aside. You want there to still be quite a bit of texture so don’t go too mad with the blending or you will get baby food! Oh, and keep the oven on, but turn it down to 180C/350F.

4. Now take your skillet or sauté pan and heat the 2 tsp of olive oil, add in the leeks/onions and sauté with the remaining garlic until softened. Add the cooked, lightly mashed squash, a few tablespoons of hot water to loosen, and mix together.

5. Onto the creamy spinach. Combine together the cooked and chopped spinach, the cottage cheese, nutmeg, lemon zest, stock powder if using.

6. Once you have all of the fillings and sauce made, prepare the soccas as the socca recipe directs (see link in the ingredients list), laying each one on a plate or tray. They don’t need to stay hot. You can do this a day or two ahead of time too.

7. Layering up time! Spread a thin layer of sauce on the bottom of your skillet/baking dish, top with a chickpea pancake, top this with a good smear of butternut squash, smooth on some spinach and add more sauce. Carry on until you run out of filling and farinata. You may have a little of each leftover, but these are handy to bag up and label for the fridge to add to a future solo spaghetti supper.

8. Top the lasagna with the grated cheese, mozzarella slices and olives. Bake the lasagne for 35-45 minutes, until bubbly and lightly browned. Let cool for five minutes or so and serve with a green salad.