lasagne con melanzane e ricotta!!
To be honest I’m not a big lasagne lover, I do love the MIL’s mini meatball and egg lasagne which she does at Christmas, a similar recipe is actually in this month’s Taste Italia magazine!!! Lasagne is one of our most popular dishes in La Cucina even though most people seem to order chips with it to give it that Irish twist;) We do a huge amount for catering with meat being the most popular choice. Actually mention lasagne in Ireland and everybody thinks of meat, one of the nicest lasagne I’ve had has been a simple pesto lasagne. I spotted this recipe in the Silver Spoon a while back and I liked all of the ingredients so I decided to give it a go this week. It turned out to be a little difficult to do as the princess decided that being down on the floor is just not as much fun as being up in Mammy’s arms while she is trying to put a lasagne together so the two of us actually made it one handed!! She’s in full walking mode by the way which is such a relief, my back is back to it’s normal position!!:)
By the way, if anyone has an Italian dish that they love but can’t quite get the recipe right or if their is a dish you have had in Italy and have never seen it outside of Italy and would love to make it let me know and I will do my best to find the recipe in question, make it and post about it. Robert has asked me about an Aubergine style chutney that he regularly has in Italy but has never seen the recipe for here so I’m on a mission to find it at the moment. There is an aubergine caviar in the Silver Spoon but I don’t think this is it so my search continues!! As always let me know in the comments or by email!!
WHAT YOU NEED:
- 2 large aubergines sliced.
- margarine for greasing
- 300g lasagne sheets - available in La Cucina
- 50g pine nuts, chopped
- 150g ricotta cheese
- 120ml/40z tomato puree - available in La Cucina
- 12 fresh basil leaves
- olive oil for drizzling
- 4 tbsp Parmesan cheese
- salt
WHAT TO DO:
- place the aubergine slices in a colander, sprinkle with salt and leave to drain for 1-2 hours.
- rinse, pat dry and cook under a preheated grill until tender.
- preheat the oven to 180 degrees.
- grease an ovenproof dish with butter.
- cook the lasagne in a large pot of salted boiling water with a dash of olive oil for 6-7 minutes until al dente, drain and place on a damp tea towel.
- arrange a layer of lasagne on the base of the prepared dish, place half the aubergine slices on top and sprinkle with half the pine nuts, half the ricotta, half the tomato puree and six basil leaves.
- drizzle with olive oil and repeat the layers.
- sprinkle the top with lots of parmesan cheese and bake for 40 minutes.
Buon Appetito!!
Random Cooking Term - “BATTUTO”
onion, carrot, celery and garlic chopped with a heavy knife form the basis of many Italian dishes. It is sometimes sauteed with pancetta, pancetta fat or pork-back fat as a base for minestrones and meat dishes.
That looks so beautiful Lorraine! I received the Silver Spoon for my birthday a couple of months ago - what a resource!!! It’s truly incredible!
My husband thinks the whole chips with lasagne thing is a crime! Hehe… and don’t get him started on rice and chilli or Sunday Lunch out!
He just doesn’t get Irish taste buds, although it has to be said sometimes I wonder myself! 
Hi Lorraine,
That recipe looks divine! I am ever so slightly addicted to aubergine so this is a very welcome addition to the recipe file.
Thank you for looking out for that aubergine recipe for me. I am pestering my sister to see if she can find any info for me as well and will keep you posted if she does find something as I think it is something that you would also enjoy.
ok, i’ll bite! one of the singularly best pastas I have ever had was in Rome. unfortunately it translated as cow intestine with Rigatoni. Meaty but light at the same time. Cows intestine was cut the same size and shape as pasta so you never knew what was going in your mouth!
Lasagna and chips?! My english bloke says “of course!” haha
My family loves eggplant any way it’s made! So this would be happily eaten in my house.
(minus the chips!!!) ha ha
mmmmmmmmmmmmmm am having people over Stephens say and this is perfect so everyone can help themselves
Hi there, Lor & Bru!
My name is Shannon and I’m the editorial assistant at Foodbuzz.com. I am very impressed with the quality of your posts and to that end, I’d like to invite you to be a part of our newly launched Foodbuzz Featured Publisher program. I would love to send you more details about the program, so if you are interested, please email me at Shannon@foodbuzz.com.
Cheers!
Shannon Eliot
Editorial Assistant, Foodbuzz.com
shannon@foodbuzz.com
P.S. Your recipes are so innovative and photos beautiful. Kudos on a beautiful blog!
Deb - he’s probably right;)!! We live near Mcdonalds and every Sunday I give out when I see families in there for Sunday lunch!! When it comes to Irish tastes I’ve seen it all, coleslaw on Spaghetti Bolognese and banana on pizza???? I love the Silver Spoon, it does assume you have the basics of cooking but it is def one of the best books out there. The MIL has a really old Italian version passed down through generations - it’s probably an antique at this stage!!
Rob - me too, it’s such a “meaty” veg!! I keep meaning to ask the MIL, she would def know, I’ll try and rem to ask her on Sun!!
Scotsaute - they are big into this in the South, eating every part of the animal especially in Rome!! I’d try anything once:)
Maryann - English and Irish tastes are so alike - BAD;)There was a big discussion on our national radio about tomato ketchup and the things people eat was awful - sandwich with nutella and ketchup - Aghhhhhhhhhh!!
Marie - it’s such a versatile veg but parmigiana is still one of my favourites!!:)
Rachel - this is perfect as it suits both meat eaters and veggies!!:)
Shannon - The site looks great, I’ll be in touch, best of luck I’ll give it a mention:)