Kale & Mushroom Lasagne.
This delicious vegan lasagne can be adapted easily to suit your taste. Don’t have any kale? Use sautéed spinach. Don’t like mushrooms? Try using a layer of roasted peppers or squash instead.
There are several processes here so it’s not the quickest recipe in the world, but it’s definitely worth it.
Ingredients.
About 300g kale, tough stalks removed
30g dairy-free butter
500g mushrooms, sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced/finely chopped
A few sprigs of thyme (leaves only), chopped
175g lasagne sheets, fresh or dry
About 20g ‘Sheese’, (or any other dairy-free cheese) grated
Olive oil
Salt & Pepper
For the béchamel sauce:
50g dairy-free butter
50g plain flour
750ml oat milk, or any other non-dairy milk you prefer
2 bay leaves
1 onion, roughly chopped
1 celery stalk, roughly chopped
1 garlic clove, halved
6 whole black peppercorns
2 tsp dijon mustard
Equipment.
3 pans: large saucepan for the kale, large frying pan for the mushrooms, small-medium pan for the béchamel sauce
Sieve
Whisk
28 x 22 cm (or thereabouts) ovenproof dish
Method.
Preheat the oven to 180°C
Heat the oat milk for the béchamel sauce in a small-medium saucepan with the bay leaf, onion, celery and peppercorns until just below simmering. Remove from the heat and leave to infuse.
Roughly shred the kale. Put into a large saucepan and just cover with cold water. Add salt & bring to the boil, reduce the heat and simmer for 2-3 minutes, until just tender. Drain well and set aside.
Heat half the butter in a large, wide frying pan over a medium heat. Add half the mushrooms and some salt and pepper. Increase the heat and fry, stirring often, for 5-10 minutes, until the liquid released by the mushrooms has evaporated and they are starting to reduce, concentrate and caramelise.
Stir in half the garlic and half the thyme, cook for a minute longer, then remove to a bowl. Repeat to cook the remaining mushrooms and set aside.
Gently reheat the infused oat milk, then strain. Heat the butter for the béchamel sauce in the saucepan. Whisk in the flour to form a smooth roux and cook gently for a minute or two. Remove from the heat.
Gradually add in the warm oat milk, whisking constantly until you have a smooth sauce. Return to the heat and cook for a few minutes, still whisking, allowing it to bubble gently until thickened. Stir in the mustard, then add some salt and pepper.
Stir half of the béchamel sauce into the kale & put to one side.
Spread half the remaining béchamel over the bottom of the dish. Layer a third of the lasagne sheets on top, then spoon all of the kale mixture onto the lasagne, spreading it out to the edges. Add another layer of lasagne, then all of the mushrooms. Finish with a final layer of pasta and the remaining béchamel. Scatter over the sheese and add a trickle of oil.
Bake for around 30 minutes until golden and bubbling on top.
