Marina Mustafa

Vegetarian Noodle Lasagne

Serving portions ~ 6 people
Preparation time ~ 30 mins
Cooking time ~ 1 hour 30 mins

To make the lasagne sauce, heat oil in a pot.
Saute’ onions for 2 mins or till soft & fragrant.
Put in the mushroom & capsicum and saute for 3 minutes.
Pour in the stewed tomatoes, tomato puree and water.
Put in the grated carrots and celery.
Cook on medium flame for 1/2 an hour.
Flavor with salt, sugar & Italian seasoning.
In a smaller separate pot, melt the butter.
For the white sauce, put the flour into the butter and mix till well combined into a roux.
Pour the fresh milk over the roux gradually is a slow steady stream while whisking until a shiny and smooth creamy sauce forms.
Put in the grated cheese and turn off the flame.
To assemble the Lasagne, mix the yellow noodles into the tomato sauce.
Scoop 3 ladles of yellow noodles combined with the tomato sauce into a heat-proof casserole dish.
Pour the white sauce over the noodles.
Repeat the process of layering the tomato noodles alternately with the white sauce until the sauces are finished.
Bake the lasagne in a preheated 180ºC oven for 40 mins.
Allow to cool slightly before serving.

To make a meat based Lasagne, just add 400gms of minced chicken/beef immediately after sauteeing the chopped onions and cook for 5 minutes until cooked. Then continue with the following process.
The vegetables used for the Lasagne are interchangeable. Thus any of the vegetables can be omited or replaced. The carrots however, adds a natural sweetness to the dish.