I love
zucchinis and today I am attempting a bit of an experiment that hopefully will
turn out just as yummy as I imagine it and will find a lot of likes with
everyone. It is essentially a mix between Lasagne and Moussaka but I love the
taste of Zucchinis and so I mixed it all up a bit.
Ingredients to serve 4:
3 Zucchinis
2-3
garlic cloves
500 gram
minced beef
300 gram
potatoes
1 red
onion, finely chopped
1 tbsp.
mixed herbs
2 bay
leaves
1 tin
chopped tomatoes
2 tbsp.
tomato purée
Some
grated nutmeg to taste
Olive
oil
Groundnut
oil for frying
Sea salt
and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 jar of
lasagne white sauce
50 gram
of grated parmesan
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Peel the
Zucchinis with a Julienne peeler the long way into super thin slices. Lay them
out on a tray and sprinkle with salt. Set aside for 10 minutes.
Put the
onions, garlic, mixed herbs, bay leaves in a large heavy-based frying pan and
cook over a medium heat for 10 minutes, stirring with a wooden spoon to break
up the meat.
Add the
tomatoes, tomato purée and bring to a simmer. Cook for 15 minutes,
stirring occasionally until the meat is tender and the sauce has
thickened. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste. I let it
bubble on a low heat in the background to really reduce any excess liquid, this
ensures that it will all hold together in the dish and when serving.
Pat the
zucchini pieces dry with a clean tea towel. Heat three tablespoons of the oil
in a heavy-based frying pan and fry the Zucchinis for 2-3 minutes on each side,
adding more oil when necessary. Remove from the pan and set aside to drain on
kitchen paper.
Cook the
potatoes in boiling water until done, then drain and let cool down. I boil
them with the skin on as it is leaves them with more structure and they are
easier to cut once cooled down. Also the skin contains Vitamin D.
Preheat
the oven to 200 C.
Once the
potatoes have cooled down enough cut them into thin slices and we can
start to layer. Take an ovenproof dish and start by putting a little bit of
butter on the base and the sides. Then put layers of potatoes, meat and
zucchini down. Sprinkle with parmesan and a bit of grated nutmeg, repeat until
you have no more mixture left.
Top the
rest of the white sauce evenly over the top and then cover with the remaining
parmesan and off into the oven.
After 35
minutes it should all be bubbling away nicely. Take out the dish and let it sit
for 5-10 minutes to cool down a bit. It will be easier to cut into pieces.
