Unghi Munghi Chicka Chicka Fungi... it was just a game when I was small jungling balls. And when I grew older, we had mushrooms but not to the extent we eat them today. Maybe they weren't readily available. I really don't know. It was just sort a side dish to steak at a steak house. It was also believed that they had no nutritional value. It is only of late that we learnt more about them. We were also taught never to pick wild mushrooms. They look like the good ones but may not be. Last week I noticed I had beds of large mushrooms under the spruce trees. I asked my gardener if they were edible and he said no. They must have grown out of the fertilizer he used. Now there is much ado about mushrooms now that red meat is out, the fat's way down and spiced up, grilled and roasted portobellos have the taste and texture of a thick, juicy steak so you better leave shroom for seconds.
For years, especially when the kids were small, I made a vegetarian lasagna that the kids really loved. Times have changed and I am now trying to cut the calories by adding more vegetables and roasting them in the oven first for flavour. As well I am using Olivieri, whole grain, ready-to-cook, lasagna sheets. I also add a little balsamic vinegar instead of sugar.
Also, light ricotta cheese is often the choice of the newer cooks and chefs so I am doing a combination of the old 1% Nordica small curd cottage cheese and new light and smooth Ricotta. But the hugest of ingredients has to be the large amount of Portobello mushrooms in this "Less-Agna" dish.
A word about Portobello mushrooms... they are actually just overgrown cremini mushrooms. They are an excellent meat substitute for all kinds of dishes. The Portobello also contains powerful phytonutrients, such as recently discovered lentinan, which seems to protect our DNA from damage. In short, they reduce the risk of cancer.
My go to spices were the typical Italian mixture of basil, thyme and oregano. I still like that although Rosemary has made a big rise, my taste buds find that it is used in too large quantities and over power the dish. I also used to make my own pasta sauce very simply with whole canned tomatoes and onions, garlic and Italian spices and salt and pepper. It was simple and tasty but often runny.
Now I use bought, prepared pasta sauce. There are so many kinds out there, you just have to find your favourite.
I didn't use parsley then either but maybe it negates the bad breath from the onions. It is like nature's mouthwash". It's odour-absorbing chlorophyll will freshen your breath plus it has diuretic properties which will help you beat the bloat so your little black dress will zip up without a hitch or you won't have to wear the elastic-waisted pants ... lovingly called her "eating pants" by a friend of mine.
LESS-AGNA IS A FUNGI TO BE AROUND
makes 8 servings. 353 calories, 9.1 g total fat, 23 g protein, 47 g carbohydrate, 3 g fiber, 19 mg cholesterol, 629 mg sodium
ingredients
3 to 5 cups of portobello mushrooms cut in chunks
2 medium zucchini unpeeled, cut into 8ths and sliced about 1/2" pieces
1 large red pepper and 1 large yellow bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1 large red onion thinly sliced then chopped
1 tbsp. Olive oil
2 tsp minced garlic
1 tsp balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon of mixed Italian spices
1 400 g container of part-skim ricotta cheese
1 500 g container of Nordica 1% cottage cheese
1/3 cup of minced fresh parsley (although I used scissors and give it a hair cut)
1/4 cup of grated Parmesan or Asiago Cheese
1 large egg
1 package of fresh Olivieri Whole Grain Lasagna sheets
3 cups of your favourite low-sodium tomato past sauce
1 and 1/2 cups of packed shredded light mozzarella cheese
method
1. spray a large roasting pad with cooking spray. add mushrooms, zucchini, bell peppers, onion, olive oil, garlic, vinegar, and Italian spices, salt and pepper. Mix well, until vegetables are coated with seasonings. Roast, uncovered at 400 degrees for 25 minutes, stirring halfway through cooking time.
2. while vegetables are roasting, prepare cheese filling and if you are using a pasta that requires pre-cooking, do it now. in a medium bowl, combine ricotta and cottage cheeses, 1/3 cup parsley, parmesan or asiago cheeses, and egg. Mix well.
3. to assemble Less-Agna, spray a 9 x 13 inch baking dish with cooking spray. spread 1/4 cup of pasta sauce over bottom of pan. Arrange lasagna noodles, spread 1/2 cheese filling over the noodles, followed by 1/3 of the roasted vegetables. Sprinkle vegetables with 1/3 of the mozzarella. Repeat layering: noodles,other half of the cheese filling, 1/3 of the roasted vegetables followed by 1/3 of the mozzarella cheese. Last layer: noodles, pasta sauce and remaining roasted vegetables.
sprinkle with remaining mozzarella cheese.
4. bake at 400 F for 35 minutes. Remove lasagna from oven. let cool for 10 minutes before serving.
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