East meets West

Passport & Plate - Sri Lankan Lasagne

United Kingdom | Thursday, March 5, 2015 | 4 photos

Ingredients
Serves 4

TOMATO SAUCE
1 tin chopped tomatoes
2 tins lentils (drained)
1 chopped onion
2 crushed garlic cloves
Fresh ginger grated (1 tsp)
1 fresh chilli chopped finely (optional)
Olive oil (or chilli oil for extra spice)
Curry leaves (1 tsp dried)
Mustard seeds (1/2 tsp)
Fenugreek seeds (1/2 tsp)
Cumin seeds (1/2 tsp)
Turmeric (1 tsp)
Salt & pepper
Lasagne sheets (1 pack of fresh sheets approx 4 large)
Small bag baby leaf spinach

WHITE SAUCE
1 tin coconut milk
knob of butter
Plain flour (same amount as butter)
1 cinnamon stick
Mustard seeds (1/2 tsp)
Cumin seeds (1/2 tsp)
Fenugreek seeds (1/2 tsp)
Curry leaves (1 tsp dried)
Handful of grated mild cheese

Method:
1. Gently heat coconut milk with cinnamon stick, seeds and curry leaves and leave to simmer
2. In a separate pan, heat oil and then add all seeds. Cook for ~30 seconds before adding chopped onion, ginger, garlic, chilli and turmeric and cook gently until onions soft
3. In another pot, gently heat the tomatoes with the curry leaves and a pinch of salt and pepper
4. Once onion mix is cooked, add to the tomato sauce and simmer for ~10 minutes before adding the lentils. Taste at this point and can add ground cumin and additional turmeric (~1/2 tsp each) if required. Cook gently until ready for assembly
5. Remove coconut milk from heat and strain into a jug
6. Melt the butter and add flour to make a paste. Gradually incorporate the milk, whilst stirring continuously to make a white sauce. If doesn't thicken enough, can mix a little flour with water and add to sauce. Remove from heat
7. In a deep dish that fits 1-1.5 large lasagne sheets comfortably, start to layer pasta, tomato & lentil sauce and a layer of raw spinach. There should be enough mix to do this twice. Pour white sauce over final layer of pasta and sprinkle with grated cheese.
8. Pop in a preheated oven (180 degrees centigrade) for ~30 minutes or until the top turns golden


East meets West. From the Himalayan foothills to the Piazza del Campo, this recipe is a fusion of some of my most memorable food experiences with a Sri Lankan twist. Sitting under the stars, surrounded by snowy giants in Nepal, some of my best meals on that expedition were cooked up by our local sherpas. Dal was a firm favourite, not only as it was so tasty and nutritious but it was a meal we could share together over the fire, regaling tales of the days adventures. Not to mention my fascination with sitting in the cook tent while they created these taste sensations at 16,000ft.

Fast forward 10 or so years and I'm sat in Sienna's main square, trying to envisage a bareback horse race where anything goes around this cobbled campo whilst tucking into one of my firm favourites, lasagne. Now, you can find this staple pasta dish on nearly all menus around the world and believe me I've sampled my fair share but you can't beat a true Italian made lasagne, using those wonderful, simple local ingredients and freshly made pasta. Despite this I've tried cooking many versions over the years and the one I go back to time and time again is actually a vegetarian dish inspired by Meat free Monday using lentils instead of meat. I felt this was the recipe to use for Passport and Plate, not only is it tried and tested and gets the thumbs up from my meat loving husband but it was so deliciously adaptable to incorporate that Sri Lankan twist, using a dal filling smothered in a coconut white sauce, a foodie fusion of East meets West. Bon Appetite