Vegetable lasagna

This dish has an exceptionally high fibre content and is also very low in fat.

Although this recipe looks quite long, it is in fact, very easy to prepare and well worth the effort. It is quite delicious for a vegetarian meal.

To soften the lasagna sheets and prevent them from ‘curling up’, dip each sheet in hot water as you assemble the dish.

Ingredients:

1 bunch spinach, washed and stalks removed (500g)
200g instant lasagna sheets
10 ml grated Parmesan cheese (2 teaspoons)
125 ml low fat Mozzarella cheese, grated ( ½ cup) (2 matchboxes cheese)

Vegetable sauce:
5 ml canola or olive oil
2 onions, chopped
10 ml minced garlic (2 teaspoons)
250g sliced mushrooms ( 1 punnet)
½ small green pepper, chopped
1 x 410g can mixed beans, drained
1 x 410g can tomatoes, with juice and mashed
5ml mixed herbs (1 teaspoon)

Cheese sauce:
5 ml lite margarine
20 ml flour ( 2 heaped tablespoons)
375ml low fat milk (1 ½ cups)
60g low fat cheese (2 matchboxes)
pinch of ground nutmeg
2ml salt
freshly ground black pepper to taste

Instructions:

• Lightly steam the spinach until just wilted, drain well
• For the vegetable sauce: Heat the oil in a non-stick frying pan.
• Add the onions and garlic and cook for about 5 minutes.
• Add the mushrooms and green pepper and cook for a further 3 minutes.
• Add the beans, tomatoes and herbs. Simmer for 15 minutes.
• For the cheese sauce: Melt the margarine, and stir in most of the milk.
• Mix the flour with 50 ml of the milk to a smooth paste in a 500ml glass bowl or jug.
• Remove the hot milk from the heat and gradually add the milk (in 50ml amounts) to the flour and water paste, stirring after each addition until smooth. Pour the sauce back into the saucepan.
• Return to heat and stir until sauce boils and is smooth and thickened.
• Remove from heat and stir in cheese, nutmeg, salt and pepper.

To assemble:

• Pour half the vegetable sauce over the base of a lasagna dish.
• Cover with a layer of lasagna sheets, then half the spinach.
• Spread half the cheese sauce over the spinach.
• Top with remaining vegetable sauce and remaining lasagna sheets.
• Cover with remaining spinach and finish with the remaining cheese sauce. Sprinkle with the Parmesan and Mozzarella cheese.
• Bake at 180 C for 45 minutes to one hour until bubbling and brown.

Nutritional Information