Ingredients

Method

• 250 g dried lasagne sheets
• sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• ½ cup canola oil
• 2 brinjals, sliced lengthways 1 cm thick
• 350 g baby marrows, sliced lengthways
• 4 T extra virgin olive oil
• 1 onion, diced
• 4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1 large sprig oregano
• 2 large sprigs basil
• 100 g tomato paste 100 g
• 2 x 400 g cans peeled and chopped tomatoes
• 1 t brown sugar
• 500 g Woolworths béchamel sauce
• 150 g mozzarella, grated
• 150 g Cheddar, grated
• 100 g Grana Padano, grated
• paprika, for sprinkling
• 10 basil leaves
• garlic bread, for serving
• salad, for serving

Method

Ingredients

1. Bring a large saucepan of water to the boil and add 2 T salt. Cook the lasagne sheets in batches for 8 minutes per batch, stirring continually to prevent them from sticking together. Lay the cooked lasagne sheets flat on a lightly oiled baking sheet – do not stack the sheets or they will stick together. Set aside until ready to use.

2. Heat a large frying pan and add 6 T oil. It may seem like a lot, but the brinjals soak up quite a bit of oil. Add more while cooking if necessary. Fry the brinjal and baby marrow in batches until golden brown on both sides, seasoning each slice with salt and pepper. The key is to season each layer of this lasagne well.

3. Heat the olive oil in a separate pan. Fry the onion until translucent and fragrant, then add the garlic. Fry for a further minute, then add the herbs. Stir in the tomato paste, tomatoes and sugar. Simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

4. Preheat the oven to 200°C. Spread a layer of béchamel into an ovenproof casserole dish and top with 3 lasagne sheets, covering all the sauce. Top with a layer of brinjal and baby marrow, then ladle over some of the tomato sauce. Level out the sauce with a tablespoon, then top with a thin layer of Grana Padano. Repeat the layers in this manner, ending with mozzarella, Cheddar and Grana Padano. Sprinkle over a little paprika and bake for 15–20 minutes, or until the lasagne is golden and bubbling.

5. Heat the remaining oil in a saucepan and gently fry the basil leaves for a few seconds until crisp and translucent. Serve the lasagne with a fresh salad and warm garlic bread, garnished with the fried basil.

Find more lasagne recipes here

Food Stylist: Khanya Mzongwana
Food assistant: Bianca Jones
Photographer: Jan Ras