The time came last week when I had to bite the bullet and serve leeks to the children as they just seemed to be multiplying in the vegetable drawer in the fridge. The kids are not fans, but a quick google for ideas led me to Jamie Oliver’s Leek Lasagne, and as the children are recent converts to lasagna I thought I might get away with it as long as I could hide the leeks.
A food processor made finely slicing the leeks painless, but next time I would quarter them lengthways before slicing as one child in particular began suspiciously drawing out long strands of ‘green spaghetti’ and announced he would rather have meat in lasagna next time!
I, and Dad, were very pleased and I would definitely make this again possibly substituting courgette or finely chopped kale in place of leek depending what we have more of. I would also use less leeks to make is less scary, use cream cheese rather than ricotta (cheaper and more cheesy), use fresh lasagna sheets if possible.
1 tbsp olive oil
2 medium/large leeks, thinly sliced
1 large onion, thinly sliced
250g frozen chopped spinach,
350g cream cheese
1 pack fresh lasagne sheets
125 g mozzarella ball
75 g fresh Parmesan or mature cheddar
Salt & pepper
Tomato Sauce
2 tins chopped tomatoes
4 cloves of garlic
Preheat the oven to 180C.
Finely slice the onion and gently fry in a large pan in the olive oil. Add the leek when finely chopped and leave to soften gently whilst you prepare the tomato sauce, stirring from time to time.
Finely slice the garlic and fry with a splash of olive oil in a small sauce pan. Add the tins of tomatoes, half a tin of water, a good pinch of salt, and some black pepper. Bring to the boil and simmer for 5 minutes. Take of the heat and liquidise with a stick blender.
Add the frozen spinach to the leeks and onion. When defrosted melt in the cream cheese and enough milk to make the mixture into a porridgy consistency. Season to taste.
Spoon a quarter of the tomato sauce into a large lasagna dish. Cover the tomato sauce with lasagna sheets, then spread half the leek & spinach mixture onto the lasagna sheets. Add a third of the remaining tomato sauce, cover again with lasagna sheets and the remaining leeks & spinach. Add half the remaining tomato sauce, a final layer of lasagna sheets, and then cover with the leftover tomato sauce. Dot with torn up mozzarella chunks and sprinkle with the parmesan/cheddar.
Place on a baking tray and bake for 45 minutes at 180C or until bubbling and golden.
It’s 28th December, and despite having a 5kg bird to work our way through with only five of us I will have to cook sooner or later. So I am trawling through last year’s turkey recipes and thought it would be good to bring them together in one place.
sunhillmakesandbakes 