Beef and Broccoli Lasagne; What’s on Your Counter? and Weekly Menu

We decided to move to Andorra while we were living in Ireland.

So, naturally, we immediately started Spanish language lessons.

Our teacher was a young woman from Valencia (pronounced ba-LEN-thia) who had followed her Irish boyfriend home from a holiday.

The thing that amazed her most about Ireland was that there were no fruit bowls on counters in Irish kitchens.

Seemed perfectly normal to me.  I didn’t grow up with a fruit bowl on the counter either.

In Spain a kitchen is not complete without an overflowing fruit bowl for family and guests to enjoy.

Now I have 2 or 3, depending on the season.

In winter, I fill the big, hand-painted bowl from Spain with oranges, Clementine’s, bananas and avocados.  The kiwi fruit go in a separate basket – they cause the citrus to rot.

In summer I fill 3 or more bowls with peaches, plums, nectarines, cherries, grapes and tomatoes.

I fill them at least once a week.  Because they are there, on the counter, in full view, the fruit gets eaten.

Next to them, in a big basket, I keep walnuts, hazelnuts and almonds in the shell.

They’re great to snack on when you’re just looking for a bit of crunch…. And the fact that you have to crack the nut first, then pick out the meat before you eat it is a great deterrent to eating too many.

Our snack foods are fruits and nuts.

We don’t bother with the other kind….

Lots of people put spinach or courgette or aubergine (eggplant) in their lasagne….

I had to be different.

To make certain the vegetables were done I sautéed them first… Then I decided I might as well make the Béchamel right in the skillet with the vegetables.  Always with an eye to the easy…..

Beef and Broccoli Lasagne  Serves 4

The vegetables:
2 carrots
1/2 head broccoli, about 4oz (125gr)
1 onion
6oz (175gr) mushrooms, trimmed
1 tbs butter
1 tbs olive oil
2 tbs flour
1 1/4 cups (10oz, 300gr) milk

The beef:
2 cloves garlic
12oz (350gr) ground beef (mince)
2 cups (15oz, 450gr) tomatoes
1 cup (8oz, 240gr) tomato sauce
1 tbs tomato paste
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp dried basil
1 tbs olive oil

The rest:
8oz (250gr) fresh mozzarella
1/4 cup (1oz, 30gr) shredded cheese
1/2 cup (2oz, 60gr) shredded Parmesan
12 – 15 sheets ‘no-cook’ lasagna noodles

The vegetables: Roughly chop the broccoli. Peel and chop the carrot and onion. Trim and chop the mushrooms. Heat butter and oil in a large skillet. Add vegetables and sauté until tender, 12 – 15 minutes. Add flour and stir well. Slowly add milk, stirring constantly as it thickens, until it is all added. Continue stirring until it just starts to simmer. Remove from heat.
The tomato: Mince garlic. Heat oil a large nonstick skillet. Add garlic and sauté briefly. Add beef and brown well, breaking it up. Open tomatoes and roughly chop, reserving juices. Add tomatoes, juices, sauce, paste and herbs to beef. Bring to a simmer and let cook, uncovered 5 minutes.
The rest: Slice the mozzarella as thinly as possible. Shred the cheeses.

Now you are ready to assemble: in a 10″ (25cm) square (or 11 x 9) baking dish, or so…make the following layers:

1/3 of the meat / tomato sauce
3 noodles, you may have to break another one up to get good coverage

1/2 of the vegetable / Béchamel sauce
1/2 of the mozzarella
3 noodles, breaking another as needed

1/3 of the meat / tomato sauce
3 noodles, breaking another as needed

1/2 of the vegetable / Béchamel sauce
1/2 of the mozzarella
3 noodles, breaking another as needed

1/3 of the meat / tomato sauce
1/4 cup shredded cheese

Cover and bake 425F (215C) for 25 minutes, or until noodles are done. Test in center with a sharp knife.
Uncover, sprinkle with Parmesan and bake 5 minutes longer to brown cheese. Remove and let rest for 5 minutes. Cut into squares (or oblongs) and serve.

In
addition
to
this,
for the weekly menu for February 5 we have Braised Lamb and Potatoes, Baked Salmon with Creamed, Browned Onions, Chicken Paprikas, Warm Endive Salad, Roman Egg Soup…

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For more recipes visit my internet cook book:  Easy Gourmet Dinners.