Finally, time to write. It’s been another several weeks since I’ve been able to post anything and my excuse is: graduation. I can’t believe it’s all over so quickly, and my extra week in California too, but now, I’m on my way back home for a short visit. After that, it’s off to Santiago, Chile to start my life in the real world.
While I’m sad college is over (though don’t get me wrong, I’m soo happy to be done with writing research papers) I’m excited to be moving on to something new and a whole new world of food to explore. Even though most people tell me that Chilean food is nothing to write home about and Santiago is simply not their favorite city, I’m determined to like it. I think it will be adventure to try some of the local cuisine and take advantage of the fresh produce. I was reading on Liz Caskey’s blog, Eat Wine, that she has never seen anywhere with such great fresh produce other than California. As such, when I get to Chile (even though it won’t be summer) I’ll probably be making this no-bake lasagna to make use of the tasty produce. And now that it’s summer in the States, I hope you’ll try it too.
I made this lasagna for my co-op thinking that it would be nice to have a cold meal on a hot summer day and hoping to finally try out some of the recipes on my favorite Spanish food blog, El Comidista. His recipes did not disappoint and had everyone complimenting our food. If you'd like to see the Spanish version of this recipe, simply scroll to the end or click on the "Para ver la receta en español, haz clique aquí".
No-Bake Summer Lasagna (translated and adapted from El Comidista)
Ingredients:
12 sheets of lasagna pasta
2 large ripe tomatoes
1 zucchini
150 gr. of dried tomatoes in oil
100 gr. of ricotta cheese
50 gr. of grated parmesan
50 gr. of hazelnuts
1 handful of basil
1/2 lemon
White vinegar
Extra virgin olive oil
Salt
Directions:
1) Using a mandolin, a peeler, or a Salad Shooter like the one my co-op bought near the end of the year, cut the zucchini into super thin slices. Mix the lemon juice, with a good sprinkling of salt and pepper. Then, in a medium-sized bowl, combine the zucchini with the lemon juice and allow it to marinate at room temperature for about half an hour.
2) In a blender, combine the hazelnuts, basil, a tablespoon of vinegar, and 150ml of olive oil. Add the grated parmesan cheese and blend again. If the mixture is very thick, add a bit more olive oil until it’s about the consistency of pesto. Add salt and pepper to taste. Set aside.
3) Peel and cut the tomatoes into thin slices (I didn’t peel my tomatoes and it was still fine).
4) With a hand mixer or stand mixer, beat the ricotta cheese with a bit of olive oil until it is creamy. Salt to taste.
5) Following the instructions on the package, cook the sheets of lasagna until just al dente.
6) In a deep dish, begin assembling the lasagna. In the first layer, place four pieces of lasagna side by side and cover with half of the ricotta cheese. On top, place half of the zucchini, tomato, and sun dried tomatoes in pieces. Drop a bit of the pesto sauce on top in small dollops. Cover with another layer of lasagna sheets and repeat the above steps. Finish with a layer of lasagna sheets and cover with more pesto and some sun dried to tomatoes. Serve at room temperature.
Lasaña Sin Horno (adaptado de El Comidista)
Ingredientes:
12 láminas de pasta para hacer lasaña
2 tomates grandes bien maduros
1 calabacín
150 gr. de tomates secos en aceite
100 gr. de requesón o mató
50 gr. de parmesano rallado
50 gr. de avellanas
1 manojo de albahaca
1/2 limón
Vinagre blanco
Aceite de oliva extra virgen
Sal
Preparación:
1) Cortar el calabacín en láminas finas, a poder ser con un pelador o una mandolina. Batir el zumo de limón con un buen chorro de aceite y sal. Mezclarlo con el calabacín en un bol y dejar marinando un mínimo de media hora a temperatura ambiente.
2) Triturar las avellanas, la albahaca, una cucharada de vinagre y 150 ml. de aceite. Añadir el parmesano rallado fino. Si se ve muy espeso, añadir un poco más de aceite (tiene que quedar más o menos con la consistencia del pesto). Salar y reservar.
3) Pelar y cortar el tomate en tajadas finas.
4) Batir el requesón añadiendo poco a poco aceite de oliva hasta que quede cremoso. Salar.
5) Cocer o rehidratar las placas de lasaña según las instrucciones del paquete.
6) Disponer cuatro seguidas o formando un cuadrado en una fuente. Untar con la mitad del requesón. Poner encima la mitad del calabacín, del tomate y de los tomates secos troceados. Regar con un poco de la salsa de albahaca y avellana. Cubrir con otra capa de placas y repetir la operación. Terminar con una capa de placas y mojarla con más salsa (puede sobrar). Servir a temperatura ambiente.
