Lasagna verde
Welcome to To Vegetables, With Love, a celebration of a vegetable life, less ordinary. Find archived recipes on my new recipe index.
My book Tenderheart is available from Books are Magic, Kitchen, Arts and Letters, Book Larder, Bold Fork Books and also here or here.
I’ve never considered myself a particularly sentimental person but if you look at my books and writings, you would think otherwise. In my work as a food writer and recipe developer, memory is the fuel that keeps my creative fire burning.
The story of how this came to be is not linear. It is tied to so many things - my upbringing, my identity, losing my dad, travel, life as an ex-pat - but mostly, I think that memory serves as my anchor, a tether to my roots that helps me stay grounded, no matter where I am, physically, emotionally, and mentally. Memory never fails to bring me closer to home.
In food, I am always searching for the idea of home and connection, a sense of belonging. Memory allows me to land in a soft spot, to explore without absolutes, to trial and to error, to interrogate without reproach.
Food and memory was the inspiration behind a dreamy dinner I attended recently, hosted by Fanny Singer and Greta Caruso of The Green Spoon, chef Clare de Boer and Substack (thanks for inviting me Sophia Efthimiatou). I rarely accept invitations to events anymore; evenings at home with a cup of tea and my knitting projects are sacred. But I defied my homely instincts, put on my red lipstick and joined the gathering.
It was a perfect spring evening. Warm, with a gentle breeze. We were greeted with a herbaceous and lively Current Cassis Spring Spritz concocted by Rachael Petach, the founder Current Cassis. I sat next to Rachael at dinner and she was warm and lovely and an instant new friend. I saw lots of new/old friends too (hi Ali Slagle, Anna Polonsky, Joanna Goddard) and on my way out, I bumped into Katie Kitamura, the author of one of my favourite books of 2023.
As I was saying my goodbyes, another guest commented I’m so glad I forced myself to come. Me too, I blurted. It had been a long time since I have spent time with people outside of my close group of friends. The evening reminded me of how fulfilling it is to meet new people, the unexpected joys of finding comfort amongst strangers, and mostly, how invigorating it is to be in the company of talented, creative women.
A few days before the dinner, we were asked to share our version of Proust’s madeleine. To be honest, I had never heard of this term before, but it refers to an expression used to describe smells, tastes, sounds that remind you of your childhood or bringing back emotional memories.
I shared this culinary memory, which I paraphrased from this newsletter post:
The scent of oil takes me home. My mother did not deep fry food often, it was saved for special times of the year. The heady perfume of fried oil transports me to the morning of Lunar new year, the fumes so strong, they would wake me from my sleep. I would creep downstairs to find my mother hunched over her wok, spider ladle in her right hand, patiently turning the jin dui (glutinous rice sesame balls), the floor lined with old cardboard to protect it from oil splatters. For me, deep fried foods are celebration, an opportunity to celebrate life with abandon.
The menu was light and luminous, a celebration of spring. Steamed artichokes served with garlic aioli, a plentiful platter of crudite - Atlas Carrots, Florence Fennel and Fava beans - drizzled with salsa verde. A bountiful dish of agretti and fava beans, gently dressed in olive oil. A rustic lasagna verde, layered with ricotta, English peas, nettles and ramps. Simple dishes, made with the season’s finest offerings, lightly touched, handled with care.
My recipe this week draws upon the greenness of that meal. A verdant lasagna, creamy and vibrant. I wanted to create a very specific lasagna, one that is rich and luscious, yet still light. To achieve this, I called upon the tofu cream recipe from Tenderheart, which makes a velvety, fluffy sauce, without the need for actual cream or thickeners. The tofu does it all - it gives body, a whisper of sweetness, an airy texture. I’ve added a generous amount of baby spinach to the creamd tofu, which delivers a bright green hue and bolsters the vegetable content of this dish. This lasagna is sparingly filled with fava beans (called broad beans in Australia) and torn mozzarella. And did I mention it’s vegan and gluten free friendly?
🥦 My cookbook, Tenderheart is for cooking vegetables, all year round. Pick up your copy here. It is also mostly vegan (or vegan-izable) and gluten-free adaptable.
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This week marked the first birthday of Tenderheart in the USA. I celebrated with this reel which brought back so many wonderful memories. What a year. Thank you to everyone who has supported the book in its first year. I hope you will continue to find joy in it for many years to come.
I’ve had great feedback about this Lemongrass Tofu and Broccoli recipe. On Instagram, @burngabiburn commented Made this last night. Loved it. No one knows how to treat broccoli like you. Those who know me, know that broccoli is my most favourite vegetable so this is a huge compliment :)
This charred bok choy and cannellini beans comes witha punchy ginger maple dressing and it’s been hugely popular. It’s one of my recipes where I try to break Asian greens out of it’s stir-fry/steamed box and let it fly. Scorch it, it’s delicious.
My daughter loves nothing more than a lively debate and this week she purported that corn was an ineffectual ingredient. To paraphrase, her tirade went something like this Corn just sits there, being sweet and it ruins the texture of everything. I tried to tell her the sweetness was the whole point, but it was met with more rebukes. So this week, as the incendiary mother that I am, I will be making her this corn salad with mango and halloumi, just to spark some more debate ;)
Have you read my piece about How To Be Vegetarian yet? I’ve had so many people mention it - I’m so glad it is resonating, with both vegetarians and non-vegetarians.
THIS WEEK’S RECIPE
Lasagna verde
© Hetty Lui McKinnon for To Vegetables, With Love
I used fresh fava beans because they are in season right now in New York, but you could easily use frozen. If you can’t get fresh or frozen fava, substitute with peas, edamame beans or a leafy green like chopped, blanched chard or kale. I used gluten free fresh lasagna sheets (so so good!) and a fresh cashew milk mozzarella (though other vegan cheeses would work too) making this both gluten free and vegan. Feel free to use dairy mozzarella and wheat-based lasagna sheets.
Use more or less fava beans and mozzarella, according to your preference.
I finished the lasagna off under a hot grill. This scorches the top, adding a hint of smokiness which is a contrast to the vibrant greenness of this dish. The charred top is completely optional and it is fine without it.
Serves 4
250g (9 ounces) fresh lasagna sheets (thawed from frozen)
250g (9 ounces) shelled fresh or frozen fava beans (called broad beans in Australia)
125g (1/2 cup) vegan pesto (store-bought is fine)
150g (about 9 ounces) vegan or dairy fresh mozzarella
extra virgin olive oil
sea salt and black pepper
Spinach tofu cream (makes just over 3 cups)
425g (15 ounces) extra firm tofu, broken into large chunks
1 clove garlic, roughly chopped
4 teaspoons nutritional yeast (or grated parmesan cheese)
1 teaspoon sea salt
140g (about 5 ounces) baby spinach
Bring a pot of salted water to the boil. Add the fava beans and blanch for 1 1/2 - 2 minutes until just tender. Drain and refresh under cold water until cool. Drain again.
To make the tofu cream, add the tofu, garlic nutritional yeast, salt and 180ml (3/4 cup) of water to a blender or food processor and blend until smooth. Add the spinach leaves and blitz until completely smooth. Depending upon your tofu, you may need a bit more water to make it smooth and pourable.
Preheat oven to 180˚C / 350˚F.
In a large baking dish that measures about 25cm x 35cm (10 inch x 14 inch), drizzle with olive oil and spread about 1/4 of the spinach tofu cream on the base. Top with 1 layer of lasagna sheets. Top with some of the tofu cream, half of the fava beans, 1/3 of the pesto, and 1/3 of the mozzella. Top with another layer of lasagna sheets. Repeat by adding half of the remaining tofu cream, all of the remaining fava beans, half of the remaining pesto, and half of the remaining mozzarella. Finish with a final layer of lasagna sheets, the remaining tofu cream, the remaining pesto and the remaining cheese. Drizzle with olive oil and bake for 30-40 minutes, until the lasagna sheets are tender, and it is bubbling around the sides and slightly golden on top.
If you’d like a charred top like mine, switch the oven to grill/broil function at highest setting (mine was 220˚C / 450˚F) and scorch the top for 2-4 minutes, watching it closely, until you see singed patches on top.
Remove from oven and allow to sit for 10 minutes before serving.
Question: why extra firm tofu over silken/soft?
Hi Hetty. I’ve followed you since Airsub days. I was on there too doing cooking classes til they closed shop. Anyway…this recipe looks amazing although in Texas we’re already moving on to zucchini and tomatoes. I’m very interested in your rec for Miyokos mozz. It has an odd texture and flavor to me. I love their butter though. Do you have another recommendation other than that brand or a recipe to make one? I usually use Kite Hill ricotta. Do you use that or something else?