Seafood Lasagna

I love lasagna but sometimes it is just too heavy so I make this seafood Lasagna.  Lovely, tasty and light.

Seafood Lasagne (serves six) 

• 5tbsp butter
• 1 lb monkfish fillets (although I used pollock and it was fine so any white fish is okay)
• 8 oz large shrimp, shelled, deveined and roughly chopped (I used a bag of shrimp from the freezer section)
• 3 cups button mushrooms, chopped
• 3 tsp flour
• 2 ½ cups of hot milk
• 1 ¼ cups of heavy cream
• 1 can chopped tomatoes
• 2 tsp shredded fresh basil
• 8 sheets no-cook lasagne
• 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• Salt and freshly ground black better

 

1.                   Melt 1 tsp of the butter into a large, deep sauté pan add the fish and shrimp and sauté over medium to high heat for 2 – 3 minutes.  As soon as the shrimp turns pick, remove them with a slotted spoon and place in a bowl.

2.                   Add the mushrooms to the pan and sauté for about 5 minutes, until the juices run and the mushrooms are soft.  Remove with a slotted spoon and add to the fish in the bowl.

3.                   Melt the remaining butter in the saucepan, add the flour and stir over a low heat for 1 – 2 minutes. 

4.                   Remove the pan from the heat and gradually whisk in the milk, return to the heat and bring to a boil, whisking. 

5.                   Lower the heat and simmer for 2 – 3 minutes, whisking occasional until thick.  Whisk in the cream and cook over a low heat for 2 more minutes.

6.                   Remove the sauce from the heat and stir in the fish and mushroom mixture with all the juices that have collected in the bowl.  Add salt to taste and plenty of pepper,

7.                   Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F, gas mark 5 or 190 degrees C.

8.                   Spread half the chopped tomatoes over the bottom of a baking dish.  Sprinkle with half the basil and add salt and pepper to taste.  Ladle one third of the sauce over the tomatoes.

9.                   Cover the sauce with four lasagne sheets.  Spread the remaining tomatoes over the lasagne and sprinkle with the basil, salt and pepper to taste. 

10.               Ladle half the sauce over.  Arrange the remaining lasagne sheets on top, top with the remaining sauce and cover with the cheese.  Bake for 30 – 40 minutes until golden and bubbling.  Serve hot garnish with fresh herbs.

Enjoy

L xx

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Marrakesh Meatballs

I love Marrakesh and the food is utterly amazing!  One of my favourite dishes is Meatballs so herewitht he recipe

• 750g Minced lamb
• 2 eggs
• 800g Chopped tomatoes, passata or fresh tomato soup
• 2 large onions
• Flat leaf parsley
• 2 tsp Cumin
• 1 tsp Ras-el-Hanout
• ½ Bottle red wine
• Seasoning
• Flour to dust
• Olive for frying

Put the lamb mince in a bowl and make a well in the centre.  Put salt, pepper, 1 tsp of the cumin, the Ras-el-Hanout and both the eggs into the well. 

Image with kind thanks to ogrodybabilonu.blogspot.co.uk

Mix everything together until a uniform consistency is achieved.  Make oval meatballs, no greater than 2cm in size.  Roll each in flour and set aside.  Slice both the onions.  Shallow fry the meatballs in batches, until they are browned.  When each batch is ready, transfer to a slow cooker, or casserole dish which can go in the oven.  Keep the oil in the pan.  Pour the tomatoes over the meatballs in the casserole, and add the other tsp of cumin.  Fry the onions until lightly brown, using the oil from the meatballs.  Using a slotted spoon, layer the onions over the meatballs.  Deglaze the pan with the red wine, and when reduced to about half, add this to the pot.

Place the lid firmly on the pot, and set at a low heat.  Cook for at least an hour, but the dish can stay on the heat for hours, if necessary.

Serve with a salad, cous cous, or flatbreads.