Vegetable Lasagne

Bechamel cheese sauce

1. Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Sprinkle the flour onto the melted butter and sauté on low heat for 2–3 minutes, but do not brown. Stir constantly with a whisk.

2. Gradually pour in the milk. Stir vigorously so that no lumps form. Bring to the boil once and season with salt, pepper, and nutmeg.

3. Let the sauce simmer uncovered over low heat for 8-10 minutes, stirring constantly. If there are still some lumps, it is best to use a hand blender to smooth the sauce.

Lasagne sheets
Making the Lasagne sheets yourself is not that difficult and tastes better. You need a big flat surface to roll out the pasta dough or a pasta machine as pictured. But you can also buy fresh lasagne pasta sheets found in the refrigerator section of most grocery stores. I prefer fresh pasta in my lasagne, but if you can't find or don't have access to fresh, you can use dried.

1. Put the two flour and a pinch of salt in a large bowl and mix well. Form a small depression in the middle and add the cracked eggs.
   
   
2. Mix the eggs slowly with the flour from the inside out using your hands until everything is well mixed. You can now knead the dough vigorously with the ball of your hand until you get a smooth, shiny dough.
   
   
3. Shape the dough into a ball, wrap in cling film and put in the fridge for an hour.
   
   
4. Knead the pasta dough again and cut into fifths.
   
   
5. If you don’t have a machine, roll the pieces of dough out into very thin sheets. If you lift the pasta sheet against the light, you should see the outline of your hand – then it is thin enough.
   
   
6. If you use a pasta machine, press the parts a little flat and roll them out into thin strips. You start with rollers set at level 0. Fold the dough again and again, dust with some flour and turn through the machine. After repeating this 4-5 times, set the next lower level. You should stop at level 6 or 7. Otherwise, the dough sheets will become too thin.
   
   
7. The sheets are now cut into the appropriate size for the baking dish and are ready for use in the lasagne, like the ready-made or dry sheets.

Vegetable sauce

1. Dice and cut the carrot, root celery, and the leek very finely into about 3 mm cubes. Chop the onion and mince the garlic. Pluck the leaves from the thyme and cut the basil into strips.
   
   
2. Heat oil in a saucepan over medium heat, then add in the onion and garlic and cook for 8-10 minutes, or until softened. Continue to add the finely diced carrots, celery, leek, and the tomato paste and stir all together.
     
3. Pour in the crushed tomatoes and add the herbs. Mix well to combine and bring to a gentle simmer—season with salt, pepper, and sugar. Cover and cook for about 20-30 minutes, occasionally stirring, until the sauce has thickened slightly. Adjust with salt and pepper if necessary.

Assemble the Lasagne

1. Preheat oven to 180° C.
   
   
2. Spoon some of the vegetable sauce on the base of a 20 x 30 mm baking dish, then cover with lasagne sheets. Continue to layer with vegetable sauce enough to cover the pasta, and then with some of the Bechamel cheese sauce to cover the vegetables. Repeat layers, ending with the remaining Bechamel cheese sauce for the top. Sprinkle additional Parmesan cheese on top.
   
   
3. Bake for 25 minutes or until golden and bubbling.
   
   Serve | Cut the Lasagne into squares and spoon onto plates and serve it hot.