Let's Cook - Leek Lasagne.

Hi there Folks,

So I thought I would share a super yummy alternative to Lasagne, we've basically substituted the lasagne sheets for leeks! I first saw this recipe on The Hairy Dieters and thought I would give it a whirl. I didn't follow the actual recipe they did, I just made it up as per my usual style but I've linked it there for you in case you did want to follow the original recipe.

It is super simple to make, it basically involves just your standard mince bolognese, which I made in my slow cooker...in fact it doesn't even need to be mince really, it could be anything you like! And then your cheese sauce, so that could be a basic roux, or you could just put spready cheese like philadelphia on it, or whatever you fancy! The only bit that really requires work is getting your leeks prepared.

To make the leek sheets its best to use the widest leeks you can find as these will give you the wider sheets. Trim the ends off and rinse out any dirt that's collected between the layers. You then need to slice the leek lengthways, but only go half way through the width of the leek. This means that once they've been boiled, your leek sheets will be as wide as the whole circumference of the leek. You need to take the inner most layers out as they're too small to do anything with, so I just trimmed these up and put them in the bolognese. Once your leek is sliced, pop it into a pan of salted, boiling water - I did this in frying pan that was wide enough to lie the leeks down in. Boil the leeks for a good 10-15 minutes, you need to make sure they're nice and soft otherwise they can be a bit tough to cut and chew. Once they're cooked just separate and dry them with a clean tea towel and there you have your leek 'lasagne' sheets!

So basically you just then assemble your lasagne as you would do with a pasta lasagne - I do meat, sheets then cheese. Get them layered up, top with cheese and pop in the over for 15 mins to melt the cheese up :] One thing I will say is, try to make sure your bolognese and cheese sauce are a thick and sticky as possible. The leeks don't absorb any liquid like pasta sheets would, therefore I can turn out a bit watery.

Here's just another shot of the finished product for you to drool over!

Please let me know if you try this or if you have any more alternative pasta dish ideas!

Ciao for now,

JB