Wednesday, October 5, 2011

L for lazy, L for lasagna

It’s here, you can feel the musky chill in the air, winters are here! All my life I’ve been a fan of the summer, I just always thought they were cooler as getting dressed took only fifteen minutes. The winter is an entirely different ball game altogether. You need to wait for the water to warm up whilst ensuring that it doesn’t start to sizzle lest it burns you (yes), apply lotion everywhere after your shower, wear at least 3 layers of clothing at all times of the day which automatically makes you feel like a potato, and you can’t run fast because your eyes will fill up, get all blurry and you’ll fall flat on your face (true story)! But after 20 years in this big bad world I can safely say I am switching over to team winter! Winter comes with all its celebration and flavor. From hot cups of smooth chocolate topped with severe chilly to gooey homemade apple pie infused with cinnamon and acidic green apples, a Sunday afternoon can be enjoyed lazing in the warm afternoon sun rather than desperate attempts to compel yourself to socialize with dull groups of people only because it has the AC involved.. You can waltz on the streets, appreciate the beauty of the gleaming trees and roll in the grass, but of course one must be cautious of any sudden explosion at all times, but this is a statutory warning only to be kept at the back of your minds, this in no way should come in the middle of all the fun-having.

So October it is, and the magnificent evening with all its glory is here. Even the languid non indulgent sort must pamper themselves by trying out this lasagna. Believe you me, this is nothing but e-a-s-y! First off, we shall categorize. We need lasagna sheet-tomato sauce-lasagna sheet-mushrooms + corn sautéed in cream sauce-oodles if beautiful snowy cheese. That’s it. That’s all.

STEP 1: Start off by chopping 6 tomatoes for the tomato sauce. Heat some golden olive oil on the pan, add to it 3 gracefully chopped cloves of garlic. Tell me that sizzle doesn’t make you instantly happier! Slice open a green chilly, de-seed it and add to the oil for flavor. To this add your tomatoes with pepper and salt and simmer until cooked. (also make sure the sauce looks appetizing, don’t cook its life away)

STEP 2: Add lasagna sheets to boiling water. Please add oil to the water otherwise the sheets will fuse together like sticky fruit-ella does to its much-loved wrapper.

STEP 3: This is the most challenging one, so keep your sensory organs stirring. In a large pan, melt butter and gradually add flour to form a roux. A roux for those of you who don’t know is a traditional French technique of cooking which is a cooked mixture of flour and a cooking fat, like vegetable oil, that is used to thicken sauces and gravies (there, feel smarter already) Add milk gradually over a low heat constantly stirring until sauce thickens. Add to this salt and mixed herbs. Keep aside and feel proud!

STEP 4: Sautee in butter finely chopped mushrooms, spring onions and American corn, when cooked, add the white sauce to this and it’s done.

STEP 5: Layer up! Place the sheets depending on the size of the casserole, followed by the tomatoes, the sheets again, the white sauce and topple with generous amounts of cheddar and mozzarella and bake at 180 degrees Celsius for 30 to 40 minutes.

STEP 6: Its just you and your lasagna now, add to this a glass of intense white wine and treat yoursllf to a cherry pop flavored bubble bath. You’ll thank me J


Also, a very reliable source tells me that a cockroach tastes like crispy flaky mucous. Bon appétit!