Pasta-free, Zucchini lasagna

Recipe ingredients:

pasta sauce		8 to 16 ounces
Zucchini		2 pounds
carrots			2, average sized
celery			2, outer stalks
olives, ripe		1/2 cup, coarsely chopped
cabbage			3/4 cup, chopped
onion			1, small, coarsely chopped
garlic			1 or 2 cloves, diced or crushed
Soy cheese 		4 slices Provolone or Mozarella
Italian seasoning 	1/8 cup
Mexican oregano 	1/8 cup
dried parsley 		1/8 cup
Olive oil 		2 or 3 tablespoons, extra virgin

Peel the carrots (I use a potato peeler), split them lengthwise,
lay them on your cutting board, flat side down and chop them
into quarter-inch (or smaller) pieces.  Scrape the chopped
carrots from the cutting board into a skillet, add one or two
tablespoons of olive oil, and set the burner for medium-low
heat, letting the carrots get started while you chop the celery
in much the same manner.
Once the carrots have had a five to eight minute "head start",
add the chopped celery to the skillet along with a little more
olive oil if you feel it's needed.  Stir fry for three to five
minutes before adding the cabbage and chopped onions.  A minute
or two later add the diced garlic.  When the onions begin to
turn slightly translucent, pour in one to two cups of prepared
pasta sauce, turn the heat up to medium-high until it just
begins to boil, reduce heat and simmer for five minutes, stir
in the Italian seasoning blend, Mexican oregano, dried parsley
and simmer for an additional five minutes.  Remove from heat,
cover, and set aside.

Clean Zucchini, cut off the stems and ends and peel if you
wish.  Cutting as straight as possible, cut one lengthwise
slice, about three-eighths of an inch thick (3/8"), from the
side of a Zucchini.  Lay the Zucchini on the flat side,
created by the slice you've just cut, and continue slicing
lengthwise into three-eighth inch slabs.  Repeat with the
remaining Zucchini.

Spoon a dollop of sauce into the bottom of a baking pan and
spread evenly, adding however much sauce is required to
thinly coat the bottom of the pan.  Place in a layer of
zucchini slices and cover with another thin layer of sauce.
Lay in four slices of soy cheese, cover with an additional
thin layer of sauce, lay in whatever zucchini is left and
evenly spread the last of the sauce over it.
Cover with aluminum foil and bake for forty-five (45)
minutes at 325 degrees (F).

Commentary and notes:

I use an oval shaped corningware pan that's about eleven
inches by nine inches but a nine inch, deep dish pie pan
should also work nicely.   If you want to use a "regular"
lasagna pan, roughly ten by fourteen inches (10" X 14")
you should double, or even triple the recipe.

If the pan is deep enough, and you have enough sauce
to cover it afterwards, you can add an extra layer of
soy cheese.

The cooking time can vary so carve a little sample nibble
out of the center of the pan before  deciding if it's done.

Substitutions:

Just about any squash or eggplant can be
substituted or mixed with this recipe.

Ricotta, cottage cheese, sliced or grated mozzarella
or provolone can be used in place of soy cheese.

Any other veggies you're fond of can be added to the sauce
or layered in with the zucchini.  Experimentation is
encouraged with all my recipes and do, please, let
me know if you discover something you especially like.

Comments?  Suggestions?  More recipes?

Feel free to visit my website.

www.don-guitar.com     2006