Lasagna con l'agnello, la melanzana ed i peperoni dolci

Okay carnivores and non-carnivores. Here is a little Northern Italian dish you can whip up without much effort and really create an impression on friends and family. Its on http://foodandstuffbyjim.blogspot.com/ too so if you like it, you know where to find it.

It comes from the area around Trento in Northern Italy, and is called lasagna con l'agnello, la melanzana ed i peperoni dolci, which translates roughly into lasagna with lamb (or not, if you make a vegetarian version), eggplant and sweet peppers. Yes, I know, some of you are from Minnesota ( as in "eggplant??!! Oh, iscchhh . . .I couldn't eat eggplant its the . . . . texture, the color, the shape") But you gotta get a grip on this dysfunction at some point. Seriously now, Italians ( and lots of other people) have been eating eggplant for centuries. When was the last time you read about "Italians die from ingesting poisonous eggplant?"

So here is what you do. Set water on to boil for your lasagna pasta. It would be best if you made homemade pasta. You either know how or you don't. If you don't, that's another issue, but for now you can buy some at the store. No, its no where nearly as good, but it will do. When the water is boiling, salt it and toss the pasta in for about 10 minutes. Drain and set aside. How much? Enough to provide at least two layers of pasta with goodies packed between them. This will hold true for all the other ingredients. How much should you use? Depends on how much you are planning on making. its up to you. I'm not your mother . . . . . .

In the meantime, take your spud peeler and peel the skin off the eggplant. It's white and firm underneath. Slice that in half inch slices and then cut the slices up into what ever bite size morsels float your boat. Have one half of a Vidalia onion chopped medium finely also. Sauté the eggplant in olive oil over medium heat. When it starts turning sort of a golden color (I said "starts turning" - pay attention!!) toss in the onion. Stir it around. When the eggplant has completed the color change, pull it off the heat into a bowl and set aside (saving whatever oil is left in the skillet. ("Set aside means you may now take a drink from the adult beverage you poured yourself before starting this project . . . You didn't pour one?? What are you, a beginner?!!)

Now you are going to brown the lamb, which should be in ground form (you can substitute beef, pork, buffalo, venison, anything but turkey - turkey will pull the flavor out of this dish like lightening - I suppose even tofu - although personally I'd just as soon shoot myself in the head, but hey, that's just me . . .). At the same time, slice the sweet peppers lengthwise into four or five pieces. Sauté them in the skillet used for the eggplant. While all this is happening, finely chop up a bunch of Kalamata olives. Enough to provide some for each layer of your lasagna. You are also going to want to slice up some goat's milk cheese that you put into the freezer to harden (not freeze) it. It does not have to be uniform, its going to melt in any case.

So now, with all this done, preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Then line the bottom of your baking dish with pasta. Cover it with eggplant and onion, then with meat (or not), then some of the cheese and the olives and the peppers and then finally with your favorite pasta sauce. Another layer of pasta and repeat the process. I do this for two in a small baking dish and only use two layers. You know who you are feeding, make your own decision. When you have added the sauce on top of the last layer, you can sprinkle on some Romano if you wish, but you will not need it, trust me. Cover the dish loosely with foil and bake for anywhere from 45 to 60 minutes. Its gonna start smelling really good in the house in about 20 minutes.

When done, this is a meal. Serve it with a soft medium wine and some fresh garlic bread.