Rabbi Guido’s*
Delight ….( or how to keep your inner Guido satisfied )
(*Guido /ˈɡwiːdoʊ/
the slang term for a urban Italian American. The Guido stereotype is
multi-faceted. This has come to refer to Italian Americans who conduct
themselves in an overtly macho manner often as the enforcer or the debt collector.)
I am from the
UK and not to familiar with New York Italian culture only what I I have picked
up from network broadcasts…recently when my friend told me her normally mild mannered
husband had acted as a Guido and got much
needed money back from an outstanding creditor, I was at a loss, till she
explained the term Guido to me, her husband who is actually a Rabbi used strong
silent but firm tactics, and earned the nick name “Rabbi Guido “
As I said, the
folk culture is a bit lost on me, the food however is a different story, back
the 1970’s in my pre- Kosher, pre- gluten free and pre- dairy free days, I use to
frequent a little hole in the wall
Italian cafe in Kings Cross area in London, the owners Maria and Tony, ( I think all Italian cafe owners in the UK in the 197-0’s had the same name !) Spoke
with broken English, and produced the best lasagna and ravioli that I have ever
eaten.
For years I mourned my inability to digest
gluten and dairy products when I think about Italian food… here I have almost reproduced
the taste of Italy.
Moreover Rabbi Guido, who go to comfort food is Italian
gets a very happy look on his face when I arrive for Shabbat with one or two of
these in tow.. (One should always keep a Guido happy!)
"This dish is
a true labor of love, with many components not to be rushed it needs
time but the results are really worth it! You should also eat it with friends on a warm lazy day sharing thoughts wine and good food"
Gluten Free
Dairy Free, Roasted Vegetable Lasagna
for one large or 3 loaf tin Lasagnas serves 8-10 depending on the need for
comfort
I packet gluten
free rice or corn lasagna sheets
For The
Sauce
4 medium size
red peppers
2 red onions
cut in quarters
1 head garlic
Sea salt
2 table spoon extra virgin Olive oil
A sprig of
fresh thyme
A sprig of
fresh oregano
1 can organic
chopped tomatoes
2 tomatoes
½ spoon black
pepper
¼ spoon
smoked paprika
½ teaspoon
sweet paprika
1 bay leaf
For the
filling
2 zucchini
washed and sliced
2 sweet
potatoes washed and sliced thinly
About 8
cauliflower washed & florets sliced
1 can
precooked chick peas
For the “non
–cheese”, cheese sauce
1 table spoon
oil or vegan nondairy spread
2-3 table
spoons gluten free, corn, chickpea, or rice flour.
3 teaspoons
nutritional yeast (to get the cheese flavor)
1 teaspoon
good gluten free mustard
1 bay leaf
¾ tea spoon
sea salt
¾ tea spoon
black pepper
½ tea spoon
ground nutmeg
¼ cup finely
chopped fresh parsley
1 liter liquid
I use a combination of ½ cup gluten free beer or white wine , almond or
soya milk water and good vegetable stock.
Part one
roast the vegetables.
Preheat the
oven to Gas mark 6, 400 F 200 C
Line a
roasting tray with baking paper.
Was the red
peppers and tomatoes place whole on the baking tray,
Peel the red
onion and cut it into 4-6 depending on size place in baking tray
Cut garlic in
half and place in the skin on the baking tray
Sprinkle with
sea salt and some of the olive oil.
Place the
herbs between the vegetables.
Place into the
oven without covering and roast for around 45 minutes.
Then turn the
oven down to Gas mark 4- 350 F 180 C ,
Cover the vegetable with foil and continue
roasting for a further 20-30 minutes till you small the aroma of roasted vegetables
and the vegetables are soft.
Turn off the
oven and let the vegetables cool in their own juices.
When the vegetables
are not piping hot carefully take the stalk of the peppers out this should
remove most of the seeds too.
Place in a bowl
along
with the tomatoes, red onions herbs etc.
Squeeze the
roasted garlic into the bowl.
Strain the
roasted vegetable juices into the bowl to remove all the seeds from the red peppers.
Add the paprika,
chopped tinned tomatoes, smoked paprika, salt and pepper and blend either with
a hand blender or in a food processor.
At this stage
you can place the sauce in the fridge to keep overnight to build the lasagna
the next day. (I use this as my basic pasta sauce too, it freezes well.)
For the
“non –cheese”, cheese sauce
Dissolve the oil or non-dairy spread in
a pan over a low to medium heat and add the flour.
Stir until the
mixture forms a smooth paste which leaves the sides and base of pan cleanly.
Cook for a
minimum of 2 minutes to cook out the taste of the flour. Stirring with a wooden
spoon
Pour in
approximately one-fifth of the quantity of your chosen fluid and allow to boil
without stirring.
Add the bay
leaf and parsley with the liquid
Stir until the mixture blends smoothly, beat
vigorously and add the remaining quantity of fluid a fifth at a time beating
well after each addition.
Add the nutritional
yeast, mustard, salt pepper and nutmeg.
Turn the heat
down and cook out the sauce while stirring for at least 5 minutes
Set aside to
construct your lasagna. (You can use this sauce over cauliflower, gluten free
pasta or over fish.)
Constructing
the Lasagna
Preheat the
oven to Gas mark 6, 400 F 200 C
Place the
lasagna sheets I cold water for 3-4 minutes it’s not 100 % necessary but really
helps them not curl up
Line your dish
with a layer of pre-soaked lasagna sheets.
Add a good
layer of your vegetable sauce
Add sliced
sweet potatoes, precooked or canned chick peas, sliced cauliflower florets.
Add layer of
Lasagna sheet and repeat as above.
Add another layer
of lasagna, then cover with a thin layer of the vegetable sauce and top off
with the non-cheese, cheese sauce.
Sprinkle with
a little paprika,
Place in the
pre heated oven and bake for 20 – 25 minutes
Then turn the
oven down to Gas mark 4- 350 F 180 C ,and continue cooking in the middle of the
oven for a further 20 minutes.
Serve hot with
a green salad.
This dish
freezes, it also can be made before Shabbat and heated through carefully on a Plata.
Serve piping
hot with a garlicky green salad so all
the flavors combine add a glass of your favorite wine, and good company, for a taste
of true Italian satisfaction.
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