Paleo Lasagna

I realise it’s been a few months since my last post. Get Me Healthy has been very busy! :)

My latest creation was a dairy free, gluten free lasagna. I used eggplant, courgette and konjac as the layers and made a cashew nut "cheesy" sauce. I bet your wondering what konjac is...?

Konjac is a plant, it is native to subtropical - tropical countries such as Asia, Japan and Indonesia. Food is made from the root of the plant. It is used to make flour, jelly and can be used as a vegetarian source of gelatin. It is basically a dietary source of fiber and this is due to glucomannan . Glucomannan is a water-soluble fiber and this is pretty much all this product contains. Konjac does not contain any nutrients (which is why companies can claim its low carbohydrate claim) but is a great source of dietary fiber. There are a few options for this product; lasagna, rice, fettucine and angel noodles. These can be purchased from a health store.

Recommendations when eating konjac:

- Drink plenty of water with it - as it’s a bulk-forming soluble fiber you need water to help push the stool from the bowels.

- Take via food source not capsule - there is risk of choking

- It doesn’t contain any nutrients so don't make this your primary food source, or you will risk becoming malnourished

So, for the lasagna.

You need:

“Cheesy” cashew nut Béchamel sauce

1½ cups cashews2 tbsp. nutritional yeast (savory yeast flakes)

1 cup of water

1 tsp turmeric

400mL almond milk

100mL water

3 whole cloves

3 bay leaves

2 tbsp. corn flour (you may need more)

1 tbsp. oil

Meat layer

Mince beef

1 Can on chopped tomato

3 tbsp. tomato paste

1 clove garlic

2 tsp basil

1 tsp oregano

1 tsp thyme

Layers

2 carrots

5 courgettes (3 to slice, 2 to grate)

1 large eggplant

1 packet of konjac

Method:

-Soak cashews for at least 5 hours

- Blend cashews with turmeric and nutritional yeast and one cup of water until you reach a well-blended creamy consistency, you may need to add more water.

- Slice eggplant and courgette and place in oven on 120 degrees Celsius and bake until firm (but not burnt – keep an eye on them). Pull them out when they are ready and set aside.

- Grate carrot and courgette

- Cook mince (drain any excess fat).

- Add garlic, grated carrot and courgette, tomato paste, canned tomatoes and herbs and simmer for 10 minutes.

- In a sauce pan mix 400mL almond milk, 100mL water, bay leaves and cloves – bring to boil and then take off heat and leave for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes take bay leaves and cloves out.

- In a bowl, mix oil and corn flour together to make a paste. Put white sauce mixture on medium heat and add the paste. Continue stirring. Add the cashew nut sauce to the saucepan. Keep stirring until the sauce thickens (You may need to add more corn flour).

- Once all parts are done, construct your lasagna. I did a meat first layer, then konjac layer, then an eggplant layer, a meat layer, half konjac, half courgette layer, meat layer, cheese sauce on top. But you can do it anyway you please.

- Put in the oven for 20 minutes on 150 degrees Celsius until top browns slightly.

Serve and enjoy!