walnuts

That’s Not Lasagna or Lasagne in Lent

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I made “Its NOT Lasagna” for my family today. It looked like lasagna but it was gluten-free, nightshade-free  and cow’s-milk-cheese-free . They had two helpings of “Its NOT Lasagna” –if you could call the portion they took initially a serving. I used commercially available gf noodles, home made hamburger and pumpkin sauce, and three different kinds of goat cheese.

It could be argued that tomato sauce based lasagnas are not lasagna either if you are a big food history nerd, like myself. Which I did.

I’ve made a vegan lasagna from Libro de Cucina (14th century) before.

Walnut Lasagne
If you want to make lasagne in lent, take the lasagne (wide pasta noodles) and put them to cook (in water and salt). Take peeled walnuts and beat and grind them well. Put them between the lasagna (in layers), and guard from smoke (while reheating). And when they go to the table dress them with a dusting of spices and with sugar. Libro di cucina

Ingredients
* 1 package of fresh lasagna noodles, or 1 package of dried cooked to soften
* 3 cups of walnuts, ground
* 1 cup raw cane sugar
* 1 tsp cinnamon, ground
* 1 tsp ginger, ground
* 1/2 tsp cloves, ground

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350.

  2. Place a sheet of parchment paper in a lasagna pain or grease pan.

  3. Put a layer of noodles on pan, cover noodles with 1.5 cups of walnut meal. Cover the walnut layer with another pasta layer, and then repeat with 1.5 cups of walnut meal. Cover last layer with noodles. Brush top crust with oil or almond milk.

  4. Bake for 45 minutes, until  top is golden. Remove from oven and evenly cover top of pie with sugar and spices. Serve hot or cold.

  5. Optional, but not strict to original recipe, mix sugar or honey and spices in with walnuts to bake. 

There are other version from the 14th and 15th century, no tomatoes, just layers and cheese. Helewyse at medievalcookery.com compiled a fantastic list of different Italian recipes from the 14th-15th century. No tomatoes, but real lasagna.

Preserved Walnuts

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This is one of the recipes dropped from the upcoming book. Took good to bury.

Preserved Walnuts

To preserve Orenges, Lemmons, and Pomecitrons. First shave your Orenges finely, and put them into water two dayes and two nights, changing your water three times a day then perboyle them in three severall waters, then take so much water as you think convenient for the quantity of your orenges then put in for every pound of Orenges, one pound & a half of sugar into the water, and put in two whites of Egs & beat them altogither, then set them on the fire in a brasse vessel, and when they boile, scum them very clean, and cleane them through a Jellye bag then set it on the fire & put in the orenges. Use walnuts in like manner and use Lemmons & Pomecitrons in like sort, but they must lye in water but one night. A Book of Cookery, 1591

 

This preserve is nice spread on cheese or even waffles. Once opened keep in fridge, it goes badspoils quickly once you open it.

 

Ingredients

* 1 cup of shelled walnuts (whole or pieces)

* 2 cups of sugar

* 2 egg whites

Directions

1) Soak the walnuts in water for one day, changing water frequently.

2) Strain walnuts and then roughly dry them off with a towel to remove skins.

3) Whisk together 2 cups of water, 2 egg whites, and 2 cups of sugar in a sauce pan and bring to boil, stirring constantly.

4) Pour mixture through wire strainer to remove egg whites.

5) Add walnuts and bring mixture to boil again, stirring frequently.

6) Boil fruit mixture for 5 minutes.

7) Store Pour nuts and syrup mixture  into hot, sterile jars, seal and store in a cool, dry place.