Hummus...Interrupted

Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, The wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door

Making a good meal can be liberation. Whether you’re carving out a new recipe or constructing something simple and time-tested, the final product can make you feel a sense of accomplishment (even if that accomplishment is over hunger alone). The construction of traditional lasagna is all about weaving some staples of Italian cuisine together into a tasty, juicy, saucy, cheesy mess of heaven. Building a non-traditional lasagna involves much of the same, but calls on some not-so-staples to be complete.

Not unlike Lady Liberty, my oven called, “bring me your zucchini, your swash, your marinated tofu.” And just as diversity enriches heritage, my lasagna was made better, more complex, by the addition of new flavors. Grilled zucchini, eggplant and squash combined with tasty, summer-basil sauce adding a wisp of open air. The most surprising flavor of all, however, was the entrance of peace and diplomacy.

Yes, I pulled that Swiss cheese across a border, through the Alps and beyond, shredding it atop a layered pan of goodies. I wasn’t sure how it would taste, if I would be good or unsettling. What if it was a cross-border mix that didn’t fuse, but co-habitated like angry neighbors, rather?

This “neutral” cheese ended up bringing something far from middle-of-the-road to my palate. It added a remarkable, yet understated flavor. While at first bite, the gourds had taken hold of the dish; slowly, like a new idea creeping into your mind, the Swiss’s resolve came through to be the most resonant moment of that meal.

Sometimes, when new ideas creep into your mind, they stick around longer than expected. That peaceful cheese, with its resilience through the acidic tomato and flavor-grabbing basil-oregano combo, made me feel inherently diplomatic. Without a doubt, I could stop a war, a battle, or at least a small, embittered argument.

And there it was, laying like a knife in my inbox. Angry words that couldn’t be taken back, only responded to or forwarded on. Spread the negativity? No, I tried something new. Sticking one’s neck out to prevent disaster can be hard, even scary. But the bottom line is that cooler heads will prevail, but only once the temperature has been lowered. Sure, the emotions expressed were honest, possibly valid. They weren’t kind or very well-thought out, though.

How do you explain that the intervention is being acted out on two, equally respected, equally accomplished individuals? How do you de-escalate a situation from diplomatic suicide and make it something salvageable? You stick your neck out and take the blame. Fun? No. But maintaining the peace never is. Neither is standing by yourself on an island, holding up a torch to welcome the masses. You do what you have to do to make it work.

Lasagna Alpine

Please keep in mind that I feel my way through any recipe, making adjustments based on availability and whim. So, follow the following with caution, passion and wit. Don’t box yourself in and know that, like life, not every recipe has to be hard, but it does have to be interesting to be worthwhile.

In this recipe, heavy-hitters like eggplant and oregano abound, but the true star is comes in last. It brings this nearly non-dairy treat up a notch and deserves a marquee all its own. Swiss cheese will surprise you and enrich the flavor here. Try it, enjoy it and make it your own.

Ingredients
1 package lasagna noodles
1 large pasta sauce jar
1 package extra firm tofu
2 eggs
3 tbs olive oil
2 medium summer squash (cut in half inch strips lengthwise)
2 medium zucchini (cut in half inch strips lengthwise)
1 eggplant (cut in half inch strips lengthwise)
¼ lb Swiss cheese
4 garlic cloves (minced)
¼ tsp chili powder
1 tsp oregano
½ tsp basil
1 tsp salt
½ tsp pepper (cracked)
vegan Worcestershire to taste
soy sauce to taste
extra salt and pepper to taste
dry red wine/red wine vinegar

1. Begin by preheating the oven to 375 degrees and salting the eggplant pieces and placing them in the fridge for about 30 minutes.
2. Construct your marinade for the vegetables by combining the oil, wine, salt, pepper, garlic, chili powder, oregano and basil. Mix in strips of zucchini and summer squash. I have a lean, mean grilling machine, so I also preheat that and begin placing the gourds on the grill (let the seasonings stay on, they’ll cook into your gourds).
3. When the vegetables have just softened, take them out and cut them into bite-sized chunks.
4. By now, the eggplant should be ready to be blotted and grilled as well. Mix them into the marinade as well and place them onto the grill repeating the steps used on the gourds.
5. Follow the noodle cooking directions on the box.
6. Begin warming the sauce in a large pot.
7. Stir in bite-sized eggplant, summer squash and zucchini. Make sure to stir in the garlic, oregano, oil, etc. Let simmer.
8. Open the tofu and drain. Crumble into a bowl and add two eggs. Stir together adding a splash of soy sauce and vegan Worcestershire.
9. In a 9 x 13 pan, layer noodles, sauce mixture and tofu, repeat until all ingredients are used.
10. Shred Swiss cheese and layer over the top.
11. Bake, uncovered for 45-50 minutes.
12. Let stand for 10 minutes and relax as the sense of peace and happiness washes over you with each taste-testing bite.