Comptoir Libanais’ founder Tony Kitous brings his delicious and wholesome Lebanese home-style dishes from the delicatessen right into your kitchen, with his highly anticipated second book ‘Comptoir Libanais Express’. It focuses on simple ingredients and preparing in advance to take the hassle out of cooking delicious meals. The book is filled with straightforward ideas and dishes that can be combined, making relaxed meals that are endlessly variable each time you cook them – and a wealth of vegetarian and vegan dishes alongside meat, fish and beautiful mezze that create exciting meals.
How about trying the ever popular Comptoir Lasagne? It’s a great Lebanese twist on the original with roasted veg and is meat free.
Comptoir Lasagne
Feta, tahini and yoghurt replace the Parmesan and béchamel sauce, while vegetables replace the mince in this Lebanese twist on a classic. Although you don’t have to faff around making the sauces, I’ll admit there is still a bit of work in this recipe – cooking lasagne generally needs time – but I’ve included it because it’s really great cold so it’s an instant meal if it’s already been cooked, and also because it can be prepared up to a day ahead then put in the oven when you’re ready to eat.
Serves 4–6
• 1 aubergine, cut into 2cm chunks
• 2 red peppers, cut into 2cm chunks
• 1 courgette, cut into 2cm chunks
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 2 large tomatoes, cut into 2cm chunks
• 1 red onion, cut into 2cm chunks
• 2 tsp ground coriander
• half tsp dried chilli flakes
• 100g spinach
• 8-9 dried lasagne sheets
• 300g yoghurt
• 200g feta, crumbled
• 2 medium eggs
• 2-3 tbsp tahini
Preheat the oven to 200 degrees C / 180 degrees C fan / gas 6.
Put the aubergine, peppers and courgette into a large roasting tin and drizzle over the oil. Season, then toss everything together with a large metal spoon so that the pieces are well coated in the oil. Roast in the oven for 30 mins until golden.
Stir in the tomatoes, onion and spices into the roasted veg. Put the tin back in the oven and roast again for another 10-15 minutes.
Steam the spinach leaves by putting them in a pan with a good splash of water and heat just to the point where they wilt, but not so that they lose their texture.
Blanch the lasange sheets in boiling water for 8-10 minutes, until slightly softened, then lay two or three sheets in the bottom of an oven proof dish, with around 1 litre capacity. Spread over half the roasted vegetables. Fill in any gaps with bits of spinach water left over in the pan.
Finally cover the remaining three pasta sheets. Whisk together the eggs, tahini and the rest of the yoghurt then season well. Spoon over the top layer of pasta and scatter the rest of the feta on top. Give it another season and bake in the oven for 30-40 minutes until the top is golden and the pasta feels soft when prodded with a knife.
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