Did you say “Vegan Lasagna”?

Leading a sustainable life is a daily challenge and it can be hard, especially if you are alone in this undertaking. I myself have to admit that I am trying- rather often unsuccessfully- not to buy goods wrapped in plastics or to reduce the consumption of meat on a weekly basis. These little adjustments do not change the world for sure, but it is still a little contribution that at the end of the day certainly matters.  Plus, in this I am not alone. Many people at university are good examples of how to lead a sustainable life. Seeing that other people manage to do what you would actually  like to do makes it less impossible to achieve, beyond being  a constant source of inspiration. Especially, there is a friend who is very proactive and cares about the environment more than any other person I have ever met. So, when the other week she asked me if I wanted to help her out for a workshop on how to cook Vegan Lasagna, I must say I was not the most enthusiastic people. The common belief is that vegan equals not as tasty as the meaty one,  hence I was a bit suspicious about the whole thing. But Italians never back off when it’s time to cook so I accepted to help her out.

So two weeks ago, 12 people gathered together to learn how to cook in a sustainable way. And this only sentence says a lot, I think. The Green Office organised the event and transformed a simple cooking session into a funny competition. Have you ever watched an episode of MasterChef? Well, the idea was this one: 3 teams cooking different lasagna(s) under the leadership of an Italian. We managed to put in the oven a spinach and pumpkin lasagna, a mushroom and tomato one and a zucchini pesto one! Check out the recipes here!

We cooked together, we listened to Italian and Dutch music, we got to know each other in a friendly environment. We then tasted the three different lasagna(s) that each group had cooked and we elected the pumpkin and spinach lasagna as the best one.

©Silvia Giudici

Well, it was a funny evening and we all learnt a bit on how to lead a more sustainable life!

If you want to know more about other sustainable event on campus, you can always check The Leiden University Green Office page on Facebook!