recipes

Lasagne

Lasagne is one of those dishes that whilst delicious in its own right, is often adjusted to suit individual tastes. For example, I like to add sautéed mushrooms and / or spinach for some additional flavour. Seafood or simple salmon lasagne is also very tasty. When I have a little more time on my hands, I like to make lasagne with fresh pasta. For details, see Triangoli recipe.

Ingredients

For the white (béchamel) sauce

1. 900ml milk
2. 1 bay leaf
3. ½ onion
4. Pinch nutmeg, freshly grated
5. 60g flour
6. 60g butter
7. Salt

For the ragù

1. 2 celery sticks, finely sliced
2. 2 carrots, finely chopped
3. 1 red onion, chopped
4. 2 tbsp Roma Olive Oil
5. 1 tbsp Roma Tomato Puree
6. 2 garlic cloves, crushed
7. 1 sprig rosemary
8. 700g minced beef
9. 250ml red wine or beef stock
10. 250ml beef stock
11. 600g Roma Chopped tomatoes
12. 8 - 9 Roma Organic Lasagne sheets
13. 125g mozzarella, sliced
14. 20g parmesan grated
15. Salt and pepper

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C / Gas 4.
2. To prepare the ragù, heat the olive oil in a large frying pan and sauté the celery, carrots and onions for 10 minutes until soft. Add the rosemary, garlic and continue to cook for a further 2 minutes.
3. Add the beef and brown, pour over the wine and cook for about 10 minutes.
4. Add the tomatoes, stock and tomato puree. Season with salt and pepper, and simmer for about 35 - 45minutes. Add additional stock/seasoning as required.
5. To prepare the sauce, place the milk, bay leaf, onion and nutmeg in a saucepan and gently bring to the boil. Remove the onion and bay leaf using slotted spoon and set aside.
6. Melt the butter in a saucepan, add the flour and whisk well to form a roux. Allow this to cook gently for 1-2 minutes.
7. While the pan is over a gentle heat, pour a little of the milk into the roux and keep whisking so that all the milk is absorbed. Continue to add more milk until a thick consistency is formed. (Just strain if you have lumps!) Season further as required.
8. To assemble the lasagne, butter a 30cm x 20cm lasagne dish,
9. Grease a 30cm x 20cm lasagne dish and spoon a third of the béchamel sauce into the bottom of the dish. Layer with some lasagne sheets, followed by a third of the ragù sauce. Layer a few more lasagne sheets, slices of mozzarella cheese and white sauce, Repeat ending with the white sauce.
10. Sprinkle with grated parmesan and bake for 30 – 35 minutes or until golden brown.