This lasagne recipe is a classic comfort meal, with some sneaky veg – a real win-win! Serve this goodie with a side of chips, garlic bread or a salad and your customers will be back in no time!
Ingredients
Bolognese
- 500g beef mince
- 1 brown onion, finely chopped
- 2 carrots, finely chopped
- 1 zucchini, finely chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, crushed and finely chopped
- 400g tin crushed tomatoes
- 700g passata
- 3 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1-2 tablespoons brown sugar, to taste
- 1 teaspoon dried mixed herbs
- salt and pepper, to taste
Béchamel
- ¼ cup butter
- 3 tablespoons plain flour
- 2 ½ cups milk
- ¾ cup grated tasty cheese
- salt and pepper, to taste
Lasagne
- 1 pack San Remo Large Instant Lasagne Pasta Sheets No. 100 (6723)
- 1 ½ – 2 cups grated tasty cheese
- chopped parsley, to serve
Method
To make the bolognese, heat olive oil in a pan over medium heat and add onions. Once the onions begin to soften, add the carrot and zucchini and sauté until they begin to soften as well (7-10 minutes). Add in the garlic and beef mince, breaking the mince into smaller pieces with your spoon as it cooks.
Once the mince has browned, stir in tomato paste and cook for 1 minute. Add the passata, tinned tomatoes, and mixed herbs; stir well. Reduce the heat and simmer for around 30 minutes, until the sauce has thickened. Stir in the brown sugar and season with salt and pepper. Remove from heat and set aside.
To make the béchamel, add the butter to a medium-sized saucepan over medium heat. Once melted, stir in the flour and cook for 2 minutes. Using a whisk, and while constantly stirring, pour a ¼ cup of milk into the mixture. Whisk until smooth and thick, and repeat the process until all the milk is incorporated. This step is important to ensure a smooth sauce. Once all of the milk has been added, stir in the cheese and continue stirring until melted and bubbly. Season with salt and pepper and remove from heat.
To assemble your lasagne, grab a large oven-proof baking dish and spread a thin layer of bolognese mixture over the base. Add a single layer of lasagne sheets (break these into pieces to fill any gaps), top with ⅓ of the bolognese sauce and ⅓ of the béchamel, then repeat the process until you end with a top layer of béchamel. Sprinkle the cheese over the top and loosely cover with foil.
Bake the lasagne at 200°C for 35-40 minutes. Then remove the foil and cook for a further 10 minutes, until the cheese is golden. Sprinkle with parsely before serving.
Notes: You’ll know the lasagne is cooked when you insert a butter knife or cake tester and it glides through the pasta sheets.
