Lasagne has got to be one of my favourite family meals, it’s a classic dish in our home. Today, we usually make ours with vegan quorn mince. The smell of onions frying in the pan and the simmering mince really conjure up family meal times for me!
My lasagne recipe here is simple and easy to follow and although I say ‘beef’ in the title, you can substitute the beef for whichever meat or meat substitution you desire.
There is always some room for creative interpretation when it comes to lasagne isn’t there? Some people love adding chilli, mushrooms, additional garlic, carrots or even peppers or courgettes into their version. Play around with the flavours you know and love with this basic recipe, adding additional vegetables if you wish.
To make my classic lasagne recipe, you will need the following ingredients:
1. 250g mincemeat (quorn mince, beef mince, turkey mince)
2. 1 large onion, chopped and diced
3. 1 tin of chopped tomatoes
4. 5 medium carrots, peeled and chopped
5. 1 clove of garlic (of 1 tsp of garlic powder)
6. 1/2 a tsp of chilli powder
7. A handful of fresh basil leaves (or 1 heaped teaspoon of dried basil)
8. A handful of pitted black olives
9. 2 tbsps of concentrated tomato puree
10. Oil for frying
11. Salt and Pepper
12. 1 box of lasagne pasta sheets
13. 600ml of semi-skimmed milk (or your milk of choice, I love using almond milk)
14. 80g butter, softened (dairy or vegan butter)
15. 175g plain (all purpose) flour, sifted
16. 200g cheddar cheese, grated
Step 1
On a low heat, add some oil to your frying pan and cook the onion until it starts turning slightly gold in colour. Next, add the mince and stir until it browns.
Then add the tin of chopped tomatoes, the carrots, basil, garlic, chilli powder (or fresh chilli pieces), olives and the two tablespoons of concentrated tomato paste. Stir everything together and add salt and pepper.
Simmer on a low heat for around 30 minutes whilst you now prepare the creamy bechamel sauce and assemble the lasagne pasta sheet layers.
(Stir the mince occasionally during this time to help prevent it sticking to the pan too).
Step 2
Add a light covering of oil to your lasagne dish to help prevent sticking. Now to make the bechamel sauce…
Add the milk and butter to a pan over a low heat and stir until the butter is dissolved. Sift in your plain flour gradually and add salt and pepper to taste. You may then wish to add some of the grated cheese directly to the sauce. Alternatively, you can sprinkle the cheese over each layer of sauce when assembling the lasagne.
Once you are happy with the taste of your sauce and the consistency, remove it from the heat and set to one side to start assembling your lasagne.
Step 3
To assemble your lasagne, firstly add a layer of the mincemeat, followed by the pasta sheets, then spoon in the white bechamel sauce. Next add a layer of the pasta sheets again, mincemeat then the sauce. Repeat this pattern until the final layer of sauce and top with the grated cheese.
Cook at Gas Mark 5/190C/375F for approximately 40 minutes until the top of the lasagne starts turning a nice golden colour.
