Category: Lasagne

Happy Lasagne Day, 29 July 2016!

A trip to Rome with her husband in 2012 inspired Amber Wright from The Foodie Mum to create this classic lasagne recipe. Amber recalls, “we found this little Italian place with red checkered tablecloths and a perfect view of the Castel Sant’Angelo. My husband ordered the lasagne and OH MY GOSH it was one of the best things I’ve ever eaten. From then on I’ve been researching and trying to replicate what we had that day. This closest tasting lasagne to the one I had in Rome“. I’m sold!

Ingredients:
Serves 4 to 6

• 5 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup Plain flour
• 4 cups milk 
• 1/2 teaspoon grated nutmeg
• 1 1/2 cups tomato passata
• Salt and pepper
• 2 Tablespoons oil
• 1 chuck steak & 1 pork scotch fillet steak, minced or 1 packet of mince
• 8 pasta sheets (use 1 lot of my fresh pasta) 
• 3 Cups cheese (I used cheddar, but you can use any other cheese you like)

Method:
1. In a saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. 

2. When butter has melted, add flour and whisk until smooth. 

3. Gradually add the milk, whisking constantly to prevent any lumps. Continue simmering and keep whisking over medium heat until the sauce is thick, smooth and creamy, this will take around 10 minutes. 

4. Remove from the heat and add the nutmeg and tomato passata. Stir until well combined. Season with salt and pepper and set aside and allow to cool.

5. In a frying pan heat the oil, add the mince and season. Brown mince and remove from heat; drain any excess fat on kitchen paper. Set aside and allow to cool completely.

6. Cook pasta sheets until al dente.

7. Into the bottom of a  baking dish, spread 1/3 of the sauce mixture. Arrange the pasta sheets side by side, covering the bottom of the baking dish. Spread a thin layer of mince, sauce and cheese (in that order). 

8. Top with next pasta sheets and repeat the process until all mixture is used up (make sure top layer is just pasta and sauce). 

9. Top with any remaining cheese and bake in an oven for 40 mins or until golden brown, bubbling and hot.

TIP: I topped my lasagna with pancetta breadcrumbs for a crunchy top.


Thanks to Amber Wright from The Foodie Mum for sharing this delicious recipe. 
“My passion in life is to cook and feed the people I love and since becoming a mum this has become even more important to me. I have a passion for all types of food from baking cookies with my kids to an amazing fillet mignon for a romantic dinner with my hubby,” says Amber. Family and friends frequently ask Amber for her recipes, so Amber decided to start a blog to share her favourite recipes. The Foodie Mum blog was born. Amber lives in Perth, WA with her husband and two gorgeous children, daughter Lelah and my new son Maden. Check out Amber’s blog here: www.thefoodiemum.com

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Friday 29 July 2016 is Lasagne Day. To celebrate this delicious dish, which is a staple in many households, we’re sharing a couple of our favourite lasange recipes. 

A brief history of lasange:
Contrary to popular belief, the origins of lasagne can be traced back to ancient Greece (not Italy), with the name Lasagna, or “Lasagne” derived from the Greek word ‘Laganon’, which is the first known form of pasta. 

However, Laganon was not made from the traditional Italian ingredients most people would associate with lasagne (bolognaise, bechamel sauce, cheese, etc.), but in fact layers of pasta and sauce. So really, the name “lasagne” was derived from the technique of layered pasta with sauce, rather than the ingredients. A recipe for lasagne was also uncovered in a British cookbook that dates back to the 1390s, so the Brits have also laid their claim to the first lasagne! Source: Bravo Italian. 

Ingredients:
Serves 4 -6

375g fresh lasagne sheets

MEAT SAUCE:

• 4 teaspoons olive oil
• 2 onions, sliced
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• 500g lean minced beef
• 400g can chopped tomatoes
• 1 teaspoon dried mixed herbs
• 2 teaspoons white sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 cup tomato paste
• 125ml (1/2 cup) red wine

CHEESE SAUCE:

• 60g butter
• 1/2 cup plain flour
• 2 1/2 cups milk
• 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 125g cheddar cheese, grated
• pinch of salt and black pepper

Method:
1. Grease 30 x 20cm lasagne dish. For the meat sauce, heat the oil in a pan over a medium heat. Add onions and garlic and cook for 5 minutes, or until soft. Add the beef and stir until browned.

2. Add the tomatoes, mixed herbs, sugar, salt, pepper, tomato paste and wine. Stir well and bring to the boil. Reduce heat to low; cover and cook for 10 minutes. Preheat oven to 200 degrees Celcius.

3. For the sauce, melt the butter in a saucepan over a medium heat. Add the flour and stir constantly, with a wooden spoon, for 1 minute. Add the milk and bring to the boil, stirring constantly. Stir in the nutmeg, half the cheese, salt and pepper to taste.

4. Put a third of the meat sauce into the bottom of the prepared dish. Cover with a layer of lasagne sheet. Spread a third of the cheese sauce over the lasagne and cover with another layer of lasagne. Continue alternating meat sauce, lasagne sheet and cheese sauce, finishing with a layer of cheese sauce. Sprinkle with the remaining cheese.

5. Bake for 40 minutes, or until the top is golden and the sauce is bubbling. Serve with a green salad.

TIPS: 

• For tomato lovers, chop some cherry tomatoes in half and lay them around top edge of the lasagne and then sprinkle over some grated parmesan cheese.
• I also love grating carrot and zucchini into my meat sauce and leaving to simmer for as long as possible to thicken the sauce and add extra fibre to the dish. The longer you leave the sauce to simmer, the more the veggies will “dissolve” into the dish so the little people in your household won’t be able to see them.