Isabella Ross

Ingredients:

  • Instant Lasagne Sheets 375 grams
  • 500 grams of grated mozzarella (use as much or as little as you desire)
  • 1 brown onion
  • 690 grams tomato passata
  • 500 grams tomato paste
  • 500 grams lean beef mince
  • 4 cloves of garlic
  • 2 bay leaves.
  • Salt and pepper to taste.
  • Fresh basil to serve

White Sauce (Bechamel):

  • ¼ cup plain flour
  • ¼ cup or 450ml approximate of milk
  • 60 grams butter

Method:

  • To make the Bolognese sauce, start with caramelizing the onions and garlic. Then add the mince and brown on a medium heat. Once mince is cooked, add the tomato paste and place on a low heat. Continue to stir and keep a watchful eye for 10 minutes.
  • Once the tomato paste has been cooked out for 10 minutes, add the passata and bay leaves. Cook slowly and leave to develop for approximately 2 hours. Add some chopped basil leaves and season to taste. Make sure to remove the bay leaves once finished cooking.
  • To make the white sauce, melt the butter in a pan on a low heat. While the butter is melting, add the milk to a microwave proof jug and warm it up. In the pan with the butter, add the flour and in small amounts ladle the warm milk to the pan, whisking while doing so. Once it is a glossy, smooth consistency, take off the heat.
  • To make your lasagne, start by adding a thin layer of Bolognese to your lasagne dish, following by 2 lasagne sheets, laid side by side. Then, add a layer of the white sauce, followed by a sprinkling of grated mozzarella. Repeat these layers, until you reach the top of the dish, most likely 3 to 4 layers in total. The mozzarella should be the top layer of the dish, so add a generous amount to the final sprinkling.
  • Place the lasagne in the oven on 180 degrees Celsius for 30 to 40 minutes or until golden brown. You should be able to tell if the lasagne sheets are cooked by using a metal skewer or knife. Serve with fresh basil.