Homemade Lasagne

If you've been reading my recipe posts then by now you may have realised that I adore Italian food! I also really, really enjoy cooking it all from scratch - no jars to be found in my kitchen. So here's my recipe for a gorgeous homemade lasagne. Unfortunately I got excited again and ate it before remembering to take a picture of the finished dish. This recipe served 4-6 people.

For the ragu:

2 tbsp olive oil

1 large onions, chopped

175g smoked bacon, chopped into small squares

2 garlic cloves, chopped

800g minced lean beef

2 tbsp tomato puree

1 tbsp flour

1 can chopped tomatoes

¼ pint red wine

2 tsp dried oregano

½ tsp freshly grated nutmeg

Salt and pepper

For the lasagne:

250g lasagne sheets (I prefer using fresh lasagne sheets)

60g parmesan

Salt and pepper

For the béchamel sauce:

½ pint milk

3 garlic cloves

1 small onion

60g butter

45g flour

300 ml single cream

Large pinch of freshly grated nutmeg

Salt and pepper

Begin by cooking the ragu. Heat the oil and butter in a large frying pan over a medium heat. Add the onions, garlic and bacon pieces and fry them together for 5 minutes, stirring once or twice.

Stir in the minced beef and cook, stirring, until the mince is browned. Lower the heat and continue cooking for a further 10 minutes, stirring once or twice.

Increase the heat to medium, stir in the tomato puree and the flour and cook for 1-2 minutes. Stir in the chopped tomatoes and wine, and bring to the boil, stirring. Season the sauce and stir in the oregano and nutmeg. Simmer for 55 minutes, stirring occasionally.

To make the béchamel sauce: pour the milk into a small pan. Press the cloves into the onion, add to the pan and bring the milk to the boil. Remove from the heat and set it aside to cool.

           

Strain the milk into a jug and rinse the pan. Melt the butter in the pan and stir in the flour. Stir for 1 minute, then gradually pour on the milk, stirring constantly. Cook the sauce for 3 minutes, then pour on the cream and bring it to the boil. Remove from the heat and season to taste with nutmeg, salt and pepper. The sauce should be of a thick consistency.

To assemble the dish, spoon a little of the meat sauce into a prepared dish, cover with a layer of lasagne, then spoon over a little over the béchamel sauce and sprinkle some of the cheese. Continue making layers in this way, covering the final layer of lasagne with the remaining béchamel sauce. Using a large glass dish you should be able to fit in 3 layers.

Sprinkle on the remaining cheese and bake in the preheated oven, 190 C, for 40 minutes, until the sauce is golden and bubbling. Gorgeous served with garlic bread and a glass of red wine.