I love lasagne! The homemade spinach pasta adds a unique touch to the lasagne, while the slow-cooked meat sauce ensures tender and juicy meat. The béchamel sauce adds a creamy and rich texture, and the mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses provide a perfect balance of flavours. This lasagne recipe is perfect for a hearty and satisfying meal, and it's sure to impress your family and friends.
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Category
Dinner
Servings
8
Prep time
2 hours
Cook time
3 hours
I love lasagne! The homemade spinach pasta adds a unique touch to the lasagne, while the slow-cooked meat sauce ensures tender and juicy meat. The béchamel sauce adds a creamy and rich texture, and the mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses provide a perfect balance of flavours. This lasagne recipe is perfect for a hearty and satisfying meal, and it's sure to impress your family and friends.
Ingredients
- 2 sticks celery, diced
- 1 large carrot, diced
- 1 brown onion, diced
- 4 cloves garlic, finely diced
- 500g pork mince
- 500g beef mince
- 700g tomato passata
- 250ml red wine
- 50ml olive oil, plus extra for frying
- salt, to taste
- 250g baby spinach
- 3 large eggs
- 320g Tipo 00 flour, plus extra for dusting
- 50g butter
- 50g flour
- 600ml milk, plus an extra 100ml
- 1/4 tsp ground fresh nutmeg
- 350g mozzarella, grated
- 100g Parmesan, grated, plus rind
- small bunch basil
Directions
To prepare the Sofrito, in a large pan, heat about 50ml of olive oil until hot. Add onions, carrots, and celery with a big pinch of salt, and sauté for 4-5 minutes. Add garlic, stir through, and cook for 1 more minute. Remove the sofrito from the pan and set aside.
To cook the meat sauce, place the pan back on the heat and add a little more olive oil. Add pork and beef mince, season with salt, and cook for 3-4 minutes to get some colour on the underside. Break up the meat with a wooden spoon, add red wine, and reduce by at least 80%. Add the sofrito back to the pan with the remaining tomato passata and Parmesan rind. Mix well, bring to a simmer, then lower the heat and cook covered for 2-3 hours, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking. Add 100ml milk towards the end and mix well.
- To make the spinach pasta, blanch baby spinach in boiling salted water for 20 seconds, then plunge into ice water to stop cooking. Drain well, squeeze out excess water, and blend with eggs until smooth. Pour flour onto a work surface, make a well in the centre, add the spinach mixture and a pinch of salt. Work the mixture into dough, knead until smooth (about 8-10 minutes), and let rest for at least 45 minutes. Roll out dough to about 2mm thick, cut into sheets, blanch in boiling water for 2 minutes, then cool in water. Place onto an oiled tray until ready to layer.
- For the béchamel sauce, melt butter in a pot over medium heat, stir in flour, and cook for 2 minutes. Gradually add 600ml of cold milk in stages, whisking until smooth. Simmer for 10 minutes, season with salt, pepper, and nutmeg.
To assemble the lasagne, in a 23 x 30 cm oven dish, layer meat sauce, pasta sheets, béchamel, mozzarella, and Parmesan, repeating until all ingredients are used, finishing with a layer of pasta. Spread remaining passata over the top layer of pasta, cover with foil, and bake at 180°C for 30 minutes. Remove from the oven, discard foil, top with basil leaves, more mozzarella, and Parmesan, then return to the oven for 15 minutes. Finish under the grill until golden brown.
- Let the lasagne cool slightly for 10-15 minutes, then slice and serve.
