Easy Beef Lasagne {With a Cheese Sauce Cheat}

Everyone loves lasagne. Here's my easy recipe for beef lasagne with a cheats low fat cheese sauce. I also sneak in some veggies in the meat. It's worth making this in bulk and freezing it for another time.

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Easy Beef Lasagne {With a Cheese Sauce Cheat}

• Serves: 6

• Time:  30 mins prep time + 30 mins baking

• Cost:  £1.20 (based on 6 people)

• Calories:  655 per serving (based on 6 people)

Ingredients:

• 500g mince beef (lean is the best)

• 1 tbsp olive oil

• 1 onion

• 200g carrots (roughly 2 large ones)

• 4 cloves garlic

• 1 tsp dried oregano

• 1 tso dried basil

• 2 x 400g tins chopped tomatoes

• 2 tbsp tomato puree

• 1 tbsp tomato ketchup

• 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar

• 1 beef stock cube

• 1 tbsp Worcester sauce

• 250g mushrooms

• Salt & pepper to taste

• Splash red wine (optional)

• Around 9 lasagne sheets (depending on the size of your dish)

For the cheese sauce:

• 500ml milk

• 200g grated cheese

• 2 tbsp cornflour

• Salt & pepper to taste

Method:

1. Brown the mince in a large saucepan. While the mince is browning peel the carrots and the onion and blitz in a food processor so they are finely sliced. If you don't have a food processor, grate the carrots and finely slice the onion.

2. When the mince is brown, drain the fat away and tip it out onto a plate. Heat the oil in the pan and add the carrot and onion to the pan. Crush the garlic cloves and add the pan. Cook until the onions and carrots are soft.

3. Put the mince back in the pan. Add the tomatoes, tomato puree, ketchup, stock cube, dried herbs, vinegar, Worcester sauce, wine (if using) and season to taste. Bring to the boil and simmer for 30 minutes minimum stirring occasionally.

4. While the mince is simmering, finely slice the mushrooms and set to one side. They need to be added to the mince at the end.

5. Also while the mince is simmering, make the cheese sauce. Dissolve the cornflour in about half a mug of the milk. Heat the remainder of the milk in a pan. When it is just about to boil, turn down the heat and add the cornflour mix stirring all the time. Continue to stir and bring the heat higher until the milk has thickened and the mixture is bubbling. Then turn the heat off and stir through half the grated cheese.

6. Now it's time to assemble your classic lasagne. Take an oven proof dish and spoon in about one third of the mince mixture into the bottom. Spread well to make an even layer, then place over a layer of lasagne sheets. Spoon about a quarter of the cheese sauce over the pasta and spread evenly. Repeat with a layer of a third of the mince, lasagne sheets and a quarter of the cheese sauce again. Finally spread over the final third of the mince, a layer of lasagne sheets and the remaining half a pan of the cheese sauce. (Basicaly, you need to have more cheese sauce on the top. Sprinkle over the remaining grated cheese.

7. Bake in a preheated oven on gas mark 4 / 180 C for 30 - 40 minutes until the pasta is cooked through and the top is golden brown. Serve with a crisp green salad. Fabulous!

Top photo by Pablo Merchán Montes on Unsplash