Mamma’s Lasagne
Ask any Italian & they’ll tell you their mamma makes the best lasagne! I’m no different, hands down it beats anything from the shops or at a restaurant.
When we were growing up we always hassled mamma to make her lasagne as it was always such a delicious treat. She told us “I can’t make it all the time you know, as it takes a bit of effort to make it properly”
I am so grateful I watched her when she made it – and made sure I wrote down how she did it!
Her secret is to put mozzarella in the middle of the filling. I mean you can never have enough cheese!
Mamma always made huge portions – which meant plenty of leftovers. So a little re-heated lasagne the next day tastes just so good as the edges get even crispier!
Making it is such joy & it is one of my ultimate comfort foods. Give Mamma’s recipe a go ❤️
Few tips when making the lasagne:
- Make sure your béchamel sauce is not too runny or too thick, it needs to coat the back of a spoon & when it cooks within the layers you can still see the sauce.
- Buy the best quality beef mince you can for your ragù as it really does make a difference.
- Do use no cook lasagne sheets as they produce the best results as any ones you have to pre cook beforehand only results in overcooked pasta. A good no cook brand I use all the time is “Barilla” Lasagne. You can also make your own lasagne sheets at home too if you prefer.
- Don’t overcook your lasagne, remember your ragù and béchamel sauces are already cooked so the only thing that needs cooking in the dish are the lasagne sheets therefore no more than 25-30 minutes in the oven is enough.
Mangia, mangia! 👩🏻🍳
Mamma’s Lasagne recipe:
Ragù:
2 tbsps extra virgin olive oil
750g organic minced beef
2 x tins plum tomatoes
1 onion chopped
2 garlic cloves - 1 minced & 1 left whole then taken out
Few bay leaves
2 x celery finely chopped
2 x carrots finely chopped
2 tbsps tomato purée
200ml beef stock (made with 2 x beef stock cubes)
Béchamel sauce:
100g butter
100g plain flour
2 pints of milk (might need a bit extra)
1/2 tsp grated fresh nutmeg
100g grated parmesan
Salt & pepper
Assembling of the lasagne:
About 12 no cook lasagne sheets (I recommend Barilla)
2 bags of mozzarella - torn into pieces (for the middle)
Grated parmesan for the top
Butter
Serves 6-8 (plenty for leftovers)
1. Make the ragù - heat the olive oil in a large frying pan over a low heat & fry the celery, carrots & onion gently for about 10 minutes, until softened and golden. Add the minced garlic & beef & fry until the liquid has evaporated.
2. Add the tomato purée & bay leaves & continue stirring for a minute or two. Add the tinned tomatoes, beef stock & the whole garlic clove. Season with salt and black pepper to taste.
3. Bring to the boil, then let simmer for about 1 1/2-2 hours (stirring every now & then). Remember to take out the whole garlic clove & bay leaves once the ragù is cooked.
4. In the meantime make the béchamel sauce - melt the butter in a pan then add the flour, mix together for about a minute or two. Add the milk a little at a time whisking the mixture all the time for about 10 minutes until it’s thickened up (add a little bit more milk if you think it’s too thick). Stir in the nutmeg, salt & pepper for taste. Take off the heat then add in the parmesan & stir. Leave aside covered until needed.
5. Preheat the oven to 200C fan (or equivalent). Butter the dish you are using to cook the lasagne in. Note - I used a dish that was about 35cm by 25cm.
6. Spoon a third of the béchamel sauce into the bottom of the dish, then the lasagne sheets over the top. Follow this with half of the ragù then a third of the béchamel sauce. Followed by another layer of lasagne sheets, then the mozzarella and then the rest of the ragù. Final layer should be the lasagne sheets then the rest of the béchamel sauce.
7. Add knobs of butter over the surface and cook in the oven for about 25-30 minutes. 10 minutes before the end of cooking, add a layer of grated parmesan on top & return to the oven to brown.
8. Take out of the oven & leave for about 10 minutes before serving up.
