Most lasagnes have a thick béchamel sauce between their layers and a tomato base to the meat. This beef lasagne is a different twist on the old favourite, using flavourful herb and wine sauce.
Serves 8 to 10
- 500g extra lean beef mince
- 500g pork mince (or pork sausages removed from casings)
- mixed dried herbs (best choices are basil, oregano and thyme)
- 150g butter
- 1 1/2 cups cake flour
- 2 cloves garlic, crushed
- 2 cups white wine
- 300ml plain yogurt
- 700ml stock (chicken/vegetable)
- 30g basil, finely chopped
- 45ml Dijon mustard
- 250g mature cheddar, grated
- 100g Parmesan, grated
- 500g lasagne sheets
Preheat the oven to 180C.
Start by cooking the mince in a large pot. Heat a splash of canola oil, add the mince and stir intermittently while it browns. Sprinkle in some dried herbs of your choice for added flavour. Turn down the heat, put the lid on the pit and allow to cook while you prepare the sauce.
For the sauce. Create a béchamel-style sauce with all the ingredients. Start by melting the butter in a saucepan over a medium heat. Take the pan off the heat once the butter is melted (do not let it boil) and gradually add the flour, mixing to a smooth paste. Still off the heat add the wine bit by bit, again mixing in to keep the mixture smooth. Once the mixture is fairly liquid, place the saucepan back on the heat and add the remaining ingredients. You won’t necessarily have to add all the stock, just enough so that the sauce isn’t too thick.
Finally, you need to layer all the elements of the lasagne in a large, rectangular dish. Start with a layer of sauce. This will stop everything sticking. Place lasagne sheets over the sauce. It’s important that the sheets don’t over lap because this will stop them cooking through. Break up the pieces to get a good fit and don’t worry about little gaps. Place another layer of sauce (don’t leave any pasta uncovered), followed by mince and cheddar and then a smattering of sauce. Put a layer of lasagne and keep going until you are out of mince. The last layer needs to be lasagne, sauce and lastly cheese on top. Save the Parmesan for the top of the lasagne – it goes a delicious crispy brown.
Bake for about 40 minutes until the sauce is bubbling, the cheese browning and the edges crisping. Serve with a fresh salad.
