Switch up your midweek cooking with this delicious beef and leek lasagne. This comforting yet light family feast is perfect served with a fresh salad
Serves 6
Ingredients
2 leeks, trimmed to the length of your lasagne dish
500g beef mince
1 white onion, diced
2 celery sticks, diced
2 carrots, peeled and diced
2 garlic cloves, crushed
150g chestnut mushrooms, roughly chopped
2 tbsp plain flour
150ml red wine
200ml beef stock
1 (400g) tin chopped tomatoes
2 tbsp tomato puree
1 tsp dried oregano
2 bay leaves
1 white onion, cut into wedges
500ml milk
2 tbsp cornflour
Pinch freshly grated nutmeg
20g parmesan cheese
20g cheddar cheese
Directions
The leeks in this dish become a replacement for lasagne pasta sheets so begin by trimming them to be the same length as the ovenproof dish you are using. Then cut leeks lengthways through the core but no further – do not cut the leek completely in half.
Open the leeks up like wings and remove the narrow leaves from the centre of each, these can be finely sliced and put aside for now. Finally, separate the larger leaves from the rest of the leeks, as these are your ‘lasagne’ sheets.
Heat a large non-stick frying pan over a medium-high heat and add the minced beef, sliced leeks, onion, celery, carrots and garlic and fry without added fat for around 10 minutes, or until the beef and vegetables have begun to brown slightly.
Stir in the chestnut mushrooms and cook for a few more minutes until they have started to soften. At this stage, the pan should look reasonably dry.
Add the plain flour to the pan and mix it through the mince and vegetable mixture. Add the red wine and beef stock and let the alcohol of the wine cook off for a few minutes before adding the tinned tomatoes, tomato puree, oregano and 1 bay leaf.
Season with freshly ground black pepper and leave the pan to simmer for around 30 minutes until the sauce looks glossy and thick.
Meanwhile, make the white sauce by adding the onion wedges, the remaining bay leaf, milk and cornflour to a pan and simmer over a low heat for around 5 minutes until the sauce thickens and becomes creamy and luxurious. If the sauce becomes too thick simply add a splash of extra milk. Season the sauce with plenty of ground black pepper and a pinch of grated nutmeg.
In another pot, add boiling water and the leek ‘lasagne’ sheets. Bring the water back to the boil and cook the leeks for five minutes, or until they are very tender, before draining in a colander. It is important that the leeks are soft as otherwise, the lasagne will be hard to cut.
Start layering the lasagne by spooning a layer of mince onto the bottom of the lasagne dish and topping this with the leek ‘lasagne’ sheet. Repeat this until all the leeks and mince are used up, you should have enough for around three layers.
Pour over the white sauce and sprinkle the cheddar and parmesan over the top for a deliciously cheesy finish.
Bake the dish in the oven for around 30 minutes, by which point it should be golden on top & bubbling.
Nutritional Information
Calories 339 k/cal
Protein 29g
Carbs 22g
Fats 15g
Fibre 6g
