Family Food: Lasagna
Heinz Tomato Ketchup is the secret ingredient turning up the flavour in this quick, easy and delicious homemade lasagna recipe. First, heat your oven to 180 degrees Centigrade. Next, brown your mince on your stove over a low medium flame. Drain off the fat and remove your mince from the flame.
Sauté your onions, garlic, green pepper and mushrooms in a single pan. Sprinkle in thyme and oregano to taste and let the mixture cook until the vegetables are soft and translucent but not soggy. Add the mince to the vegetable mixture along with a cup of red wine and four beef stock cubes. Don’t worry if you plan to serve this lasagna to your children: The alcohol will burn off leaving only the robust flavour of the wine.
Next, add two tablespoons of Heinz Tomato Ketchup and two tablespoons of Worcester sauce to your mixture. Top this off with two cups of chopped tomatoes: Canned tomatoes are fine. Stir the mixture thoroughly. Reduce the heat to low and let the contents of the pan
simmer for ten minutes.
While your meat sauce is simmering, prepare your Béchamel sauce. Measure two cups of milk into a small saucepan. Add some fresh grated nutmeg ad let the mixture come to a boil. While you’re waiting for your milk mixture to boil, melt one cup of margarine. Add a cup of flour into the pan with the melted margarine and then slowly pour your milk into the mixture, whisking briskly as you do, so the flour doesn’t clump. Cook the mixture over medium heat for a few minutes, whisking the whole time, so you stir out the taste of the flour. When the mixture is smooth, the sauce is done.
Now it’s time to assemble your lasagna. Cover the bottom of a rectangular baking dish with half your meat sauce and place a layer of cooked lasagna noodles over it. Cover the cooked noodles with half your Béchamel sauce. Add another sheet of cooked lasagna noodles and top that with the rest of the meat sauce. Add a final layer of Béchamel sauce and cover the top of the lasagna
with grated Parmesan and mozzarella cheese.
Cover the lasagna with aluminium foil and pop it into the heated oven for 35 minutes. Then remove the foil and allow the lasagna to bake for an additional 15 minutes until the cheese is golden brown. Serve and enjoy!