Lasagne

My mum makes the most amazing lasagne. Both Sam and I have been craving it all week, but she already had steak taken out of the freezer for the dinner tonight so she said no can do. So, I took matters into my own hands, and decided to go about making my first ever lasagne, like mammy makes. Big step. Lots of pressure, and fear of failure. What if it wasn't nice? What if I failed? But I tried anyway, and my god was it worth it. May I say it...it may have been the best lasagne I've ever tasted. But that could be because Mum hasn't made lasagne in so long that I just can't remember the taste of hers.

Anyway, lasagne is the ultimate comfort food for me; pasta, creamy white sauce and a tomato-based sauce, all in one dish with cheese on top is just...food heaven.

It dirties a lot of dishes, so after I put it in the oven, I take full advantage of the waiting time by filling up the sink and getting the pans washed so I only have the baking dish to clean afterwards.

Lasagne

Ingredients
about 15 sheets lasagne
Tomato sauce
454 g pack of lean minced beef
1 onion, finely chopped
3 carrots, finely chopped
3 sticks of celery, finely chopped
3 cloves of garlic, minced
10 mushrooms, sliced
1 tin of chopped tomatoes
1 carton tomato passata
half a tube tomato purée
1 tbsp dried basil
40 ml red wine
White sauce
1.5 pints milk
2 cloves garlic, minced
1.5 oz butter
1 onion, finely chopped
1 tbsp dried basil
4 tbsp cornflour, blended with some milk
60 g cheddar/mozzarella, grated

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 190C. Grease a 12" x 12" pan.
2. For the tomato sauce, heat some olive oil in a large saucepan. Add the mince, and brown. Season with salt and pepper and add the basil.
3. Add the onion, carrots, celery and garlic to the beef. Add a small bit of boiling water, and simmer for 5 mins.
4. Add the tinned tomatoes, passata, and tomato puree. Bring to the boil and simmer for 20 minutes until the carrots are softened. 
5. Add the mushrooms, stir in the mushrooms and wine and simmer for 5 more minutes. Taste and season again if necessary. 
6. For the white sauce, heat the butter in a saucepan. When melted, sauté the onion and garlic for a few minutes until softened and the flavours are released. 
7. Stir in the dried basil and add the milk. Bring to the boil and immediately reduce to a simmer.
8. Take off the heat and stir in the cornflour. 
9. Bring back to the boil and stir until thickened. Add more blended-with-milk cornflour if needs be. 
10. Starting with the mince tomato mixture, start layering into the greased pan in the following order: mince-lasagne sheets-white sauce-mince-lasagne sheets-white sauce. This will give you three layers; finish off with white sauce and sprinkle the cheese on top.
11. Bake in the oven for 25 mins until the lasagne sheets are cooked and the top is browned and bubbling.
12. Serve with garlic bread, a green salad and a big glass of red wine :)