A Lighter Lasagne

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This is a full flavoured, vegetable-full, healthier lasagne.

It makes a big batch for bulk cooking, providing enough mince for a large, deep lasagne as well as a supply of leftover mince for me to make a smaller lasagne dish another night quickly (just making a white sauce and assembling).

Feel free to cut it down if you prefer to make a smaller portion.

Ingredients:

• 1.5 kg grass-fed beef mince
• 2 onions, finely diced
• 6 garlic cloves, crushed
• 3 celery stalks, finely diced
• 2 large carrots, finely diced
• 2 zucchini, finely diced
• 250g nitrate free bacon, rind removed and finely diced
• 500g pork mince
• 2 jars pure passata
• 1.5 teaspoons cinnamon powder
• ½ teaspoon ground cloves
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 500g cauliflower
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 4 cloves garlic
• ½ leek
• 1 tablespoon butter (optional, to make the cauliflower creamier. Can sub with olive oil)
• 400ml water or stock
• Salt and pepper to taste.
• Pasta sheets (or use thinly sliced and grilled eggplant, pumpkin, sweet potato or zucchini for grain-free or lower carb option).
• Optional: a little grated mozzarella and parmesan for sprinkling on top.

Method:

1. Heat a large saucepan and add a little extra olive oil. Add the onions, carrot and celery and sauté until beginning to soften. Add the bacon and continue to cook, stirring well. Once the vegetables have softened, and the bacon cooked, add the garlic and stir again, cooking a minute longer.
2. Add the pork and beef mince and cook, stirring often to break up the mince and brown well all over.
3. Add the passata and stir well. Pop in a lid to seal and cook for 20-30 minutes, stirring often.
4. Add the zucchini, cinnamon and cloves. Stir well and continue to cook for another 15 minutes or so.
5. Taste and season to your liking with salt and pepper. Set aside, or you can allow to simmer for longer to intensify the flavours a little more.
6. To make your white sauce, pulverise the cauliflower to crumbs in a food processor (until it resembles rice).
7. In another saucepan, heat a tablespoon of olive oil and add the leek, cooking for 2-3 minutes until softened and translucent. Add the garlic and cook for another 2 minutes.
8. Add the cauliflower and water or stock and stir. Pop on a lid and cook for 10 minutes on medium-low heat stirring often until the cauliflower has softened the whole way through. Add a tablespoon of butter plus salt, pepper and freshly grated nutmeg to taste.
9. Blend in a food processor until smooth. If it seems too think you can cook a little longer to evaporate some of the liquid off, or if too thick then with a little water or stock.

To Assemble Your Lasagne:

1. Grease your lasagne dish with a little olive oil or a thin layer of the mince sauce to stop the pasta or vegetable sheets sticking.
2. Add a layer of pasta sheets or vegetables. Then a layer of mince sauce and repeat.
3. After two layers of each, add just under half the white sauce. Then add another layer of pasta and mince.
4. Depending on the depth of your lasagne dish, you may or may not fit another layer.
5. To finish, add the remaining white sauce over the final layer of pasta or vegetable sheets.
6. If you are using the cheese, add it to the top now, however, this is still a very delicious dish without it if you can’t handle dairy.
7. Bake in a preheated oven (180 C) for 30-4 minutes until the top has browned evenly and the pasta sheets have softened.
8. Set aside to rest for 10 minutes before cutting and serving.
9. Serve with a big fresh green salad.

Recipe courtesy of Sandi Cooper Naturopathy.

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