Healthier lasagne
- Published: 28 Feb 13
- Updated: 18 Mar 24
There’s no getting away from the fact that a lasagne can be a little heavy on calories. That’s why we’ve created this lighter version. Don’t worry, it still contains pasta, meat and cheese but a few clever tweaks ensure it’s not unnecessarily rich and heavy. Make it at the weekend and store in the fridge to feed the family during the week.
Check out 15 of our best-ever lasagne recipes, including tips and tricks to nailing this Italian dish.
Ingredients
For the ragù
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 large carrot, finely diced
- 1 celery stick, finely diced
- 1 onion, finely chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, crushed
- 750g lean beef mince
- 100ml dry white wine
- 4 tbsp tomato purée
- 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 50ml semi-skimmed milk
- 9 dried lasagne sheets (see tip)
- 50g parmesan, coarsely grated
For the béchamel sauce
- 600ml semi-skimmed milk
- ½ onion, finely chopped
- 3 black peppercorns
- 2 cloves
- 1 bay leaf
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 3 tbsp plain flour
- 1 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
Method
- To make the ragù, heat the 1 tbsp oil in a large pan. Add the vegetables and garlic and cook over a low heat for 10 minutes or until the onion is translucent.
- Stir in the mince and cook for 5 minutes to brown. Pour in the wine, then increase the heat to medium and bubble for 2 minutes. Stir in the tomato purée, Worcestershire sauce and the 50ml milk, then pour in enough water (about 300ml) to cover the meat. Bring to a simmer, then reduce the heat to low, cover and cook for 1-1½ hours until thickened.
- When the ragù is nearly ready, make the béchamel sauce. Warm the milk in a pan over a low heat. Stir in the onion with the peppercorns, cloves and bay leaf, then remove from the heat and set aside for 10 minutes. Strain into a jug, then discard the flavourings.
- Heat the oil in a pan over a medium heat, then stir in the flour and cook for 1 minute. Off the heat, gradually whisk in the milk until thick. Season, then stir in the nutmeg.
- Preheat the oven to 200°C/fan180°C/gas 6. Spread a little béchamel over the base of a 2.25 litre ovenproof dish. Top with 3 lasagne sheets in a single layer, a third of the béchamel, then half the ragù. Add 3 more lasagne sheets, half the remaining béchamel and all the ragù. Finally, add another layer of lasagne sheets, then top with béchamel. Sprinkle with the grated parmesan, then bake for 40 minutes or until deep golden on top
- Recipe from March 2013 Issue
Nutrition
- Calories
- 473kcals
- Fat
- 23.1g (9.5g saturated)
- Protein
- 33.3g
- Carbohydrates
- 24.2g (9.1g sugars)
- Fibre
- 3.5g
- Salt
- 0.7g
delicious. tips
For added fibre, use wholemeal lasagne and cook for 10-15 minutes longer.
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This recipe is awful!