Lasagne made with Cheddar Cheese sauce.

[Paint]

I don't have an exact recipe for this, because I just throw stuff in a pan etc., and I usually use a good, store bought marinara sauce instead of making my own....but here is basically how it goes.
* For the meat sauce:
1lb of lean ground beef,
1 jar of good, tasty, marinara sauce (I like Bertolli brand the best).
1 large (28oz) can of chopped italian tomatoes
2 sticks celery, sliced.
1 large onion, chopped,
1 red or yellow bell pepper, chopped,
8oz sliced mushrooms,
1 courgette (zucchini), quartered, then sliced.
Italian herbs (oregano, basil, marjoram),
Salt and Pepper,
Garlic - about 2 cloves, chopped.
Nutmeg - about 1/4 teaspoon
around 1 teaspoon worcestershire sauce,
around 1 or 2 tablespoons of steak sauce,
around 2 tablespoons of tomato ketchup,
around 2 teaspoons of mushroom ketchup if you have it (see link at bottom of recipe)
around half a can of tomato paste
half a glass of red wine (or water if preferred).
Sugar to taste.

*For the cheese sauce:
Butter (or margerine if preferred),
Milk (1 pint).
Salt and Pepper,
8oz + 2-3oz of Good sharp Cheddar (we like Cabot's 'Hunters Seriously Sharp Cheddar' available at Walmarts, not expensive!), grated.
Cornflour (or Wondra flour) for thickening.

*Several sheets of whatever Lasagne you like, preferably that doesn't need pre-boiling.

Method:

Fry the ground beef in a large skillet, then add the celery, onions and peppers and fry until cooked (about 10 minutes). Add the mushrooms and courgette and fry until softened. Add all the rest of the meat sauce ingredients EXCEPT the sugar, and simmer, covered for around 30 minutes. Taste and add sugar if too acidic, also any extra seasonings you would like to taste. Thicken it a bit if neccessary, but don't make it too thick because the lasagne will absorb a lot of the liquid as it cooks.

Make a well-flavoured cheese sauce with 8oz of cheddar (I don't bother making a roux first, I just melt together the milk, cheese and butter, then add Wondra flour to thicken it up, so that it's slightly thicker than heavy cream). Make sure the sauce is nice and cheesy.

Layer the lasagne, meat sauce and cheese sauce: you should have BOTH meat sauce and a thin layer of cheese sauce between the sheets of lasagne. Finish with a layer of meat sauce, then most of the cheese sauce on top. Sprinkle over 2-3oz grated cheddar on top. Bake at 375F for around 50 minutes. It should be golden brown and bubbling on the top.

Serve with salad and chunks of Foccacia bread, and a good red wine :)

Best wishes, Paint.

Geo. Watkins Mushroom Ketchup can be purchased from...
http://www.ketchupworld.com/geowatmusket.html

[lyndalou]

That looks wonderful. Have you ever made it with "garden variety "ketchup?

[Paint]

Not sure what 'Garden Variety Ketchup' is....... is it something you could use instead of the mushroom ketchup? The mushroom ketchup isn't essential in this recipe, but it does add a little extra flavour.

I'm making this lasagne tonight, following my own recipe (!), to see if I guessed the amounts right. I'll tweak the recipe later on if necessary :)

Paint.

[Paint]

Yup, it turned out just fine :) The meat sauce didn't need any thickening, and I forgot that I usually added half a glass of red wine to it too.

Paint.

[lyndalou]

dGarden variety is just an expression meaning regular, everyday . I am glad that your lasagna was a success. I'm going to try it.