Lasagne
Garfield isn’t the only one who loves lasagne! We eat loads of it in the UK, and despite its reputation, it doesn’t have to be difficult to make, depending on what shortcuts you take. We have some simple, affordable steps to tweak your lasagne to help it become healthier, cheaper and higher in veg!
Garfield isn’t the only one who loves lasagne! We eat loads of it in the UK, and despite its reputation, it doesn’t have to be difficult to make, depending on what shortcuts you take. We have some simple, affordable steps to tweak your lasagne to help it become healthier, cheaper and higher in veg!
Why is lasagne so great?
Lasagne is creamy, tomato-ey, and filling.
Lasagne has a reputation for being hard work and using up a lot of pans, but in reality it can be as hard or easy as you choose to make it. Whether you are at the “heat through a ready meal” stage or making your own sauces or anywhere in between, we have some simple steps to make it better while keeping it simple and affordable.
With all its layers and depth of flavour, lasagne is an easy vehicle for veg – it’s a really simple recipe to add more veg and pulses, and less meat, to without compromising on cost and flavour. This makes it a great recipe to gently tweak for a family who want to eat more veg but are struggling with the process.
Our Simple Lasagne recipe below is just that – a basic mix of optional meat (or veggie alternative) + lasagne sheets + tomato sauce + white sauce. If you are just starting out, this is the place to start! If you already have the basics and want to work on slowly improving your recipe using our Step by Step method, try our Next Steps Lasagne.
Kids who engage with healthy foods are more likely to eat them, so to set yourself up for success, we’ve included tips to get kids involved in the second recipe to keep things simple.
Simple Lasagne
Ingredients:
Jar of tomato or bolognese sauce
Mince or veggie alternative (fresh or frozen – allow about 100g per person)
Jar of white sauce
Lasagne sheets
Grated cheese (optional, a small handful per person)
Not made a lasagne before, or not ready to try the next steps? Start here!
Method:
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Cook the mince according to package instructions (usually with a little oil in a pan for 5-10 mins until browned and cooked through).
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Layer in a casserole dish (⅓ to ½ of each layer to make 2-3 layers): a layer of meat mixed with the tomato sauce, then a layer of pasta sheets, then a layer of white sauce. Keep layering until out of ingredients. Top with a little grated cheese if you like.
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Bake in a hot oven (200C/gas 6) for 30-45 mins, until the top is golden and bubbling around the sides.
There is no need to go any further with this recipe until you are confident with it and feel up for the next step.
Once you have the basics it’s time to slowly improve your recipe using our Step by Step method to a bit better.
There are three ways to step-by-step your way to better lasagne – start where you feel most comfortable and if in doubt, start with a few veg.
Remember, the MOST important thing is that the family enjoys the meal! These changes and swaps can take as long as is needed. Small simple improvements over time may not even be noticed!
add veg
Aim for 2 handfuls of veg per person in the long-run, but it’s better to go slow and get there than to rush to the finish line and find no one is there with you. For the best chance of success, start with a veg you know the family likes, don’t try to hide it, and build up over time. Starting with frozen veg can also mean less waste, keeping costs down, and being able to add a small amount simply.
We’ve added our top suggestions and how and when to add them to the recipe below.
better sauce
Swapping a ready-made sauce for a homemade sauce can often help the budget as well as the salt and sugar content. If making your own sauce is 20 mins you can’t spare, adding a tin of chopped tomatoes or passata is an easy, cheaper, instant way to a healthier sauce. Add flavour with a pinch of salt and/or some mixed dried herbs to taste.
You could even make a cheat’s cheaper healthier white sauce by whisking or blending together cottage cheese or ricotta with a bit of milk and some salt & pepper. A handful of grated Parmesan adds extra flavour if you want it, too!
reduce meat
Try a tin of cooked lentils or beans (drained and rinsed) to replace half (or all of) the meat, added for the last couple of mins of cooking before assembling and baking. If you think it will be turned down, try starting with just half a tin and perhaps even blending it into the sauce and just reduce the meat while adding more lentils or beans slowly each time you make the meal.
Next Steps Lasagne
Ingredients:
500g tomato sauce (homemade or low sugar/salt shop-bought) or 1 tin chopped tomatoes or 500g passata
Mince or veggie alternative (fresh or frozen – allow about 50-80g per person)
1 tin cooked lentils, drained and rinsed
Veggies – aim for 1-2 handfuls per person, ideas in the recipe
500g white sauce (homemade or low fat/salt shop-bought) or a cheat’s version made by blending 300g cottage cheese, 150ml milk, a handful of grated Parmesan and a pinch each of salt & pepper
Lasagne sheets
Grated cheese Parmesan, Cheddar, mozzarella… (optional – only one handful is needed here)
We suggest you do this in stages, slowly, and go as far as works for your family, here’s how your final recipe might come together…
Method:
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Cook the mince according to package instructions (usually with a little oil in a pan for 5-10 mins until browned and cooked through). If using fresh veg, add at this stage and cook over low heat until softened.
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Stir in the tomato sauce and lentils, along with any frozen veg, and simmer until everything is heated through and softened. Fresh veg is best if diced fairly small and cooked with the meat until soft, try: diced onions, celery and/or carrots, diced fennel or sliced leeks, diced peppers or sliced mushrooms, or diced aubergine or courgette… Alternatively, you could stir through some fresh leafy greens when you add the lentils and just let it wilt, or even serve the lasagne with salad and dressing or green beans/shredded cabbage cooked in butter and garlic on the side.
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If using frozen veg, add with the lentils, try: frozen peas, sweetcorn or mixed veg, frozen grilled Mediterranean veg, sliced carrots, peppers or mushrooms, frozen broccoli florets (defrost first as they can be quite big so slower to cook), diced sweet potato or squash…
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Layer in a casserole dish (⅓ to ½ of each layer to make 2-3 layers): a layer of meat with tomato veg sauce, then a layer of pasta sheets, then a layer of white sauce. Keep layering until out of ingredients. Top with a little grated cheese if you like.
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Bake in a hot oven (200C/gas 6) for 30-45 mins, until the top is golden and bubbling around the sides.
Engaging Kids
Kids who engage regularly with veg through veg-themed activities, such as arts and crafts, sensory experiences, growing and cooking are shown to be more likely to eat the veg they engage with. Encouraging kids to engage and play with veg is the handy first step to them developing a good relationship with veg and life-long healthy eating. Find out more here.
Kids in the kitchen
Get younger kids stirring sauces with some help, layering up the sauces and pasta (they love this bit!), and chucking a couple of handfuls of your chosen veg into the pan of sauce.
Older kids might be ready to learn how to chop some fresh veg to add at the start of the meal, stir everything together in the pan, and layering with a lot less help!
Master these skills:
Tasting, Mixing, Bridge chopping, Claw chopping
Activities
Use arts & crafts as a stepping stone to interacting with the veg themselves. While you make your lasagne components, why not set a child up with:
Find more arts & crafts and puzzles & games on our website.
Sensory
Why not start with a raw carrot and a cooked one and get them to describe what they hear – if they break them both in half, do they make the same sound? If they bite down on them, do they sound soft, crunchy, hard, loud, quiet? See if they want to chuck some into the lasagne after having engaged with them (frozen sliced ones are great in the tomato sauce).
Watch Ruth Platt’s video on sensory activities with carrots for more inspiration, or get more tips, games and videos over on our Sensory page.
Serving
Why not let your child come up with a theme for the meal? Perhaps it’s a journey to the centre of the earth where everyone has to dig through their slice of lasagne to see if they can find the carrot slices at the bottom, or maybe they helped you layer the lasagne and set the table with layers, too – napkins, two plates each, a placecard with everyone’s name that hides a second piece of paper with a picture or poem! Make sure to praise them for their creativity and imagination and to play along!
Get more ideas over on our Roles for Kids page.
Family Favourite Recipes
Use our step-by-step methods to slowly improve these favourites, too…
DO you have a question you’d like one of our experts to help you with?
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