A delicious pasta dish is a staple for every home cook and while lasagne is a good choice, it can take a while to make from scratch.
Luckily, Mary Berry has a quick alternative for those seeking the same delicious flavours without the hassle.
Sharing a recipe from her cookbook Mary Berry – Cook and Share, the British baking icon revealed how she “cheats” by swapping two ingredients.
Instead of rich beef mince, Mary uses shredded chicken and crème fraîche for the meaty base and swaps traditional bechamel sauce for a delicious blend of herbs and chopped tomatoes.
Describing the dish as “creamy and delicious”, the chef noted that soaking the lasagne sheets in water first will speed up the process even further.
Mary Berry’s lasagne recipe
Ingredients
Two tablespoons of olive oil
500g boneless and skinless chicken thighs, chopped
Half a red chilli deseeded and finely chopped
Two garlic cloves, crushed
200g button mushrooms, sliced
200g baby spinach
Two tablespoons of cornflour
200g crème fraîche
One tablespoon of freshly chopped flatleaf parsley
Six sheets of fresh lasagne
150g cheddar, grated
For the sauce
One 400g tin of chopped tomatoes
Two tablespoons sundried tomato paste
One tablespoon of chopped thyme leaves
Method
First, preheat the oven to 200C (180C fan), then put the oil in a frying pan over high heat.
Add the chopped chicken to the pan and fry it until golden, but not fully cooked. Next, sprinkle in the chilli, garlic and mushrooms before frying for a few more moments, then add the spinach.
Measure the cornflour into a small bowl and stir in two tablespoons of water. Stir gently until smooth then set aside for later,
Now, add the crème fraîche and parsley to the pan with the chicken and stir well, pouring in the cornflour until the sauce has thickened. Move onto the tomato sauce by first, combing the chopped tomatoes with the paste and thyme in a small bowl.
Season the sauce base generously with some salt and pepper and a sprinkle of dried mixed herbs if you wish.
Next, soak the lasagne sheets in a shallow dish filled with boiling water for a few minutes until soft. Take your lasagne dish and begin assembling it by first spooning a third of the chicken mixture onto the base.
Spread it out evenly before layering with one-third of the tomato sauce. Next, arrange three lasagne sheets on top then repeat the layers, making sure to finish with a final layer of chicken mixture and sauce, topped with two layers of lasagne sheets.
Finally, sprinkle the top with the grated cheese and bake for 35 to 45 minutes in the preheated oven. When the lasagne is cooked, it should be golden brown and bubbling on top.
