So I decided on a chicken, spinach and tomato sauce - I made it looser than my usual thick meat mix and didn't make a béchamel. It was moist and flavourful and was lovely after work, with a simple salad on the side. And was pretty quick.
(Before you ask - no, I didn't make the pasta... I had dried sheets so why would I in a hurry? Perfect..)
Ingredients: (Serves 4)
1 tbsp. olive oil
3 chicken breasts, skin removed and sliced thinly
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 onion, chopped
1 small red pepper, sliced
2 tbsp. either tomato (or red pepper) paste
1 x 400g tin chopped tomatoes
1 tsp. sugar
1 tsp. chilli flakes (or a chopped red chilli)
260g bag of fresh spinach
140g grated cheddar cheese (or other if you have a favourite)
few sheets of dried lasagne
Method:
Set the oven to 180 C. Put the spinach into a large pan on a low heat (no water needed). Steam, stirring occasionally until wilted. Cool and squeeze excess water out and chop. Set to one side.
Heat the oil and fry the sliced chicken for 3 minutes until mostly cooked. Add the garlic, onion, sliced pepper and stir. Cook for 5 minutes until softened. Add the paste, tinned tomatoes and a half of the tin of water and season with salt & pepper and the chilli flakes. Bring to the boil and turn to a low heat for 20 minutes to get the flavours to combine. Finally add the chopped spinach and sugar (the sugar takes the bitterness out of the tinned tomatoes). Taste to check for seasoning. Cook for another 5 minutes, stirring well.
To assemble, put a third of the chicken & spinach sauce on the base of a 9 inch square lasagne dish. Sprinkle on a third of the cheese and a layer of pasta. Then the second layer of sauce, topped with cheese and another layer of pasta. Finally the last third of the sauce topped with the last of the cheese.
Put in the oven for 25 minutes or until bubbling and cooked through. Serve with a simple salad of lettuce, red onion and tomatoes and some garlic bread if you like.. Comfort food at its best!
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