Chicken, Garlic & Spinach Lasagna - An easy recipe full of flavor and freezer friendly too!
The smells coming from the oven when this is cooking is simply wonderful!
Here I made a simple lasagne, full of flavour and oh so delicious!
I made it as simple as possible, and also used Spinach lasagne pasta sheets for a nice colour.
It is a very filling dish, so beware! What looks like a small portion on your plate is certainly going to fill your tummy!
Please enjoy!
You will need an oven proof dish, measuring approx 8 x 10 inches and deep enough to about 4 inches. Try and use a pan as close to this size as possible so you can get the layers nice.
Ingredients:
Meat Sauce
2 chicken legs or 4 thighs boned and cut into small bite size
*** You can use breast meat but I find the dark meat sweeter and has more flavour.
1 Package of frozen spinach
1 medium onion chopped
4 cloves garlic finely chopped
1 ¼ cups or 250 ml chicken broth
2 teaspoons Worcestershire Sauce (or Balsamic Vinegar)
Salt & Pepper
** I also used a handful of sliced mushrooms for added texture.
Cheese Sauce
3 Tablespoons butter
⅓ cup or 40 g All Purpose Flour
2 ½ cups or 600 ml Milk
1 teaspoon Yellow Mustard powder
1 ½ cups or 150 g grated cheese
Choose your favourite cheese. I used Cheddar.
Salt & Pepper
Lasagne sheets - for 3 layers.
I used Spinach lasagne sheets
Instructions:
Make the meat filling
1. Peel & chop onion, garlic (and mushrooms if using) then add to a pan with 1 tablespoon olive oil.
2. Lightly fry until the onions are soft and translucent (not brown as this will make them taste bitter)
3. Add your chicken and cook, stirring in the pan with the other ingredients. Your chicken should be cut into bite sized pieces. Add the broth, spinach and Worcestershire Sauce and leave to simmer very low whilst you make the cheese sauce. Season if you wish with salt & pepper.
Make the Cheese Sauce
1. Melt butter in pan under gentle heat
2. Add Flour & mustard powder and beat until smooth paste and take pan off the heat.
3. Slowly add the milk, a little at a time and combine until smooth, then add a little more milk, combine. Continue until all the milk is used.
4. Return to gentle heat, and keep stirring until thick This will take about 5 minutes so be patient and keep stirring!.
5. Add ¾ of the grated cheese and combine. The remaining ¼ of the cheese is for the top of the lasagne.
Build the lasagne.
1. Preheat oven to 170 C / 325 F / Gas 3
2. Start with a layer of ⅓ of the meat sauce on the bottom of the pan, then a layer of lasagne sheets, then cheese sauce. Repeat these layers, ending with the cheese sauce as the final top layer. Then sprinkle the remaining grated cheese on top.
*** you should be able to make 3 layers of lasagne sheets.
3. Place in the oven for 1 hour. **** I would advise to place the lasagne on a baking tray to catch any drips. When done, remove and leave to set for 30 minutes.
****IMPORTANT ****
If you try and cut the lasagne when it is piping hot it is too slushy. Allow to firm up a little, with the 30 minutes rest, then you can make nice portions and get the lasagne from the pan using a fish slice.
We'd love to hear from you and what you thought of our post. Did you make any changes or add some other goodies? Let us know in the comments below. Thanks for reading and happy cooking!
- 2 chicken legs or 4 thighs boned and cut into small bite size
- *** You can use breast meat but I find the dark meat sweeter and has more flavour.
- 1 Package of frozen spinach
- 1 medium onion chopped
- 4 cloves garlic finely chopped
- 1 ¼ cups or 250 ml chicken broth
- 2 teaspoons Worcestershire Sauce or Balsamic Vinegar
- Salt & Pepper
- ** I also used a handful of sliced mushrooms for added texture.
- 3 Tablespoons butter
- ⅓ cup or 40 g All Purpose Flour
- 2 ½ cups or 600 ml Milk
- 1 teaspoon Yellow Mustard powder
- 1 ½ cups or 150 g grated cheese
- Choose your favourite cheese. I used Cheddar.
- Salt & Pepper
- Lasagne sheets - for 3 layers.
- I used Spinach lasagne sheets
- Make the meat filling. Peel & chop onion, garlic (and mushrooms if using) then add to a pan with 1 tablespoon olive oil.
- Lightly fry until the onions are soft and translucent (not brown as this will make them taste bitter)
- Add your chicken and cook, stirring in the pan with the other ingredients. Your chicken should be cut into bite sized pieces. Add the broth, spinach and Worcestershire Sauce and leave to simmer very low whilst you make the cheese sauce. Season if you wish with salt & pepper.
- Make the Cheese Sauce. Melt butter in pan under gentle heat. Add Flour & mustard powder and beat until smooth paste and take pan off the heat.
- Slowly add the milk, a little at a time and combine until smooth, then add a little more milk, combine. Continue until all the milk is used.
- Return to gentle heat, and keep stirring until thick This will take about 5 minutes so be patient and keep stirring!.
- Add ¾ of the grated cheese and combine. The remaining ¼ of the cheese is for the top of the lasagne.
- Build the lasagne.Preheat oven to 170 C / 325 F / Gas 3
- Start with a layer of ⅓ of the meat sauce on the bottom of the pan, then a layer of lasagne sheets, then cheese sauce. Repeat these layers, ending with the cheese sauce as the final top layer. Then sprinkle the remaining grated cheese on top. *** you should be able to make 3 layers of lasagne sheets.
Maren
FABULOUS LASAGNA!!!!!! Will become one of my favorite "go to" meals
Danielle
Do you cook the lasagna sheets first?