Lasagna is the ultimate classic and loved comfort food. It’s a hearty dish that is perfect for any occasion, whether it’s a busy weeknight dinner or a festive holiday gathering. The traditional lasagna recipe is typically made with layers of pasta, ground beef, cheese, and tomato sauce. However, for those who are looking for a healthier option, a meat and vegetable lasagna is a great alternative! This dish adds an array of colourful garden vegetables that will not only add flavour, but also bring added layers of nutrition.
How to Make a Meat & Vegetable Lasagna
For this recipe, we are making an aromatic meaty tomato sauce and layering that with noodles, cheese, and garden vegetables. Here’s a quick run through:
Make it saucy! Start by using organic, grass-fed ground beef, garlic and rosemary. The rosemary adds an aromatic depth to the recipe. Olive oil, salt, coconut sugar, oregano, and tomato sauce to all be combined. Let this come to a boil, then simmer while you complete next steps.
Prepare vegetable mix! Chop all of your garden vegetables, and sauté until golden. Then transfer to a food processor and further chop the mixture by pulsing 7 times, stopping to scrape down sides and making sure it’s not pureed! Add mixture to ricotta and stir through.
Layer it up! Layer the meat and vegetable lasagna with the meat sauce, noodles, vegetable mix, more sauce, topped with fior di latte & parmesan. Continue until you have used up all the ingredients.
Bake until bubbly, allow to sit, then bon appétit!
Why You Will LOVE This Recipe:
Three reasons to love this meat and lasagna recipe:
- You can choose whichever vegetables that are in season.
- The sauce is beautifully aromatic with the addition of rosemary.
- You can adjust this recipe to your liking, make it gluten-free or vegan!
The Best Farm to Table Recipe: Meat & Vegetable Lasagna
Ingredients
Meat
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 500 g ground beef organic, grass-fed
- 6 cloves garlic finely chopped
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 sprig fresh rosemary approx. 1 tbsp chopped
Sauce
- 800 g crushed tomatoes I find the Mutta Polpa brand the absolute best!
- 2 tsp coconut sugar
- 1/2 tsp oregano
- 1 tsp salt
Garden Veggies
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 brown onion chopped
- 1 red capsicum chopped
- 1 large carrot chopped
- 1 medium zucchini chopped
- 170 g shitake mushrooms chopped
- 3 cups greens finely chopped, choose from spinach, tuscan kale, rocket or a mix of all!
- 1/4 tsp salt
Remaining Ingredients
- 300 g ricotta
- 2 cups shredded parmesan
- 400 g fior di latte
- no-boil lasagna noodles approx. 16 sheets
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 220 degrees Celcius.
- To prepare the meat: In a bowl mix all the meat ingredients except the olive oil together and allow to sit for a few minutes. Heat a dutch oven or large pot over medium heat and warm the olive oil. Cook the meat mix, stirring occasionally until browned.
- To the meat, add all of the sauce ingredients, bring to a boil and then allow to simmer while you prepare the rest of the recipe.
- To prepare the veggies, in a large skillet warm the olive oil, once simmering add the onion, capsicum, carrot, zucchini, and shitake mushrooms. Cook stirring every few minutes until the veggies become golden.
- Add your greens into the veggie mix until wilted. Remove from the skillet and set aside.
- Transfer the cooked veggies mixture to a food processor. Pulse until they are more finely chopped (but not puréed!), about 7 times, stopping to scrape down the sides as necessary. Transfer the mixture to a large bowl, add the ricotta cheese, 1/4 tsp of salt and freshly ground pepper. Stir to combine!
- Spread sauce evenly over the bottom of a 9” by 13” baking dish. Layer 4 lasagna noodles on top (snap off their ends to fit, and/or overlap their edges as necessary). Spread the veggie mixture evenly over the noodles. Top with more sauce, then sprinkle fior di latte and parmesan on top. Repeat until you have used up all the ingredients.
- Wrap a sheet of parchment paper on top ensuring you don’t let it come into contact with the cheese. Bake, covered, for 20 minutes, then remove the cover and continue cooking for about 10 more minutes, until the top is turning spotty brown.
- Remove from the oven and let the lasagna cool for 10-15 minutes, so it has time to set and cool down to a reasonable temperature. Slice and serve!
