I remember the first time I had lasagna. I must have been about eleven or twelve years old coming home from school anticipating a nice hot meal as I always did.

Lasagna was a dish I was only familiar with through tv shows, movies, and dear ol’ Garfield. Never would I had imagined mother dearest making one!

Oh, I was excited! And right I was, because since I have tried mothers blissful and delicious lasagna recipe I have not had anything as good.

So before I dive into the recipe, I want to thank my mother for being such a wonderful cook and introducing all types of cuisines to our household.

Filling Ingredients:

• Olive Oil (for cooking)
• 2 Onions – Chopped
• 500 g – Ground Beef
• 2 tbsp – Tomato Paste
• Dried Oregano – To Taste
• Salt – To Taste
• Pepper – To Taste

Béchamel Ingredients: I eyeball the ingredients, so the measurements are just approximates

• 375 ml – Milk
• 2 tbsp – Butter
• 1 Tbsp – Flour
• Shredded Cheese (Could be white cheddar, mozzarella or anything that melts nicely) – To Taste, depending on how cheesy you like your béchamel

Assembly & Garnish Ingredients:

• Lasagna Noodles (depending on the dish size / length & width of noodle – I use about 18 pieces)
• Grated Parmesan Cheese

Preparation:

• Preheat the oven to 180 Degrees Celsius (350F)
• In a pan, caramelize the onions with olive oil
• Add the ground beef and cook through
• Mix in the tomato paste.
• Add a little bit of water (start with 1 cup) – just enough to moisten the mixture but not to make a sauce
• Set the ground beef mixture aside
• In a separate pot melt the butter
• Stir in the flour to make a roux; keep stirring to not burn the mixture
• Add your milk to the roux to start forming your béchamel; keep stirring
• Once the béchamel has thickened to your liking, add your cheese and stir until completely incorporated
• Take your béchamel off the stove to prevent it from burning
• In your baking dish, start by spreading a thin layer of béchamel at the bottom
• Top the béchamel layer with lasagna noodles
• Add a layer of beef mixture on top
• Repeat until your last layer of noodles
• Top the last layer of noodles with more béchamel sauce
• Sprinkle your parmesan over the top
• Bake for about 45 min or until the noodles are fully cooked
• Tip: If the noodles are not fully cooked but the top is starting to crisp, place a sheet of aluminum foil over the top to prevent it from burning while it continues to cook

Bon Appétit!