Spinach & ricotta lasagne

• parmesan↗85g g

  (or vegetarian alternative), finely grated

• 250-300g dried lasagne

  sheets

• pine nut↗50g g
• butter↗85g g
• plain flour↗85g g
• bay leaves↗4
• milk↗1 ½l l
• good grating nutmeg↗
• onions↗2

  finely chopped

• olive oil↗1 tbsp tbsp
• fresh spinach↗700g g

  leaves

• ricotta↗250g g

Step-by-step instructions

1. 1

   First make the white sauce. Melt the butter and flour together in a big saucepan, and cook the paste for a couple of mins. Add the bay leaves, then gradually whisk in the milk, little by little, until you have a nice smooth sauce. Bubble for a few mins, then season with salt, pepper and nutmeg. Remove the bay leaf, cover with cling film (lay it directly onto the sauce) until ready to use.

2. 2

   Gently cook the onions in the oil until really soft. Put the kettle on. Put half the spinach in a big colander and pour over the boiling water to wilt. Repeat with the rest of the spinach, let it cool a little then squeeze as much liquid as you can out of the spinach. Roughly chop and stir into the onions with the ricotta, a small ladle of the white sauce and most of the parmesan. Season well.

3. 3

   Heat oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. Spread a quarter of the sauce into the base of a big baking dish, then dollop over a third of the spinach mixture. Top with a layer of lasagne sheets, then repeat the layers – a quarter of the sauce, third of the spinach mix and some lasagne sheets. Finish with the remaining sauce and scatter over the remaining parmesan. Bake for 40-50 mins until the lasagne is cooked through and the top golden, scattering over the pine nuts with 10 mins to go.