My Best Ever Chicken and Tarragon Lasagne

Ingredients

• 2 tsp olive oil
• 1 red pepper, bell, cored, deseeded and diced
• 1 carrot, diced
• 1 leek, trimmed, cleaned and diced
• 1 red onion, diced
• 1 courgette, zucchini, diced
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 400g (14oz) chicken leg meat, cooked, shredded
• 10 sun-dried tomatoes, in oil, drained and diced
• 1 heaped tsp smoked paprika
• Pinch of dried oregano
• 1 tbsp tomato purée, paste
• 500g (generous 2 cups) passata, puréed canned tomatoes
• 1 chicken stock cube, crumbled
• 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 9–12 dried lasagne sheets
• salt, to taste
• pepper, to taste
• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, for the béchamel
• 2 tbsp plain flour, all-purpose, for the béchamel
• 800ml (3⅓ cups) semi-skimmed milk, for the béchamel
• 50g (1¾oz) Parmesan cheese, grated, plus extra to assemble
• 50g (1¾oz) mature Cheddar cheese, grated, plus extra to assemble
• 1 tsp American mustard
• Large handful of tarragon, chopped, or use basil

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 220°C/200°C fan (425°F) Gas Mark 7.
2. In a large pan, add the olive oil and sauté the red pepper, carrot, leek, red onion, courgette and garlic cloves with a little salt and pepper for 5 minutes over a medium heat.
3. Stir in the chicken leg meat, sun-dried tomatoes, smoked paprika, dried oregano and tomato purée, then continue to cook for another 5 minutes.
4. Pour in the passata, then stir in the chicken stock cube and balsamic vinegar.
5. Allow the mixture to simmer gently for 10–15 minutes.
6. Meanwhile, in a separate large pan over a medium heat, combine the extra virgin olive oil and plain flour for the béchamel and cook gently for 3–5 minutes.
7. Gradually whisk in the semi-skimmed milk a quarter at a time until all the milk is used, then allow the sauce to simmer and thicken, stirring.
8. Remove the béchamel from the heat and stir in some of the Parmesan cheese and mature Cheddar cheese, keeping some back to assemble, along with the American mustard, a generous pinch each of salt and pepper and the tarragon.
9. In a 20 x 20cm (8 x 8 inch) ovenproof dish, start the layering with the ragù, followed by some béchamel, a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese, then a layer of dried lasagne sheets.
10. Repeat the layers of ragù, béchamel, cheese and dried lasagne sheets, and finish with a thick layer of béchamel.
11. Generously grate some extra Parmesan cheese and mature Cheddar cheese over the top and add a light sprinkling of salt and pepper.
12. Bake in the oven for 35 minutes, until golden and bubbling.
13. Allow the lasagne to rest for 15 minutes before serving.

Notes

Time: 1 hour 15 minutes plus 15 minutes resting. Under 400kcal and 22g protein per serving. Perfect for using up leftover roast chicken; serve with a balsamic-dressed Italian leaf salad. Basil works well if you can't find tarragon.