Sausage Cacio E Pepe White Lasagne With Balsamic Salad

Before you begin...

This recipe takes around 5-10 min to prep, so get your casserole dish and all your ingredients ready, then wash your fruit and veg

Note: Make sure your dish is oven-proof and safe to use on the hob. Don't have one? Start cooking in a large, wide-based pan then transfer to an oven-proof dish and cover tightly with tin foil

Now, let's get started!

Preheat the oven to 220°C/ 200°C (fan)/ gas 7 and boil a kettle

Heat a large, wide-based hob-safe oven-proof casserole dish with a matching lid over a medium-high heat with a small drizzle of vegetable oil

Once hot, add your sausage meat to the dish with your cracked black pepper and cook for 1-2 min or until very lightly browned all over, breaking it up into rough, small chunks

While the sausage is browning, peel and chop your brown onion[s] into wedges

Add the onion wedges to the pot and cook for 2-3 min or until slightly softened

Wash your spinach and pat it dry with kitchen paper

Wash your salad, then pat dry with kitchen paper

Once the onion is slightly softened, add a knob of butter and 1 tbsp [1 1/2 tbsp] [2 tbsp] flour and give everything a good mix up

Add your roasted garlic paste with 200ml [300ml] [400ml] milk and your soft cheese

Add 200ml [250ml] [350ml] boiled water, your chicken stock mix, Chinese rice wine and the spinach, then give everything a good mix up

Break your lasagne sheets into thirds and add them to the pot, nestling them one by one under the sauce

Bring everything to the boil over a high heat

Put the pot in the oven, with the lid on, for an initial 20-25 min or until the sauce has thickened and the pasta is tender – this is your sausage lasagne

Use this time to clear up, set the table, have a cup of tea or simply chill!

Once the lasagne is ready, sprinkle over half your grated Italian hard cheese (save some for garnish!) and a generous grind of pepper

Return the pot to the oven, uncovered, for a final 10-12 min or until melted, golden and the sausage is cooked through (no pink meat!) – this is your sausage cacio e pepe white lasagne

Leave the lasagne to stand for 2-3 min for the flavours to develop