Chicken and Ham Lasagne

This is another wonderful way to use up leftovers. Although I made a bit of a mistake. I thought the pasta was precooked and so put it in dry but obviously it wasn't as it just went all crispy and uncooked. I'm realloy kicking myself as this looked like a delicious lasagne. The bits that were edible were really good. Ah well we all make mistakes and I'll just have to try it again next year when I have leftover ham!

 

Chicken and Ham Lasagne (from The English Kitchen)

(Serves 4-6)

 

75g unsalted butter

1 medium onion, finely chopped

1 garlic clove, finely chopped

50g plain flour

700ml of milk

300ml chicken stock

1/4 tsp freshly grated nutmeg

salt and pepper

8 cubes of frozen leaf spinach, thawed and squeezed dry

400g of cooked chicken, diced

200g cooked ham, diced

8 sheets dried lasagne

250g of strong Cheddar cheese, grated

 

Preheat the oven to 180C. Butter a large casserole dish. Set it aside.Melt a third of the butter in a saucepan. Add the onions and cook gently for a few minutes until it begins to soften without browning. Add the garlic. Cook for a further two minutes. Scoop out and set aside.

 

Add the remaining butter to the pan. Whisk in the flour to make a smooth paste. Slowly whisk in the milk, until it is completely mixed in and smooth. Whisk in the chicken stock as well. You should have a thickened sauce which coats the back of a spoon. Season with the nutmeg and salt and pepper to taste.

Mix together the ham and chicken. Place half of it into the bottom of the baking dish. Cover with half of the spinach and onion and garlic. Spoon 1/3 of the sauce over top. Top with four lasagne sheets. Spoon the remainder of the ham/chicken mixture and the spinach over top. Spoon over another 1/3 of the sauce. Top with the remaining four sheets of lasagne. Spoon the remaining sauce over all and sprinkle the cheese over top to cover.

 

Place onto a baking sheet and bake in the heated oven for 55 minutes until it is deliciously golden brown and bubbling. Allow to stand a few minutes before serving. Cut into squares to serve.