Ah, but then..: A hint of Edinburgh and jom masak II: Mutton Lasagna

Oh well, I decide to kill time with blogging in this cold morning. It is drizzling now outside the hotel and Princes Street is not as busy as it was yesterday. I am very lucky because the view from my room is breathtaking, and that there are many outlets for me to do my mini shopping along Princes Street. I'm so excited :)

Edinburgh Castle on the distant hill. And this Gothic structure is the Scott Monument, dedicated to the Scottish author, Sir Walter Scott

The left-side view of my window: Looking toward North Bridge and Balmoral Hotel

Okay, let's get on with our lasagna! Fellas, this recipe is simple yet tasty, and I'm sure you can do it too!

This recipe is for 4 - 6 persons. So if you're making it for a smaller number of people, you can just decrease the measurements, but you know, it's always good to cook a little bit more, in case someone wants second or third helping :D

Alright. The things you will need:

Lasagna sheets of course! I bought the one that didn't need pre-cooking.

Oh yeah, don't forget to preheat the oven.

For the minced mutton gravy:

1. 300 grams of minced mutton (yeah, you can definitely use meat too, it's just that it is easier to get halal mutton here in Reading)

2. 1 can of sliced button mushrooms

3. 500 g of lasagna sauce (I use Dolmio's, but yeah, any lasagna sauce will do)

4. Salt, sugar and pepper to taste (white or black, up to you. I like both :D)

5. A hint of oregano

6. 2 tablespoons of olive oil

Here's how I do it:

Heat the olive oil into the pan. Then put in the minced mutton and let it fry for about 4-5 minutes, or until all the parts have turned brown. After that, pour in the lasagna sauce and stir well to get the mutton to blend well with it. Simmer for about 2-3 minutes, and then put in the mushrooms. Add in salt, sugar and pepper until the taste meets your expectations.

My gravy looked like this! I love the colour

Ok. Now, the white sauce:

1. 50 grams of butter

2. 3 tablespoons of flour (if you want the sauce to be thicker, you can use more flour)

3. 500 ml of fresh milk

4. Chopped cheddar cheese (amount up to your liking)

5. Salt and sugar to taste

As usual, heat up the pan and put in the butter. When the butter has melted, put in the flour, half tablespoon at a time. Stir well before adding more flour. After that, pour in the fresh milk, and mix it well with the flour and butter. Add in the chopped cheddar. Stir until the cheese has completely dissolved in the mixture. Add in sugar and salt to your preferred taste.

Mine was made to be a bit thick.. and I put in half block of the cheddar

Now, let's begin layering the lasagna. First, spread the gravy evenly in the baking tin. The place the first layer of lasagna sheets on top of it. Spread again the gravy, and add the white sauce on top of the gravy before covering with the lasagna sheets. Repeat the process until the gravy is all used up. After placing the last layer of lasagna sheets, spread the top with the white sauce.

Just like this

Now it's ready to go into the oven. 170-180 degrees Celsius, 40-50 minutes. I prefer slow, not-too-high-temperature cooking. So I tend to lower the heat a bit toward the final 10 minutes of the cooking to 160 degrees and add in extra 5 minutes.