Rasita

Chicken Cannaloni/Lasagne

I had some left over fresh lasagne sheets from a lasagne I made earlier in the week, and some chicken mince, so I decided to try something a little different and make a cannaloni type lasagne dish.

Here is the recipe.

Ingrediants

400 grams chicken mince
3 cloves of garlic
oil
3 tbsp tomato paste
2 tbsp sugar
fresh tarragon leaves (may be substituted with the dry pre-packaged version)
1 cup of water
fresh lasagne sheets cut into squares approx. 2 inches X 2 inches
White Sauce
2 tbsp butter
2 tbsp flour/corn flour
2-3 cups milk
1 tsp nutmeg
big handful of grated cheese

Method

1. Add a dash of oil to the pan and heat. Finely chop garlic and add to heated pan. Fry for a few minutes.
2. Add chicken mince and brown. Mince may tend to stick together so continual breaking up with spoon may be necessary.
3.Mix through tomato paste, finely chopped tarragon, and sugar. Cook for a further 1-2 minutes.
4. Add water till the desired consistency is reached. Allow to simmer for 10-20 minutes.
5.Make white sauce while the chicken mix cools.
6.Place a small amount (approx 1 dessert spoon) on a pre-cut piece of lasagne sheet and roll up, placing into the lasagne dish. Continue this process with lasagne sheets. As each layer is formed of cannaloni type lasagne, add a layer of white sauce. Top with cheese.
7. Bake in a 180C - 200C pre-heated oven for approximately 45minutes.

White Sauce
1. Melt butter in a small pan and then add flour, cooking for a few minutes.
2. Add 1 cup of milk and nutmeg, whisking to eliminate any lumps and produce a smooth consistency. Whisk until the mixture thickens. (Note: the longer you cook this the thicker it will become as the flour absorbs the liquid)
3. Add more milk, following previous instruction, until desired quantity is reached. (Note: Never boil)
4. Mix through cheese until melted and well combined.

Note : The cannaloni type lasagne will probably fall apart when it is taken out of the dish, but it should still taste nice. I shall find out this when it comes time for dinner.