Everyone loves a plate of mac 'n' cheese, and when you turn this humble dish into a tasty macaroni and cheese lasagne you just know you've got a winner on your hands. And as a bonus, this recipe is so quick and easy it practically cooks itself!
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Mac 'n' cheese lasagne
I've been making this mac 'n' cheese lasagne for years. The kids loved it. Whenever it made its appearance on our dinner table I was guaranteed to get lots of empty plates! Of course, I didn't call it macaroni and cheese lasagne back then. In those days it was plain old macaroni and mince 🙂 (we weren't very posh!).
I mean, what's not to love? Tasty macaroni and cheesy, layered with a delicious bolognese sauce and covered with a layer of crispy grilled cheese.
This is one of my favourite dishes to make, for so many reasons:
- it's super economical - you can easily stretch a pound, or 450 grams, of ground beef mince to feed up to 8 people.
- it's so easy to make - just whip up a bolognese sauce and while it's simmering, make the mac 'n' cheese. Then layer it in a casserole dish, cover it with grated cheese and pop it into the oven.
- you can hide lots of healthy vegetables in the sauce to fool your picky eaters.
- it freezes like a dream - so you can make a big batch and freeze half for another meal, saving you hours in the kitchen.
- it's versatile - you can use the mince in so many other dishes like this cottage pie, or spaghetti bolognese or even this cheesy garlic bread pasta bake.
- it tastes amazing - the creaminess of the macaroni and cheese contrasts perfectly with the flavours of the bolognese sauce.
So without further ado, let me show you how to make it.
Recipe Info
**Get the complete list of ingredients and full instructions for making macaroni cheese lasagne on the printable recipe card at the end of this post**
- Prep time - 15 minutes
- Cooking time - 2 hours - but most of it is hands-off while the sauce simmers.
- Yield - serves 4 people
- Calories - 644 per serving
- Main equipment - you will need a 13" x 8" baking dish (33 cm x 20 cm). I like these dishes because they come in different sizes, and have handles so you can get them in and out of the oven easily./pri
Ingredients
I've broken these down into ingredients for the sauce and also for the macaroni and cheese. I haven't listed salt in the ingredients, but feel free to season to your own taste.
For the sauce
Beef mince or ground beef - try to get beef mince with as little fat as possible - 5% fat content is ideal.
Carrots - I like to grate the carrots so that they cook away in the sauce, leaving only their flavour behind.
Celery and onions - these should be finely diced to match the size of beef mince.
Garlic - crushed. I love this garlic twister - it makes such short work of crushing garlic.
Olive oil - for frying the beef and softening the vegetables. If you don't have olive oil you can use sunflower oil instead.
Thyme and paprika - for extra flavour.
Tomato puree - this is thick tomato concentrate, normally sold in tubes or small cans. Not to be confused with tomato ketchup.
Tinned tomatoes - which I TOTALLY forgot to put in the photo! You will only need half a can - freeze the other half for later use.
Worcestershire sauce - which enriches the sauce.
Stock - if you have beef stock you can use that, otherwise just dissolve one beef stock cube in boiling water.
Red wine - this is optional - if you prefer not to cook with wine just substitute with extra stock.
For the macaroni and cheese
Cheese - I like to use a mixture of grated mozzarella (for the texture) and cheddar (for the taste). You could use any cheese that can be grated.
Butter, cornflour and milk - these form the base for the cheese sauce. Cornflour is also known as cornstarch and is used as a thickening agent. You could substitute this with flour.
Pasta - use your favourite pasta shapes. I've chosen to use short macaroni, but you could use penne, ziti, elbow macaroni or even shell noodles.
Instructions
Meat sauce
- Peel the carrots and grate coarsely. Wash the celery, peel the onion and cut them into fine dice. Peel and crush the garlic cloves.
- Heat the oil in a wok or frying pan and gently fry the onions, celery, grated carrots and garlic until they start to soften (image 1 above).
- Add the beef mince and stir-fry until the mince is crumbly and no longer pink. Make sure the mince is all separated with no lumps (image 2 above). Season with 1 teaspoon of salt and half a teaspoon of ground black pepper (optional)
- Mix in the thyme, paprika, Worcestershire sauce, tomato puree, canned tomatoes, red wine and stock (image 3 above). Stir well and bring to the boil.
- Cover the pan with a lid, turn the heat down to a simmer and leave for 1 and a half hours to 2 hours until nicely thickened (image 4 above). Stir occasionally to prevent the sauce from sticking to the bottom of the saucepan. If the sauce hasn't thickened sufficiently, remove the lid for the last 10 minutes or so to allow some of the liquid to evaporate.
Macaroni and cheese
- Bring a saucepan of water to a boil, season with salt (optional) and cook the pasta for the time given on the packet. Drain the pasta through a colander.
- While the pasta is cooking, melt the butter in a large saucepan then remove it from the heat and stir in the cornflour (image 1 above). Make sure you get all the lumps out.
- Return to the heat and add the milk gradually, stirring all the time, until all the milk has been added and the sauce is thickened (image 2 above). The sauce should leave a trail when you draw a spoon through it.
- Add the cheese and stir until it melts into the sauce (image 3 above). Season with salt to taste (optional).
- Mix in the cooked macaroni (image 4 above).
Assemble and bake
- Arrange half the macaroni on the bottom of a 13 x 8-inch baking dish (image 1 above).
- Cover with the meat sauce (image 2 above).
- Top with the remaining macaroni cheese and sprinkle with grated cheese (image 3 above).
- Bake in a preheated oven (200C/400F) for about 15 minutes until the cheese has melted and turned golden (image 4 above).
- Serve with slices of garlic bread and a fresh green salad.
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Questions
Yes - you can freeze any leftovers in a suitable freezer container for up to 4 months. To use allow to defrost and then transfer to an oven-proof dish and reheat in a hot oven (200C/400F) for 15 minutes until piping hot. Alternatively, reheat in the microwave.
You could also freeze the meat sauce separately. I often make a larger batch of the meat sauce and freeze half for another meal.
Yes, you can make both the meat sauce and the macaroni cheese in advance and store them in covered containers in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
Bolognese sauce is cooked for a long time to ensure the meat becomes beautifully tender and also gives the sauce plenty of time to develop rich flavours. If you are in a hurry, the sauce will be fully cooked after half an hour of simmering, but believe me, it is worth allowing the sauce to simmer for as long as possible. You will taste the difference!
No, you can substitute the red wine for extra stock.
Yes, just double up on all the ingredients and make a larger batch. One thing I would be aware of though is that you may not need to double the stock. I would probably start with the original amount and then add just half that amount extra. You can always add more stock during the cooking process if needed.
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Other recipes
If you like the look of this macaroni and cheese lasagne, you may like to try some of these other dishes too:
- Meatball stuffed jumbo pasta shells with spicy tomato sauce
- Easy chilli con carne
- Homemade hamburger helper with tomatoes and mushrooms
- Meatloaf wrapped in bacon with homemade tomato sauce
- Crepe cannelloni with meat sauce and cheese (savoury stuffed pancakes)
📋The recipe
Macaroni and cheese lasagne
(Click the stars to rate this recipe)
Ingredients
Bolognese sauce
- 8 ounce (225g) beef mince or ground beef 5% fat content
- 1 large carrot grated
- 1 large stalk of celery diced
- 1 large onion diced
- 2 cloves garlic
- 2 tablespoons olive oil for frying the beef and vegetables
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 teaspoon dried paprika
- 1 tablespoon tomato puree
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 7 ounce (200g) canned tomatoes (½ 14oz/400g can)
- ⅓ cup (80 ml) red wind
- 1 cup beef stock or use a stock cube dissolved in boiling water
- salt to taste
Macaroni and cheese
- 1½ ounce (40g) butter
- 1 tablespoon cornflour / cornstarch
- 1 cup milk
- 1½ cups grated cheese mozarella and cheddar mixed
- 8 ounce (225g) dried pasta
- salt to taste
Instructions
Bolognese sauce
- Peel the carrots and grate coarsely. Peel the onion and wash the celery and cut them into fine dice. Peel and crush the garlic cloves.
- Heat the oil in a wok or frying pan and gently fry the onions, celery, grated carrots and garlic until they start to soften.
- Add the beef mince and stirfry until the mince is crumbly and no longer pink. Make sure the mince is all separated with no lumps. Season with 1 teaspoon of salt and half a teaspoon of ground black pepper.
- Mix in the thyme, paprika, Worcestershire sauce, tomato puree, canned tomatoes, red wine and stock. Stir well and bring to the boil.
- Cover the pan with a lid, turn the heat down to a simmer and leave for 1 and a half hours to 2 hours until nicely thickened. Stir occasionally to prevent the sauce from sticking to the bottom of the saucepan. If the sauce hasn't thickened sufficiently, remove the lid for the last 10 minutes or so to allow some of the liquid to evaporate.
Macaroni and cheese
- Bring a saucepan of water to the boil, season with salt (optional) and cook the pasta for the time given on the packet. Drain the pasta through a colander.
- While the pasta is cooking, melt the butter in a large saucepan and then remove it from the heat and stir in the cornflour. Make sure you get all the lumps out.
- Return to the heat and add the milk gradually, stirring all the time, until all the milk has been added and the sauce is thickened.
- Add 1 cup of grated cheese and stir until it melts into the sauce.
- Season with salt to taste.
- Mix in the cooked macaroni.
Assemble and bake
- Preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F.
- Arrange half the macaroni on the bottom of a 13 x 8 inch baking dish.
- Cover with the meat sauce
- Top with the remaining macaroni cheese and sprinkle with the rest of the grated cheese.
- Bake for 15 minutes until the cheese is melted and golden.
- Serve with slices of garlic bread and a fresh green salad.
Notes
Nutrition
I am not a nutritionist. The nutrition information has been calculated using an on-line calculator, and is intended for information and guidance purposes only. If the nutrition information is important to you, you should consider calculating it yourself, using your preferred tool.
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