Ingredients

750g Crown Prince pumpkin

2 tbsp olive oil

500g spinach, washed

1 tbsp lactose free butter, plus extra for greasing

whole nutmeg, for grating

6 gluten free lasagne sheets

100g parmesan (or vegetarian alternative), freshly grated

For the tomato sauce

1 tbsp olive oil

1 celery stick, finely chopped

1 carrot, finely chopped

1 tbsp garlic infused oil

400g can tomatoes

2 tsp light muscovado sugar

For the bechamel sauce

500ml lactose free full-fat milk

6 peppercorns

1 bay leaf

50g gluten free plain flour or rice flour

50g lactose free butter

2 tbsp lactose free cream (optional)

Method

Heat oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. Halve the pumpkin , peel, deseed, then slice into 1cm slices. Toss with the oil in a roasting tin, season, then roast until tender and slightly charred at the edges. This can take up to 40 mins.

Meanwhile, make the tomato sauce. In a pan, soften the celery and carrot, cook for 1 min more. Add the tomatoes and sugar, then leave to simmer, uncovered, for 30 mins. Stir from time to time. You should be left with a thick purée. Season to taste.

Put the spinach in a saucepan with the water that still clings to it after washing, cover and put over a medium heat. Wilt the spinach for about 4 mins – you’ll need to turn it over with tongs every so often to make sure it all comes in contact with the heat at the bottom of the pan.

When completely wilted, leave until cool enough to handle, then squeeze the water out with your hands. Chop and put in a pan with the lactose free butter. Gently heat, tossing together so the spinach is coated in butter, then season with salt, pepper and a generous grating of nutmeg.

For the béchamel sauce, bring the lactose free milk to the boil in a pan with the peppercorns, onion and bay leaf. Set aside for 5 mins to infuse, then strain the milk into another pan. Add the gluten free flour and lactose free butter, then gently heat, whisking all the while, until you have a thick, smooth sauce. At the end add the optional lactose free cream.

Heat oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6 and assemble the lasagne. Butter (lactose free) a large gratin or baking dish, roughly 1.4 litres in capacity. Put a layer of pumpkin in the bottom followed by a layer of tomato sauce. Lay gluten free lasagne sheets on top of this, cutting them to fit if necessary (you don’t want any overlapping).

Now add a layer of béchamel followed by a scattering of spinach and half the cheese. Top with more gluten free lasagne sheets, pumpkin, tomato sauce, more lasagne and a final layer of béchamel sauce. Sprinkle the remaining cheese over the top. Bake for 40 mins, or until the lasagne is golden and bubbling.

Recipe adapted from: Good Food