SAUSAGE AND AUBERGINE LASAGNE

The aubergine acts as the pasta in this recipe. If you can’t find a pack of sausage meat, squeeze out the same weight of meat from your favourite bangers.

Hands-on time 30min. Cooking time about 1½hr. Serves 4

◆ 3 aubergines, thinly sliced lengthways ◆ 2tbsp vegetable oil ◆ 1 red onion, finely chopped ◆ 300g (11oz) pork sausage meat ◆ 2 garlic cloves, crushed ◆ 1tsp dried thyme ◆ 2 x 400g tins chopped tomatoes ◆ 1tsp caster sugar ◆ 250g pack mozzarella, cut into small chunks ◆ 25g (1oz) Parmesan, finely grated

1 Brush aubergine slices with 1½tbsp of the oil and season. Heat a large non-stick frying pan over medium-high heat. Fry aubergine slices for 3-5min on each side, until nearly softened – you will need to do this in batches.

2 Meanwhile, heat remaining oil in a separate large pan and gently fry onion for 10min, until softened. Add sausage meat in small chunks; cook for 10min until browned all over. Stir in garlic and thyme; cook for 1min. Add tomatoes, sugar and plenty of seasoning.

3 Bring to boil and simmer for 15min, until thickened slightly.

4 Preheat oven to 200°C (180°C fan) mark 6. Arrange ⅓ of the aubergines in a layer in the base of a deep 23 x 30.5cm (9 x 12in) ovenproof dish. Spoon over ⅓ of the tomato sauce, then dot over ⅓ of the mozzarella. Repeat twice more; sprinkle over Parmesan.

5 Cook for 30-35min, until golden and bubbling. Serve with a green salad.

PER SERVING 580cals, 27g protein, 40g fat (17g saturates), 23g carbs (17g total sugars), 11g fibre FREEZE AHEAD Prepare to end of step 4 (do not preheat oven). Cool completely, wrap in clingfilm and freeze for up to 3 months. To serve, defrost overnight in fridge. Complete step 5, cooking for an additional 10min if needed.