This Yummy Beef Lasagne is proper comfort food and one of those meals that always goes down well with the whole family. With layers of rich beef sauce, pasta and sweet potato, all topped with a creamy lighter béchamel and melted cheese, it has all the flavour of a classic homemade lasagne but with a few lighter touches.
What I love most about this recipe is that nothing feels like a compromise. The beef sauce is rich and hearty, the topping is smooth and delicious, and it bakes up beautifully golden on top. It is the kind of meal that feels cosy, satisfying and perfect for when you want a healthier version of a family favourite.
The Slimming Eats Cookbook
This Yummy Beef Lasagne recipe is also featured on page 239 of the Slimming Eats Cookbook in the blog favourites section.
Calories in Yummy Beef Lasagne
This recipe serves 4 and is 578 calories per serving.
If you're looking for more recipes within the same calorie range, you'll find an abundance of options in my dedicated collection of 500+ calorie recipes.
If you're following a calorie-controlled diet or a healthy eating plan, it's important to calculate your daily calorie needs using a reliable calorie calculator. The calorie counts provided are estimates and can vary depending on the exact ingredients and portion sizes you use. Using your own calculations helps ensure you're meeting your individual needs. A calorie calculator can help you make informed choices and stay on track with your goals.
See the recipe card for full nutritional estimation.
Ingredients Notes
To make this recipe you will need the following ingredients:
- Extra lean beef mince: The base of the sauce, giving the lasagne that rich, hearty flavour. You can swap this for lentils or your preferred meat substitute if you want to keep it vegetarian.
- Onion, garlic, carrot and mushrooms: These vegetables help build the flavour of the sauce and add plenty of depth. The onion and garlic bring a savoury base, while the carrot adds a touch of sweetness and the mushrooms add extra richness.
- Fresh herbs, cinnamon, chilli powder, paprika, salt and black pepper: This mix of herbs and spices gives the sauce warmth and depth of flavour. It helps create that lovely rich, homemade taste that makes the lasagne so delicious.
- Lean back bacon or Canadian bacon: Adds an extra savoury depth to the sauce and gives it a little boost of smoky flavour.
- Passata: Forms the base of the sauce and brings a rich tomato flavour. Passata will give you a smoother sauce.
- Sweet potato: Used in the layers for a delicious twist on classic lasagne. It adds a natural sweetness and works really well with the rich beef sauce.
- Beef or vegetable stock: Helps create a rich, flavourful sauce and brings everything together as it simmers.
- Balsamic or red wine vinegar: adds a little sharpness that balances the richness of the sauce and helps deepen the overall flavour.
- Tomato paste: Adds concentrated tomato richness and helps give the sauce a deeper, more robust taste.
- Olive oil spray - Used for frying the vegetables and beef with minimal oil.
- Mozzarella: Melts beautifully on top for that golden, stretchy cheesy finish.
- Parmesan: Adds a salty, savoury flavour both in the topping and the cheese sauce.
- Oven ready lasagne sheets: The layers that hold everything together.
- Cornstarch: Helps thicken the sauce so it turns smooth and creamy without needing lots of butter or flour.
- 1% milk :Keeps the sauce lighter while still giving you that creamy béchamel-style topping.
- Salt and black pepper: Adds flavour to the sauce and gives it that delicious savoury finish.
Once you've gathered all the ingredients and prepared them accordingly, you're all set to create this easy and delightful recipe.
See the recipe card for specific quantities and instructions.
Variations and Substitutes
This lasagne is really easy to adapt depending on what you have on hand or what your family prefers.
- Swap the mince :You can use lean pork, turkey, chicken or lamb mince instead of beef. For a vegetarian version, lentils or meat-free mince both work well.
- Add extra flavour: A little chopped chorizo adds a lovely smoky richness, or you can stir some harissa paste into the meat sauce for a gentle heat and extra depth.
- Adjust the heat : Add chopped chilli, chilli flakes or extra chilli powder if you like a spicier sauce.
- Change the sweet potato: You can leave it out completely if you are not a fan, or swap it for thin slices of butternut squash instead.
- Add more veg: Spinach works really well stirred into the sauce, and you could also add finely chopped courgette, peppers or aubergine.
- Change the cheese : Mozzarella and parmesan are great, but you can also use reduced fat cheddar, Red Leicester, Gruyère or a little mature cheddar for extra flavour. A light cheddar and mozzarella mix works really well too if you still want that lovely melted topping.
- Make it gluten free: Just use gluten free lasagne sheets and check your other ingredients are suitable.
Sides Suggestions
This lasagne is a meal that can easily be served just as it is, but if you want to round it out a little more, there are plenty of great sides that work really well alongside it.
A simple mixed salad is always a good choice for adding some freshness on the side, I love to make up a big bowl of all our favourite salad ingredients and place it on the table for everyone to help themselves to, pair it with a low calorie dressing (like this Ranch Dressing or Poppyseed Dressing) and you have a winner. If you prefer cooked vegetable on the side, then some steamed green vegetables or broccoli work well if you want to keep things lighter. It is also delicious with roasted vegetables, green beans, corn on the cob or even some crispy potato wedges if you want to make it more of a hearty family feast.
Storing, Freezing and Reheating
Storing: Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. You can also keep the whole lasagne covered in the dish if preferred. Just allow it to cool before refrigerating.
Freezing: This lasagne freezes really well once cooled. You can freeze the whole lasagne or portion it up into individual servings for easier reheating. Wrap well or store in freezer-safe containers and freeze for up to 3 months.
Reheating: Reheat individual portions in the microwave until piping hot throughout, or cover and reheat in the oven until heated through. If reheating from frozen, defrost overnight in the fridge first for best results.
More Pasta Bakes
Love pasta bakes? Check out these other Slimming Friendly Recipes.
- Roasted Butternut Squash Zucchini Pasta Bake
- Bolognese Pasta Bake
- Sloppy Joe Pasta Bake
- Pulled Pork Pasta Bake
- Mexican Pasta Bake
- Chicken, Broccoli and Cauliflower Pasta Bake
- Creamy Vegetable Pasta Bake
- Sausage and Bean Pasta Bake
- Salmon and Leek Pasta Bake
- Tuna Pasta Bake
- Chicken Bacon and Tomato Pasta Bake
- Best Ever Bolognese Pasta Bake
- Creamy Chicken Mushroom Tomato Pasta Bake
or if you would like more recipe ideas - head on over to the FULL RECIPE INDEX where you will find over 900 delicious recipes with calories and you can search by meal type, ingredients, course, diet and more.
All recipes on Slimming Eats have estimated nutritional information for your convenience.
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Recipe Card
Yummy Beef Lasagne
This beef lasagne is rich, comforting and packed with layers of savoury meat sauce, sweet potato, pasta and a creamy lighter cheese sauce.
Ingredients
- 400g (14oz) of extra lean beef mince (ground beef)
- 1 large sweet onion, chopped
- 4 cloves of garlic, crushed
- 2 slices of lean back bacon or Canadian bacon
- 1 carrot, chopped
- 4 mushrooms chopped
- 600g (21oz) of passata (or crushed tomatoes0
- 600g (21oz) sweet potato, peeled and sliced into rounds
- pinch of fresh herbs (thyme, oregano, sage, rosemary)
- pinch cinnamon
- pinch chilli powder
- 2 teaspoons of paprika
- 1 cup (240ml) of beef or vegetable stock
- 1 tablespoon of balsamic or red wine vinegar
- 1 tablespoon of tomato paste (puree)
- olive oil spray
- 100g (3.5oz) of mozzarella cheese, grated or torn into pieces
- 15g (0.5oz) of parmesan cheese, grated
- approx 6 sheets of oven ready lasagne sheets (can use gluten free) - may need more or less depending on size of your dish
- salt and black pepper
For the cheese sauce:
- 1.5 tablespoons of cornstarch
- 300ml of 1% milk
- 15g (0.5oz) of parmesan cheese, grated
- salt and black pepper for seasoning
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 200c or 400f
- Spray a frying pan with some cooking oil spray and cook the bacon with a pinch of cinnamon until golden,
- Add the onions, garlic, carrot and herbs and fry for a further few minutes, making sure it is all mixed together.
- Add the beef mince and cook till browned.
- Add the mushrooms, tomatoes, tomato paste, stock and the balsamic vinegar. Bring to a boil, then reduce to low, cover and simmer for approx 30 mins
- Peel and slice the sweet potato, sprinkle with some paprika, chilli powder and spray oil and bake in the oven until tender. (approx 30 mins)
- When the sweet potato is almost done, you can make the cheese sauce.
- Add the milk and cornstarch to a small saucepan over a medium high, constantly stirring until it comes to a boil and thickens. Add the 15g of parmesan cheese and continue to stir until cheese is melted into sauce, season with salt and black pepper.
- Using a square lasagne dish. Add half the meat mixture and then 3 lasagne sheets, then layer with the sweet potato slices. Repeat with another layer of meat sauce and then again top with 3 lasagne sheets.
- Pour over the top the cheese sauce and sprinkle with the 100g of mozzarella and 15g of parmesan.
- Turn oven up to 200c or 400f and bake for approx 30 mins, until cheese has melted and is golden.
- Sprinkle with chopped parsley.
- Serve with your choice of sides.
Notes
Please see below for full nutritional info and additional details about recipe:
- Calories - scroll down to nutritional info box
- WW Points and other Slimming or Weight Loss programs - due to plans regularly changing and updating, we recommend calculating with the official tools you get as a member to those plans to ensure accuracy of values.
- ❄️ Freezer Friendly - see storing, freezing and reheating section
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Nutrition Information
Yield
4Serving Size
1 SERVINGAmount Per Serving Calories 578Total Fat 14gSaturated Fat 8gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 12gCholesterol 167mgCarbohydrates 62gFiber 9gSugar 28gProtein 43g
Nutritional information is an estimate and is to be used for informational purposes only. Ingredients can vary greatly from brand to brand and therefore it would be impossible to give accurate information
zoe says
This looks so delicious!
JoyC says
Yummy by name....! Fab dish.
Lorraine says
Hey this looks yummy. Is cornstarch the same as corn flour?
xxx
admin says
yep it sure is 🙂
monique says
I made this yesterday and OMG it is soo lovely. It tastes so much nicer than SW recipies for lasagne which are usually made with yogurt (for the white sauce). This tastes like the real deal and is SW friendly.
keep doing what you do xx
Ivana says
This was really lovely, I can't believe you could eat as much of this as you like for FREE! I'm sure the calories would add up if you ate too many servings in one go!! A really lovely recipe. Only down side is not good for reheating as the white sauce dries up. Definitely do again as the kids loved it too.
Christy says
I love pasta, but Lasagne for some reason has never been "my thing" but my other half loves it, so I thought I give it a go!
It is really worth the effort, and I liked it, it has not converted me personally, but I would def. make and have it again, whilst others I just wouldn't bother with any more!
My partner loved it, and so did my 3 year old!
Thank you again! 😀
Christy
Anonymous says
We had this for tea tonight and it was absolutely yummy!
I had no HE's left to use and used more Mozzarella then stated in the recipe, but each portion (made 6 altogether) still only worked out to be 5syns! I also used 4 layers of lasagne sheets which made it more filling.
If you like lasagne, I can highly recommend this recipe!
Thank you for posting it!
Angela
Anonymous says
lasagne & spaghetti carbonara are so good... thanks to them am back on track...lol!! x Pauline
Anonymous says
I sometimes find Lasagne recipes a bit too rich but this one is so light. What a difference to the normal way I've made it in the past. It is really filling too.
Thanks for another fab recipe...... keep them coming xxxx
Sherrie says
We really enjoyed this, I wasn't initially going to include the sweet potato as I thought it was odd but I'm so glad I did, it really added a richness to the dish. I also actually enjoyed it more without the cheese sauce in each layer that I would have normally added.
Michelle Fisher says
OMG Siobhan,
This lasagne recipe was A-Ma-Zing! I made a few tweaks, but the addition of the sweet potato, oh my days....yummy! My husband went back for seconds & then exclaimed "I could keep eating this until I burst"!! Just love your website for ideas on what to cook, and always straight forward & turns out as you say it will....many thanks for all your knowledge & recipes Xx
Shevy (Slimming Eats) says
Thank you so much for the lovely comment Michelle. This is one of my favourite recipes that I make again and again. So glad you enjoyed it 🙂
Michelle Fisher says
My score disappeared ?? 5* from me 🙂 xx
Sandra Webster says
By far the best Slimming World lasagne. It’s delicious. Thank you
Sandra Webster says
By far the best Slimming World lasagne I’ve made. It’s delicious. Thank you
sue adams says
This was my 1st attempt at home made lasagne and my 1st recipe from this page - absolutely amazing, looked authentic and tasted as good if not better than shop bought this recipe gave me inspiration to 1 want to make more of Siobhan's recipes and 2 to know i can eat hearty wholesome food, enjoy cooking it and still lose weight. Try it you won't be disappointed.....
Shevy (Slimming Eats) says
Ahh thank you Sue, I’m so glad this inspired you to try more.
Teresa Abbott says
Is there a suitable alternative for the sweet potato in the recipe
Shevy (Slimming Eats) says
Hi Teresa, you could use butternut squash or just omit altogether
Adkins says
I really really enjoyed this - the best lasagne recipe I have made, let alone a slimming world lasagne recipe! Would this be suitable for freezing?
Shevy (Slimming Eats) says
So happy to hear that, you can indeed freeze this. I regularly freeze a portion when I make this 🙂
Sandie says
Thought I'd give this recipe a go and so glad I did. It was delicious, I'm not very good in the kitchen but this turned out perfect. Will definitely be doing this again. Thanks so much for the great recipe.
Shevy (Slimming Eats) says
Hi Sandie - this makes me so happy to hear. It is one of my favourite lasagne recipes that I have been making for years. Thank you so much for taking the time to come back and leave a comment, it's very much appreciated.
Rachel says
Hi just a couple of questions which one would you put as HEA as im struggling with this in food diary?
Also how many does it serve?
Shevy (Slimming Eats) says
Remember that although it contains more than one healthy extra, it serves more than one person, so when divided into servings is just 1 healthy extra and 0.5 syns. For the purpose of your food diary you can select any of the healthy extra options, i.e. cheese or milk.
Christine says
This a family favourite in our house it tastes so good everytime. I love the white sauce in lasagne and thought I might not be happy only having 1 layer but you don't even notice . Lasagne is my husband's favourite dish and now he asks for this one every week ☺️
Christine says
Also I use your recipes everyday. we haven't found one yet we didn't like. There is so much variety I'm so glad I found your site x
Anji dyer says
How many people does this serve, it says yeild 4, so is this for 4 people?, It's absolutely gorgeous, made one for my son and his boys and they were blown away with it, love your recepies, wish you would do a book.xxx
Siobhan (Slimming Eats) says
yep you got it!! yield is indeed servings 😉
Tracy says
Made this recipe for the 3rd time now it’s amazing going to double up next time and freeze it another great recipe from you thankyou
Jackie says
Hi, if I substitute the meat for brown lentils, does this affect the cooking time?
Stephanie Ray says
Made this tonight and it was really tasty. Loved the sweet potato addition.
Kevan Trotter says
Hi do you chop the bacon up or cook it like normal
Siobhan (Slimming Eats) says
yes chop it up.
Hannah says
Hi, I am yet to try this recipe but is it fresh lasagne sheets or dry lasagne sheets? Because I thought you had to syn fresh pasta? Many thanks xx
Siobhan (Slimming Eats) says
it's dry pasta I use, fresh pasta is synned. I use oven ready lasagne sheets (they are still dry pasta), they just do not require cooking before layering for the lasagne, some lasagne sheets do, so check the box of the ones you use.
Julie says
Absolutely loved this recipe, would never have guest this was a healthy option. All my family loved it. Thank you so much
Sarah Hateley says
Absolutley loved this! Tasted naughty although it wasn't!
How is it best to reheat this recipe? Thanks!
Siobhan (Slimming Eats) says
So glad you enjoyed it. I just reheat in microwave until hot throughout or in the oven. Either is fine.
Marie Cuthbertson says
Wow, first time at trying this recipe and it's absolutely amazing. Will definitely be a regular on the menu 😋