Green Queen Guide → Recipes → Cooking with Love

Some recipes are carefully planned.
Others happen because you start cooking, grab interesting ingredients, and trust your instincts.

This Black Garlic Lasagna was the second kind.

What started as a simple lasagna turned into something deeper, richer, and honestly one of the most delicious things I’ve ever made. The secret? Small pockets of black garlic hidden throughout the layers.

They melt into the sauce and create little bursts of sweet, umami flavour that feel like tiny culinary fireworks.

Not everyone in the house agreed — my mother-in-law quietly removed the black garlic pieces — but for me they were the best part. 🔥

And the real test: every plate came back clean.

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Ingredients

Meat Sauce

• 500 g mince
• 1 onion, chopped
• 3–4 cloves garlic
• 1 clove black garlic
• ½ cup white wine
• 1 can chopped tomatoes or tomato sauce
• 1 tbsp tomato paste (optional)
• 1 cup vegetable stock
• 1–2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
• Italian herbs or oregano
• Salt and pepper

Cheese

Use whatever you have — this version used:

• Mozzarella
• Cheddar
• Feta

The mix actually creates a great balance of melt, flavour, and salty pops.

Other

• Lasagna sheets
• Olive oil

Optional White Sauce (Béchamel)

• 1 tbsp butter
• 1 tbsp flour
• 1½ cups milk
• Small handful cheddar

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Making the Black Garlic Paste

Black garlic can sometimes be a little firm. To spread the flavour evenly:

1. Place the black garlic clove in a mortar and pestle.
2. Add:
   • 1 tsp warm water
   • ½ tsp olive oil
   • pinch of salt
3. Grind into a dark paste.

It’s fine if tiny pieces remain — those become flavour pockets in the lasagna.

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Make the Sauce

1. Fry onion in olive oil until soft.
2. Add garlic and cook briefly.
3. Add mince and brown well.
4. Pour in the white wine and simmer for 2–3 minutes.
5. Add tomatoes, tomato paste, herbs, vegetable stock, and Worcestershire sauce.
6. Simmer 10–15 minutes.

Stir in the black garlic paste near the end so the flavour stays strong.

The sauce should be slightly looser than normal pasta sauce.

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Assemble the Lasagna

1. Thin layer of sauce on the bottom of the dish
2. Lasagna sheets
3. Meat sauce
4. Small sprinkle of cheese
5. Light drizzle of white sauce

Repeat layers.

Finish with:

• white sauce
• pieces of mozzarella and cheddar
• a few feta crumbles

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Bake

Bake at 180°C for 35–40 minutes.

Let the lasagna rest 10–15 minutes before cutting.

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Notes From the Kitchen

Black garlic pockets:
Tiny pieces left in the paste create intense bursts of flavour. Highly recommended.

Caramelised edges:
If the lasagna sticks slightly to the pan, don’t panic. Those browned bits are often the best part.

Cheese flexibility:
This dish works beautifully even with small amounts of mixed cheeses.

The ultimate success test:
Every plate came back clean.

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Final Thoughts

This recipe reminded me why cooking is fun.

Sometimes the best dishes aren’t perfect — they’re experiments that turn out unexpectedly amazing.

For me, the black garlic pockets made the whole dish.

Next time I might make it even saucier… but honestly, I wouldn’t change much.

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🔥 Green Queen Kitchen Tip:
If people start picking the crispy corner pieces first, you did it right.