Four Cheese Spinach Sausage Lasagna Food

FOUR CHEESE AND SPINACH LASAGNA

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat and salt it generously. Add the lasagna noodles and boil, stirring occasionally, until al dente, about 8 to 10 minutes. Drain.
• Meanwhile, heat the olive oil and garlic in a saucepan over medium heat until the garlic begins to brown. Add the spinach, season with salt and pepper and stir until the spinach dries out and the garlic is fragrant, about 3 minutes. Cool.
• Mix the cottage cheese, goat cheese, Parmesan/Pecorino, 2 cups of the mozzarella cheese, lemon zest, nutmeg, cayenne, and cooled spinach in a bowl. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Stir in the egg.
• Cover the bottom of a 9- by 13-inch casserole with a thin layer of Tomato Sauce. Cover with 3 of the noodles placed side-to-side, but not overlapping. Top with a 1/4 of the cheese mixture and about a half cup of Tomato Sauce. Season lightly with salt and pepper. Repeat to make 2 more layers. Cover lasagna layers with remaining noodles, dollop remaining cheese mixture on top. Drizzle with remaining Tomato Sauce, then scatter the remaining 2 cups mozzarella on top. Bake, uncovered, until the lasagna is hot and bubbly, about 40 to 45 minutes. Let lasagna stand for 10 minutes before serving.
• Put the olive oil and garlic in a saucepan and cook until fragrant, 2 minutes. Add tomatoes and salt. Break up the tomatoes into small chunks with a wooden spoon and bring to a boil over high heat, lower heat to a brisk simmer, and cook until thickened, about 30 to 40 minutes. While sauce cooks, tear basil leaves into small pieces. Remove the sauce from the heat, stir in the basil, and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper, to taste.

PERFECT FOUR-CHEESE LASAGNA

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°. In a large skillet, cook and crumble beef with onion and garlic over medium-high heat until browned, 5-7 minutes; drain. Stir in herbs and tomato sauce. In a bowl, mix eggs, cottage cheese, Parmesan cheese, cheddar cheese and 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese., Spread 1 cup meat sauce into a greased 13x9-in. baking dish; layer with 4 noodles, cottage cheese mixture, an additional 4 noodles and half the remaining meat sauce. Repeat last 2 layers. Sprinkle with Italian seasoning and remaining mozzarella cheese., Cover with greased foil; bake until cheese is melted, 50-55 minutes. Let stand 10 minutes before serving. Freeze option: Cover and freeze unbaked lasagna. To use, partially thaw in refrigerator overnight. Remove from refrigerator 30 minutes before baking. Preheat oven to 350°. Bake lasagna as directed until heated through and a thermometer inserted in center reads 165°, increasing time to 1 to 1-1/2 hours.

SAUSAGE LASAGNA

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400°. In a large skillet, cook and crumble sausage with onion over medium heat until no longer pink, 5-7 minutes; drain. Add garlic and tomato paste; cook and stir 1 minute. , Stir in tomatoes, tomato sauce, basil, 1/2 teaspoon pepper and salt; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, until slightly thickened, 10-15 minutes., In a bowl, mix egg, ricotta cheese, 1-1/4 cups Parmesan cheese and the remaining pepper. Spread 1-1/2 cups meat sauce into a greased 13x9-in. baking dish. Layer with 4 noodles, 1-1/2 cups ricotta cheese mixture, 1-1/2 cups mozzarella cheese and 1-1/2 cups sauce. Repeat layers. Top with the remaining noodles, sauce and mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses., Cover with greased foil; bake 30 minutes. Uncover; bake until lightly browned and heated through, 5-10 minutes. Let stand 15 minutes before serving.

SPINACH LASAGNA WITH FENNEL SAUSAGE

Steps:

• Make the pasta: Combine spinach, eggs, salt and olive oil in a blender or food processor and purée until smooth. Transfer to a mixing bowl and stir in flour. Knead mixture into a soft dough. If sticky, add a little more flour. Form into a ball, wrap in plastic, and set aside to rest while you prepare the other elements.
• Make the filling: Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add spinach and let wilt for a few seconds. Drain spinach in a colander and rinse well with cold water. Squeeze spinach dry and chop roughly.
• Put ricotta in a mixing bowl and stir in chopped spinach. Stir in lemon zest and crushed fennel seed. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
• Set a large skillet over medium-high heat and add sausage meat. Cook, breaking up with a spatula, until crumbled. Cook for 3 to 4 minutes, stirring, until just cooked through. Transfer to a bowl and let cool.
• For the béchamel, melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Whisk in flour and let cook for about 1 minute, stirring; do not let mixture brown.
• Whisk in milk 1/2 cup at a time, letting sauce thicken after each addition. Add bay leaf, cayenne and nutmeg and continue cooking over low heat, whisking frequently, for about 10 minutes, to create a smooth sauce. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Thin with a little more milk if necessary; consistency should be that of a not-too-thick milkshake. If needed, strain sauce to remove lumps. Keep warm in a double boiler to prevent thickening.
• Make the tomato sauce: In a saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add garlic and basil and let sizzle without browning, 1 minute or less. Add tomato purée and bring to a simmer. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Cook for about 5 minutes, until slightly thickened. Remove from heat, pull out the basil leaves, and whisk in butter. Set aside.
• Roll out the pasta: Set up a pasta machine and divide the dough into 5 roughly equal pieces. Roll each piece into a thin sheet of pasta about 12 inches long. Rolling twice at the second-to-last setting on the machine should give you the right thickness. Set aside on baking sheets, dust lightly with flour and keep covered with a slightly damp kitchen towel to prevent them from drying out.
• Butter a medium-large baking dish, not larger than 9 by 13 inches. Heat oven to 375 degrees.
• Cook the pasta: Have a large pot of salted boiling water on the stove and a large bowl of ice water nearby. One by one, place pasta sheets in boiling water to par-cook for about 1 minute, leaving pasta quite firm. Using tongs or a spider, lift pasta out and plunge into ice water. Lift out and lay on a clean kitchen towel to blot. Cut into two pieces.
• As the pasta is cooked, assemble the lasagna: Place 2 sheets cooked pasta side by side, in the bottom of the baking dish. Spread pasta with 1/2 cup béchamel and dot with one-quarter of the ricotta mixture. Sprinkle over one fourth of crumbled sausage and 1/2 cup grated Parmesan. Repeat process for each layer. You will have 4 layers. Finish with 2 sheets of pasta. Spread top with 1/2 cup béchamel and sprinkle with remaining Parmesan. (The lasagna can be made up to this point up to 1 day in advance, covered and refrigerated.)
• Cover with foil and bake about 30 minutes, until lasagna is bubbling. (If baking a refrigerated lasagna, this will take longer, up to 60 minutes.) Remove foil and bake uncovered for about 15 minutes, until lightly browned on top. Let lasagna rest for 10 to 15 minutes before cutting.
• Just before serving, reheat tomato sauce. To serve, cut lasagna into 3- or 4-inch squares. With a spatula, transfer each serving to individual plates. Spoon about ½ cup tomato sauce around each serving. Garnish with basil leaves.

FOUR-CHEESE SPINACH LASAGNA

Steps:

• In a large skillet, saute vegetables and garlic in oil until crisp-tender. Remove from the heat; set aside. , In a small heavy saucepan, whisk flour and milk until smooth. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes. Reduce heat; stir in 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, salt and pepper. Cook until cheese is melted, about 1 minute longer. Remove from the heat; stir in spinach. Set 1 cup aside. , In a large bowl, combine the cottage cheese, mozzarella and Swiss cheese. Spread 1/2 cup of spinach mixture in a greased 13x9-in. baking dish. Layer with 4 noodles, half of the cheese mixture, half of the vegetables and 3/4 cup spinach mixture. Repeat layers. Top with remaining noodles, reserved spinach mixture and remaining Parmesan cheese. , Cover and bake at 375° for 35 minutes. Uncover; bake until bubbly, about 15 minutes longer. Let stand for 15 minutes before cutting.

OUR FAVORITE LASAGNA WITH SAUSAGE, SPINACH, AND THREE CHEESES

Steps:

• Preparation:
• Position the rack in the upper third of the oven and preheat to 375°F.
• Make the sauce:
• In a large pot over medium-high heat, heat the oil. Add the sausage, onion and 3/4 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper; cook, breaking up sausage with a wooden spoon, until browned and cooked through, 8 to 10 minutes. Reduce heat to medium and add garlic, red-pepper flakes, and tomato paste; cook, stirring often, until fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes more. Add tomatoes (along with their juice) and oregano; bring to a simmer, and cook, breaking up the tomatoes with a wooden spoon until in small pieces, about 5 minutes. Taste and adjust seasoning, adding more red-pepper flakes if desired.
• Make the filling:
• In the bowl of a food processor, combine all of the filling ingredients and process until mostly smooth.
• Assemble the lasagna:
• Squeeze the spinach in a paper towel or clean dishcloth until very dry. Transfer to a bowl and season with a pinch of salt.
• Coat baking dish with cooking spray and spread the bottom with 2 cups sauce. Top with a layer of three noodles, then a third of the ricotta mixture (about 1 1/3 cups), and a third of the spinach (about 2/3 cup). Sprinkle with 1 cup grated mozzarella.
• Repeat twice more, skipping the mozzarella on the third layer. Top the lasagna with the remaining sauce. Sprinkle the remaining 2 cups mozzarella in clusters so some of the sauce peeks through.
• Place the baking pan on a rimmed baking sheet. Lightly spray a piece of foil with cooking spray, cover the lasagna, and bake for 45 minutes. Remove the foil and continue baking until lightly browned and bubbly, about 20 minutes more. Let cool at least 10 minutes before serving.
• DO AHEAD: The sauce can be prepared up to 2 days in advance and refrigerated. The filling can be prepared up to 1 day in advance and refrigerated.

FOUR CHEESE SPINACH & SAUSAGE LASAGNA

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350°F.
• Mix eggs, ricotta, spinach and 1/2 cup grated cheese until blended.
• Spread 1 cup of the pasta sauce onto bottom of 13x9-inch baking dish; cover with layers of 1/3 of the noodles and half each of the ricotta mixture and sausage. Top with layers of 1/2 cup mozzarella and 1-1/2 cups of the remaining pasta sauce. Repeat all layers. Top with remaining noodles, sauce and mozzarella. Sprinkle with parsley; cover.
• Bake 1 hour 10 min. or until heated through, uncovering and topping with remaining grated cheese after 1 hour. Let stand 10 min. before cutting to serve.

SPINACH, MUSHROOM, AND FOUR CHEESE LASAGNA

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the spinach and cook for 2 minutes. Drain in a fine mesh strainer, pressing with a large spoon to release as much water as possible. Finely chop and set aside.
• In a large skillet, melt 1 tablespoon of the butter over medium-high heat. Add the shallots and garlic and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Add the mushrooms, 1/4 teaspoon each of the salt and black pepper, and cook, stirring, until the mushrooms are tender and have given off their liquid, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and let cool.
• To make the bechamel sauce, in a large saucepan, melt the remaining 4 tablespoons butter over medium heat. Add the flour and cook, stirring with a wooden spoon, to make a light roux, about 2 minutes. Whisking constantly, slowly add the milk and continue to cook, stirring occasionally until thickened, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon black pepper, the nutmeg, and 1 cup of the Parmesan and cook, stirring, until thickened, about 2 minutes. Remove from the heat.
• In a bowl, combine the ricotta, fontina, and mozzarella cheeses. Fold in 1/4 cup of the bechamel sauce.
• Across the bottom of a deep-dish lasagna pan (13 by 9-inches), spoon enough bechamel sauce to cover (about 1/2 cup). Then add 1/4 of the mushrooms and sprinkle 1/4 of the spinach across. Arrange a layer of cooked noodles side-by-side across the sauce. Spread another layer of bechamel over the noodles and top with more spinach, mushrooms, and cheese. Repeat layering with sauce, noodles, spinach, and cheese 2 more times, ending with noodles on top. Sprinkle the remaining 1 1/2 cups of Parmesan over the top, cover tightly with aluminum foil, and bake until the noodles are tender and the lasagna is hot and bubbly, about 30 minutes. Uncover and continue baking until golden brown on top, about 10 minutes.
• Let rest for 10 to 15 minutes before serving. Serve hot.

LASAGNA WITH ITALIAN SAUSAGE AND SPINACH

Steps:

• Rinse cooked lasagna noodles and set aside. Be sure that you don't use more than 12 oz. or the lasagna will be too dry.
• Meanwhile, in a dutch oven or other large vessel, put the oil, onion and green bell pepper. Saute over medium heat until the onion is tender.
• Add the sausage and garlic and stir-fry until well browned, chopping up the meat as you stir, to make sure all of the pieces are small.
• Add the diced tomatoes, tomato paste, parsley, oregano, basil and 1 teaspoons salt. Reduce heat to low and simmer for about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
• Meanwhile, press out the water from the thawed spinach so that it is very dry. Put the spinach into a medium-size mixing bowl.
• Add the cottage cheese, egg, 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, 1 teaspoons salt and black pepper to the spinach. Stir until well mixed.
• In another medium-size bowl put the grated Mozzarella cheese.
• In a lasagna pan that you have oiled, put down 1/3 of the tomato-meat sauce.
• Cover with 1/2 of the lasagna noodles.
• Top with 1/2 of the spinach-cottage cheese filling.
• Top with half of the mozzarella cheese.
• Repeat using 1/3 of the tomato-meat sauce, remaining noodles, remaining spinach filling and mozzarella cheese.
• Top with the remaining 1/3 of the tomato-meat sauce and sprinkle 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese over the very top.
• Bake in a 350 degrees oven for 45 minutes.
• You might wonder whether or not there is enough tomato sauce, but once the lasagna heats up and the cheese gets gooey, there is enough sauce. I don't like a a lasagna with lots of runny heavy tomato sauce that covers the taste of everything else in the lasagna. If you feel like you need a bit more, add an 8 oz. can of tomato sauce to the tomato-meat sauce.

FOUR CHEESE AND SPINACH LASAGNA FROM FOOD NETWORK KITCHENS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350.
• Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat and salt it generously.
• Add the lasagna noodles and boil, stirring occasionally, until al dente, about 8 to 10 minutes. Drain.
• Meanwhile, heat the olive oil and garlic in a saucepan over medium heat until the garlic begins to brown.
• Add the spinach, season with salt and pepper, and stir until the spinach dries out and the garlic is fragrant, about 3 minutes. Cool.
• Mix the cottage cheese, goat cheese, Parmesan/Pecorni, 2 cups of the mozzarella cheese, lemon zest, nutmeg, cayenne, and cooled spinach in a bowl.
• Season with salt and pepper, to taste.
• Stir in the eg.
• Cover the bottom of a 9x13 inch casserole with a thin layer of tomato sauce.
• Cover with 3 of the noodles placed side-by-side, but not overlapping.
• Top with 1/4 of the cheese mixture and about a half cup of tomato sauce.
• Season lightly with salt and pepper.
• Repeat to make 2 more layers.
• Cover lasagna layers with remaining noodles, dollop remaining cheese mixture on top.
• Drizzle with remaining tomato sauce, then scatter the remaining 2 cups mozzarella on top.
• Bake, uncovered, until the lasagna is hot and bubbly, about 40 to 45 minutes. Let lasagna stand for 10 minutes before serving.
• Tomato Sauce with Basil:.
• Put the olive and garlic in a saucepan and cook until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Add tomatoes and salt. Beak up the tomatoes into small chunks with a wooden spoon and bring to a boil over high heat, lower heat to a brisk simmer, and cook until thickened, about 30 to 40 minutes. While sauce cooks, tear basil leaves into small pieces. Remove the sauce from the heat, stir in the basil, and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper to taste. Makes approximately 4 cups.

FOUR CHEESE SPINACH LASAGNA

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350 degrees.
• Cook lasagna noodles to al dente, about 8 minutes.
• Drain noodles & hang to dry separately (so they do no stick to one another).
• Heat olive oil with garlic in a saucepan until garlic is fragrant & sizzling.
• Add thawed & drained frozen chopped spinach and cook for a few minutes.
• Remove spinach from heat and allow to cool.
• Mix together beaten egg, ricotta, goat cheese, ½ cup Parmesan or Romano cheese, 2 cups of mozzarella, cooled spinach & garlic and salt & pepper.
• Spread bottom of 9 x 13 inch baking dish with about ½ cup of tomato sauce.
• Lay down 3 lasagna noodles, lengthwise, next to each other but not overlapping.
• Spoon a third of the cheese/spinach mixture onto noodles and spread out onto noodles.
• Spoon ½- ¾ cup of tomato sauce on top of cheese/spinach mixture.
• Repeat with another 2 layers of noodles, cheese/spinach mixture and sauce.
• On top of the fourth & final noodle layer, spoon out the rest of tomato sauce and top with remaining 1 cup of mozzarella and ¼ cup of Parmesan or Romano.
• Bake in pre-heated oven, uncovered, for 40 minutes.
• Allow cooked lasagna to cool for 25 minutes before cutting and serving.

SPINACH AND SAUSAGE LASAGNA

Steps:

• Cook sausage in a large skillet over medium heat until no longer pink; drain. Stir in the spaghetti sauce, water, Italian seasoning and salt. Combine ricotta, spinach and 1 cup mozzarella cheese in a small bowl., Spread 1 cup sauce mixture in a greased oval 5-qt. slow cooker. Layer with three noodles (breaking noodles if necessary to fit), 1-1/4 cups sauce mixture and half of the cheese mixture. Repeat layers. Layer with remaining noodles and sauce mixture; sprinkle with remaining mozzarella cheese., Cover and cook on low for 3-4 hours or until noodles are tender. Sprinkle servings with Parmesan cheese.

EASY FOUR CHEESE LASAGNA

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente; drain.
• In a blender or with an electric mixer, blend tomato sauce and cottage cheese together until smooth. Spoon a little of the sauce mixture in the bottom of a 9x13 baking dish. Place a layer of cooked noodles over the sauce, and sprinkle a portion of the mozzarella, the cheddar and the parmesan over the noodles. Repeat layering of sauce, noodles and cheese; finish with a cheese layer.
• Bake in preheated oven 30 to 45 minutes, until cheese is bubbly and golden.