Polenta Lasagna With Sausage Spinach Food

POLENTA LASAGNA

Steps:

• Grease a 9-by-13-inch baking pan with butter. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Put 4 cups of water into a pot and set over medium-high heat. Slowly whisk in the polenta so no lumps form. Add a big pinch of salt. Cook, stirring often, until the mixture comes to a boil. Lower the heat and cook according to the package directions. When it is finished, stir in the butter and 1/4 cup of the Parmesan.
• Spread a cup of the Slow-Cooker Bolognese in the bottom of the prepared baking pan. Add half the polenta and spread it evenly over the sauce. Add a layer of 6 slices provolone and 3/4 cup mozzarella, then top with 2 cups of the sauce. Make another layer with the remaining polenta. Top with the remaining provolone, 3/4 cup mozzarella and remaining sauce. Sprinkle over the rest of the mozzarella and Parmesan.
• Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Remove the foil and continue baking until the cheese is browned and bubbling, about 15 minutes more. Let rest for 20 minutes before serving.
• Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the celery, carrots and onions, season with salt and pepper and cook until softened, about 10 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook for 30 seconds. Add the tomato paste and cook for a minute. Pour in the red wine and cook until it is mostly evaporated, about 3 minutes. Pour this mixture into a slow cooker.
• Pour the remaining 2 tablespoons oil into the skillet, add the beef and season with salt and pepper. Cook, breaking up any lumps, until it is nicely browned, about 15 minutes. Drain off any excess fat. Stir in the milk and cook until it is mostly absorbed by the meat, about 5 minutes. Add this to the slow cooker along with the tomatoes, oregano, basil, thyme, red pepper flakes, nutmeg and Parmesan rind if using. Add some salt. Give it a good stir, cover and cook on low for 6 hours.
• Skim off any fat on top and check the consistency. If it is too thick, add a bit of water. If it is too thin, cook for another 30 minutes with the cover off.

POLENTA LASAGNA WITH SAUSAGE & SPINACH

Steps:

• Heat oven to 375ºF.
• Crumble sausage into large skillet sprayed with cooking spray; cook on medium-high heat until evenly browned, stirring occasionally. Add spinach; cook 2 to 3 min. or until heated through, stirring frequently.
• Spread 1 cup pasta sauce onto bottom of 9-inch square baking dish sprayed with cooking spray; cover with layers of half each of the polenta, sausage mixture and cheese. Repeat layers; cover.
• Bake 30 min. or until heated through. Let stand 10 min. before cutting to serve.

POLENTA LASAGNA WITH SPINACH AND HERBY RICOTTA

Steps:

• Heat oven to 425 degrees and butter an 13-by-18-inch rimmed baking sheet pan. Grease a rubber spatula with butter.
• Prepare the polenta: In a large pot, bring 6 cups water and 1 tablespoon salt to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium, then slowly pour in polenta, whisking constantly. Cook, whisking often, until polenta thickens, 8 to 12 minutes. Whisk in 4 tablespoons butter until melted. Whisk in spinach until wilted, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat and mix in 1 cup grated Parmesan.
• Scrape polenta onto the prepared baking sheet. Using the greased rubber spatula, spread the mixture into a thin, even layer to cover the entire pan, all the way to corners. Sprinkle 1/2 cup grated Parmesan on top. Bake until polenta is firm and cheese has melted, 12 to 18 minutes. Let cool in the pan on a wire rack until completely cooled, about 1 to 1 1/2 hours, or place in refrigerator until cool to touch, about 40 to 50 minutes. (Polenta can be baked the day before and refrigerated until needed.)
• When ready to bake the lasagna, heat oven to 400 degrees. Butter a 9-by-13-inch baking dish.
• Prepare the ricotta filling: In a small bowl, mix ricotta, parsley, basil, egg, black pepper, nutmeg and the remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt. Mix until well combined and set aside.
• Taste the marinara sauce. If it needs some zip, stir in any or all of the optional ingredients.
• Assemble the lasagna: Using a knife or pizza cutter, cut cooled polenta in half widthwise, creating 2 pieces roughly 9 by 13 inches each. Using a large spatula, gently place one half in prepared baking dish. (It is important for polenta to be completely cooled and firm; otherwise, the pieces may break when transferring to baking dish. If anything breaks, just reassemble it in the pan. It won't make much of a difference once it's covered in sauce and baked.)
• Spread about half the ricotta mixture in an even layer on top of polenta. Pour about half of marinara sauce on top of ricotta, sprinkle with about half of the shredded mozzarella. Repeat with remaining polenta, ricotta, marinara and mozzarella. Once assembled, sprinkle the remaining 1/2 cup Parmesan on top.
• Place baking dish on top of a rimmed sheet pan in case the lasagna bubbles over. Bake until cheese melts, about 30 minutes. If you like, you can broil lasagna for 2 minutes after baking until cheese starts to bubble and develop brown spots.
• Remove from oven and let lasagna stand for about 15 minutes to firm up before serving. Leftovers can be refrigerated for up to 1 week or frozen for up to 3 months.

POLENTA LASAGNE

Steps:

• Ricotta mixture
• For the spinach/sausage slices:
• Heat the oil in a large skillet over high heat. Add the garlic and saute until lightly browned. Add half the spinach into the skillet. As soon as it wilts, add the remaining spinach. Season with salt and pepper and remove from heat. Add the sausage slices to marry the flavors together. Remove from heat.;
• In a small bowl combine the ricotta, egg yolks, and nutmeg. Set aside.;
• In a large saucepan, bring the water and salt to a boil. Gradually whisk in the polenta and cook over low heat for about 20 to 30 minutes, stirring often, until the grains are soft. Stir in the Parmesan and olive oil.;
• Set aside 4 tablespoons of the marinara sauce for the top of the lasagna. In large casserole dish, layer: 6 cups of polenta, 1/2 the spinach / sausage slices, 1/2 the peppers, 1/2 the marinara sauce, 1/2 the Parmesan, and 1/2 the mozzarella slices.
• Repeat. Top with the remaining polenta (it may not cover the top completely). Distribute the ricotta mixture over the top in small dollops. Drizzle the reserved marinara sauce on top. At this point the finished lasagna can be wrapped and refrigerated for up to a day.
• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• Place the pan on a cookie sheet (in case it bubbles over). Bake about 45 minutes to 1 hour, or until it is bubbling and hot throughout. Remove from the oven and allow it to rest for several minutes before serving.

POLENTA LASAGNA

Steps:

• In a small bowl, mix marinara sauce, garlic powder and herbes de Provence. Arrange half of the polenta slices in a greased 8-in. skillet. Top with half of the sauce; sprinkle with 3/4 cup cheese. Repeat layers., Cook, uncovered, over medium heat 12-14 minutes or until bubbly. Cover; cook 2-3 minutes longer or until cheese is melted.

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.

POLENTA LASAGNA

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350ºF.
• Spoon 1/2 cup marinara sauce into an 8" square baking dish to cover bottom, and set aside.
• Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat.
• Add onion and bell pepper; sauté 4 minutes or until tender.
• Stir in sausage; cook 2 minutes.
• Add mushrooms, zucchini, garlic and Italian seasononing; saute 2 minutes or until mushrooms are tender, stirring frequently.
• Add marinara sauce; reduce heat, and simmer 10 minutes.
• Arrange 9 polenta slices over marinara in baking dish, and top evenly with half of vegetable mixture.
• Sprinkle 1/4 cup of cheese over vegetable mixture; arrange remaining polenta over cheese.
• Top the polenta with remaining vegetable mixture, and sprinkle with remaining 1/4 cup cheese.
• Cover and bake for 30 minutes.
• Uncover and bake an additional 15 minutes or until bubbly.
• Let stand 5 minutes.
• Serve with a nice Chianti or other robust red wine.