Spinach And Tomato Lasagna Food

SPINACH LASAGNA

Steps:

• Heat the EVOO in a saucepot and add the butter. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes and crush them up a bit. Add the passata, a fat handful of torn basil leaves, the onion and some salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer and simmer for 40 to 45 minutes. Remove the onion and set the sauce aside.
• Separate the spinach while adding it to a mixing bowl. Add half of the mozzarella, the ricotta, 1 1/2 cups of the Parmigiano-Reggiano and the eggs yolks and mix to combine. Season with grated nutmeg, salt and pepper.
• Layer a little sauce into a lasagna pan and top with three flat lasagna sheets or four curly. Top with a little more sauce, and then half of the spinach and cheese mixture. Repeat with another layer, and end on top with lasagna sheets. Top with some sauce and the remaining mozzarella and Parmigiano-Reggiano.
• The lasagna can be stored before or after baking for a make-ahead meal, or baked to serve immediately. When baking the first time, bake at 375 degrees F, uncovered, from room temperature until cooked through and brown and bubbling on top, 60 to 70 minutes. If reheating, bake at 375 degrees F, covered, for 40 to 45 minutes.
• Let the lasagna rest 20 minutes before cutting. Serve with extra sauce on the side.

SWEET POTATO LASAGNA

Steps:

• For the tomato sauce: Heat the oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the onions and 1/2 teaspoon salt and cook, stirring frequently, until softened and translucent, about 10 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes and mash into a chunky puree using a potato masher. Bring to a simmer and partially cover the pan with a lid. Cook, stirring occasionally, until slightly thickened, about 30 minutes. Stir in 1/2 teaspoon salt and pepper to taste. Remove from the heat.
• For the lasagna: While the sauce is cooking, drain the water from the spinach, place in a clean kitchen towel and wring well to remove any excess water. Break up the spinach into a large bowl. Set aside 1 cup of the mozzarella, then add the remaining mozzarella to the bowl with the spinach. Add the ricotta, Parmesan, nutmeg, eggs, 2 teaspoons salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper and mix with a wooden spoon or rubber spatula until well combined.
• Peel the sweet potatoes and trim a small bit from one of the longer ends on each so they will sit flat and not roll. Cut the potatoes lengthwise into 1/4-inch planks.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• To assemble the lasagna: Add about 3/4 cup of sauce to the bottom of a deep 9-by-13-inch baking dish. Place a single layer of sweet potato slices along the bottom. Top with one-quarter of the ricotta and spinach mixture and use an offset spatula or the back of a spoon to spread gently into an even layer. Dollop about 3/4 cup of sauce on top of the ricotta mixture. Top with another layer of sweet potato slices facing the opposite direction from the previous layer. Repeat with ricotta mixture and sauce until you have 4 layers, ending with the remaining sauce.
• Cover the baking dish with foil and bake for 25 minutes. Remove the foil, top with the reserved mozzarella and bake until the lasagna is bubbling, the mozzarella is starting to brown and the sweet potatoes are tender when a paring knife is inserted into the center, an additional 45 to 60 minutes. Let sit for 20 minutes before slicing and serving.

SPINACH AND TOMATO LASAGNA

Steps:

• 1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 375 degrees. Microwave spinach in covered large bowl until completely thawed, about 15 minutes, stirring halfway through. Squeeze spinach dry, reserving 1/3 cup liquid. Pulse spinach in food processor until ground, 8 to 10 pulses, scraping down bowl every few pulses. Wipe out large bowl with paper towels. Transfer spinach to now-empty bowl; set aside. 2. Heat oil in large saucepan over medium heat until shimmering. Add onion and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in garlic and pepper flakes and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add tomatoes, ½ cup processed spinach, 1 teaspoon salt, and ½ teaspoon pepper and cook until slightly thickened, about 10 minutes. Off heat, stir in 3 tablespoons basil; set aside. 3. Process ricotta and reserved spinach liquid in food processor until smooth, about 30 seconds. Add Parmesan, remaining 3 tablespoons basil, eggs, 1½ teaspoons salt, and ½ teaspoon pepper and process until combined. Stir ricotta mixture into remaining processed spinach. 4. Cover bottom of 13 by 9-inch baking dish with 1¼ cups sauce. Top with 3 noodles and spread one-third of ricotta mixture evenly over noodles. Sprinkle with 2/3 cup mozzarella and cover with 1¼ cups sauce. Repeat twice, beginning with noodles and ending with sauce. Top with remaining 3 noodles, remaining sauce, and remaining 1 cup mozzarella. 5. Cover pan tightly with aluminum foil sprayed with vegetable oil spray and bake until bubbling around edges, about 40 minutes. Discard foil and continue to bake until cheese is melted, about 10 minutes. Cool on wire rack for 30 minutes. Serve.

SPINACH LASAGNA

Steps:

• If you're using dried pasta, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. If you're using fresh pasta sheets, cut them into long wide noodles approximately 3 inches by 13 inches, or a size that will fit into your lasagna dish. Cook the noodles (6 at a time for dried noodles) until they are tender but still underdone (they will finish cooking as the lasagna bakes); fresh pasta will take only a minute. Drain and then lay the noodles flat on a towel so they won't stick.
• Heat the oven to 400 degrees. Grease a rectangular baking dish with the olive oil, add a large dollop of tomato sauce and spread it around. Put a layer of noodles (use four) in the dish, trimming any overhanging edges; top with a layer of tomato sauce, one-third of the spinach, and one-fourth of the ricotta (use your fingers to spread it evenly), the mozzarella and the Parmesan. Season with salt and pepper if desired.
• Repeat the layers twice, and top with the remaining noodles, tomato sauce, ricotta, mozzarella and Parmesan; the top should be covered with cheese; add more ricotta and Parmesan as needed. (The lasagna may be made ahead to this point, wrapped tightly and refrigerated for up to a day or frozen. Bring to room temperature before proceeding.)
• Bake until the lasagna is bubbling and the cheese is melted and lightly browned on top, about 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and let rest a few minutes before serving, or cool completely, cover well, and refrigerate for up to 3 days, or freeze.

PESTO LASAGNA WITH SPINACH AND SUN-DRIED TOMATOES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F.
• Sautégarlic and onion in olive oil until onions are soft. Reduce heat and stir in the 2 cans of crushed tomatoes. Stir in spice and 1/2-1 can of tomato paste. Bring to a boil and then reduce to simmer for 1 hour.
• Thaw spinach and squeeze all of the water out. I use 1 and 3/4 packages of spinach--adjust to your taste. Mix ricotta and cottage cheese in a large bowl. Stir in spinach, sun-dried tomatoes, pesto, and salt and pepper to taste. When you have the taste to your liking, stir in the egg. This will help keep the lasagna together, but you will not taste it in the final product.
• Layer as follows into a 9x13 pan: Drizzle a little sauce in the bottom. Top with noodles. Spread Spinach mix and cover with 1/3 of the mozzarella slices and 1/3 of the shredded cheese. Repeat two more times, ending with cheese on the very top. Sprinkle the top with a little oregano and black pepper for aesthetic appearance.
• Cover loosely with aluminum foil and bake for 50 minutes. Uncover and bake for another 15 minutes, or until the cheese is golden brown. Let sit for 10 minutes before serving. This dish can be made in advance and cooked right before serving.

TOMATO SPINACH CREAM CHEESE LASAGNA

Steps:

• For the tomato sauce heat the oil in a large frying pan. When it's hot, add the chopped vegetables and the garlic. Sautee until lightly browned (about 5 minutes).
• Then add the passata or pasta sauce and seasonings if using. Simmer for 10 minutes, then set aside.
• For the white sauce heat the oil in a pot. When it's hot, add the flour stirring vigorously using a wire whisk for about 2 minutes or until flour is nicely browned.
• Add a small portion of the warm milk and stir to combine. Add the remaining milk little by little stirring after each addition.
• Season, reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for about 10 minutes or until thickened. Set aside.
• For the cream cheese spinach layer combine all ingredients in a large bowl.
• When your're ready to assemble the lasagna spread a bit of the tomato sauce in a large casserole dish (mine holds about 5 l/5 quarts). Top with two lasagna sheets and then half of the remaining tomato sauce. Top with another 2 sheets of lasagna and then the remaining half of the tomato sauce.
• Then add another 2 sheets of lasagna and on top of that the spinach cream cheese spread.
• Cover with another 2 lasagna sheets, pour over white sauce and top with grated cheese (if using).
• Place in the preheated oven and bake at 180°C/350°F for about 30 minutes or until bubbly and nicely browned (you might need to cover it after 20 minutes if it gets too brown).
• Remove from the oven and allow to set up for 20 minutes before cutting.
• Enjoy!

SPINACH AND SUN-DRIED TOMATO BECHAMEL LASAGNA

Steps:

• Grease a 13 x 9-inch lasagna pan.
• Make the cream sauce in advance as 1-1/2 cups will need to be slightly cooled before adding into the ricotta cheese filling mixture.
• FOR THE BECHAMEL SAUCE; melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat.
• Add in the flour; stir for 1 minute.
• Slowly add in the cream and milk, then cook over medium heat whisking constantly until bubbly and thickened.
• Remove 1-1/2 cups of the sauce and refrigerate until slightly cooled.
• To the remaining sauce mix in 1/3 to 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese and season with salt and black pepper to taste; set aside to spread on top of the lasagna.
• In a bowl combine the cheese filling ingredients until well combined.
• Mix in the cooled 1-1/2 cups bechamel sauce to the cheese mixture; reserve the remaining cheese sauce to spread on top of the lasagna noodles before baking.
• TO ASSEMBLE; place 4 noodles into the bottom of the greased baking dish.
• Spread half of the cheese filling over the noodles, then sprinkle 1-1/2 cups of shredded mozzarella over cheese filling, then 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese (can use more mozzarella cheese and/or Parmesan cheese if desired).
• Repeat with 4 noodles, remaining half of ricotta mixture, 1-1/2 cups mozzarella cheese, then 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese.
• Top with remaining 4 noodles.
• Spread the remaining reserved bechamel sauce over the top of the noodles.
• Set the baking dish onto a baking sheet then cover with foil.
• Bake uncovered in a preheated 350 degree F oven (bottom rack) for 30 minutes.
• Remove from oven then sprinkle 1 cup grated mozzarella cheese over the top then continue to bake for another 30 minutes or until hot and bubbly (or you may bake covered with foil for 30 minutes and uncovered for the remaining time).
• Allow to sit for at least 30 minutes or more before slicing.