Vegetarian Lasagna = Success

As I mentioned yesterday in my post, Dan and I made eight servings of lasagna yesterday to individually package for me to take to work for lunch. Making meals in big batches and then freezing them helps me a lot during the week when I am stressed from working too much and not sleeping enough. We did taste test this lasagna when it was finished since we had never made it before. It was one of the best things we have ever made; I loved it. It was absolutely delicious. Unfortunately, I forgot to take any pictures of it during the process or afterward, so now it's all cut up into pieces and in my freezer (well, that sounds weird...). I will supply the recipe, though. Imagine it looking giant and tasty! :)

Zucchini Eggplant Mushroom Lasagna

Ingredients:

1 large eggplant, cut into ¼ inch thick slices

2 medium zucchini, cut into ¼ inch thick slice

1 container fresh (small) mushrooms

1 tablespoon salt

2 teaspoons olive oil

1 medium onion, chopped

4 tablespoons garlic, chopped

1 teaspoon black pepper

1 teaspoon red pepper

½ teaspoon oregano

1 (28 ounce) can crushed tomatoes

1 cup fresh basil leaves, chopped

1 cup ricotta cheese

10 lasagna noodles

2 cups mozzarella cheese

cooking spray

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350.

Begin cooking lasagna noodles according to directions on package.

Line the eggplant slices individually on a layer of paper towels

Salt them, and let them soak up the salt for 7 minutes.

Flip the eggplant slices over, and salt them again. Let them soak up the salt.

Heat oil in a large skillet on medium-high.

Add onion and garlic, and sauté them for 2 minutes, stirring frequently.

Add salt, pepper, red pepper, oregano, and crushed tomatoes.

Bring to a boil.

Reduce heat, and simmer for 10 minutes.

Combine basil, ricotta, and ½ teaspoon of black pepper in a small bowl.

Grease the bottom of a 13x9 casserole dish.

Add ½ cup of tomato mixture to the bottom of the dish.

Arrange 3 lasagna noodles over the tomato mixture.

Top with half of the eggplant, zucchini, and mushrooms.

Spread the ricotta cheese mixture over the vegetables.

Add 3 lasagna noodles.

Add 1 cup of tomato mixture over noodles.

Layer with remaining eggplant, zucchini, and mushrooms.

Add 4 lasagna noodles over that.

Spread out remaining 1 cup of tomato mixture on the top.

Add 2 cups of mozzarella cheese over the very top.

Cover with foil coated with cooking spray.
Bake for 35 minutes.

Uncover, and bake for an additional 25 minutes.

Let cool for 5 minutes before serving.

Well, it's back to work tomorrow. Today was President's Day, so we didn't have school. That was nice. I won't have students tomorrow either, though, because we have parent/teacher conferences. Here's to hoping the time flies! 

Janelle