Vegetable Lasagna

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 400°F.
2. If you are making the tomato sauce from scratch, start this first. In a saucepan on medium heat, add olive oil and onion and cook for 5-6 minutes until tender and translucent.
3. Once the onions are cooked, add the garlic, herbs, a pinch of salt and pepper and allow to cook for another 30 seconds until fragrant. Add passata and water, reduce to a simmer and continue to cook while you prepare the rest of the ingredients.
4. In a separate large skillet on medium-high heat, add the olive oil, zucchini and bell pepper and cook for 3-4 minutes, stirring occasionally, until slightly tender.
5. Add the mushrooms, garlic, Italian seasoning, a pinch of salt and pepper and allow to cook for another 4-5 minutes, stirring occasionally, under all of the vegetables are tender. Once cooked, remove from the heat and set aside.
6. While the vegetables are cooking or once they are complete, prepare the ricotta filling. If you are using fresh spinach, add all of the spinach to a saucepan on low-medium heat, add a splash of water, a pinch of salt and pepper and cook until all of the spinach has wilted and reduced. Once complete, remove from the heat, add to a mesh strained and allow to cool before pressing all of the water out of the spinach. If you are using frozen spinach, ensure that it is completely thawed and use your hands to press out any excess water before using it for the filling. Once the spinach is ready, whether you used fresh or frozen, add it to a cutting board and chop it roughly into smaller pieces.
7. In a medium bowl, add the ricotta, spinach, parmesan cheese, nutmeg, whisked egg and mix with a spatula until well combined. Season with salt and pepper to taste and set aside.
8. Once all of your ingredients are ready, begin to assemble the lasagna. (If you are using oven-ready lasagna noodles they can be added directly to the lasagna, if you are using dried noodles refer to the package directions to prepare them before adding them to the lasagna. See note below.)
9. Add 1/2 cup of the tomato sauce to the bottom of a 9″ x 12″ baking dish and layer the bottom of the dish with lasagna noodles (snap off their ends to fit and/or overlap their edges as necessary).
10. Spread the vegetable mixture over the first layer of lasagna noodles and pour most of the tomato sauce over the vegetables (be sure to leave at least a 1/2 cup of tomato sauce for the top layer), spreading it out evenly to cover the vegetables. Add another layer of lasagna noodles to cover the vegetable and tomato sauce mixture.
11. Spread the spinach and ricotta filling over the second layer of lasagna noodles, ensuring that it is evenly spread out. Add another layer of lasagna noodles to cover the ricotta mixture.
12. Spread the remaining tomato sauce over the third layer of lasagna noodles and sprinkle with shredded mozzarella cheese.
13. Wrap a sheet of parchment paper or foil around the top of the lasagna and transfer to the oven to bake, covered, for 20 minutes. Once complete, remove the cover, rotate the pan 180° in the oven, and continue to bake for another 10-15 minutes until the cheese is bubbly and golden.
14. Once cooked, remove the lasagna from the oven and allow to cool 5-10 minutes. Once cooled, sprinkle with freshly grated parmesan cheese and basil (optional) and slice to serve.
15. This easy vegetable lasagna can be store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days or the freezer for up to 3 months.