Vegetarian Lasagna

Lasagna is a great make-ahead dish.  It sits well in the fridge, assembled, for up to a day. This makes it great for when you are having people over because you can just take it out of the fridge, pop it into the oven and hangout with your guests.  It does take some time to make and assemble, but the payout is so worth it in the end.  This lasagna is so hearty that you really don't need anything else with it, except maybe a salad if you really want.  You can also adapt this recipe to make in smaller dishes that you can freeze and take out whenever you need it.  With that said, you can also freeze a large tray of lasagna too.  Lasagna makes a great left-over dish as well, for lunch the next day or even for dinner two nights in a row.

Ingredients:
approx. 2 boxes oven-ready lasagna (or you can use the one you have to boil - just don't forget to boil it!)
Tomato sauce (any jarred sauce works, or you can use this recipe here)
approx. 2 cups ricotta cheese (I use at least 3/4 of a 1kg tub)
1 pkg frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed out
3 eggs
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
1 onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 carrot, peeled, quartered and chopped
1 red pepper, finely chopped
1 zucchini, quartered and chopped
1/2 pkg (227g) sliced mushrooms
1/2 butternut squash,  peeled, quartered and chopped (I used the top half)
1 cup mozzarella, grated
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
salt and pepper

Before you can assemble the lasagna, you will need to prepare each layer separately.  If you are making your sauce, let it simmer for about an hour before using.

To make the spinach-ricotta mixture: Combine the spinach and ricotta together in a bowl with the eggs.  Make sure everything is well incorporated. Add 1/2 tsp each of salt and pepper and 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese.  Give it another stir and set aside.

To make the veggie layer: Heat some olive oil in a pan over medium heat and saute the onion for about 1 minute. Add the garlic and saute for another minute.  Add the carrots and saute for another couple of minutes, until the carrot softens.  Add the mushrooms and do the same.  Finally add the rest of vegetables and saute for another 5 minutes.  Season with about 1 tsp each of salt and pepper.  Lower the heat, cover and let it cook for another 5-10 minutes.

To assemble: Pour enough sauce to cover the bottom of a large (9x13") baking dish.  Place about 5 lasagna sheets (or however many you need to cover the dish) on the bottom of the dish, overlapping slightly.  Spoon about half of the ricotta-spinach mixture over the lasagna, covering the sheets.

Place another layer of lasagna sheets and then spoon the veggie mixture.
 Pour some more sauce over the veggies (not too much) and cover with about half of the mozzarella.  Place another layer of lasagna sheets followed by the remaining ricotta-spinach mixture, followed by another layer of lasagna sheets.  Pour the remaining sauce over the top and sprinkle with the remaining mozzarella and 1/4 cup Parmesan.




Bake, covered with foil, in a 400F preheated oven for about 45 minutes.  Remove the foil, lower the oven to 375F and bake for another 5-10 minutes, until the cheese is completely melted.  Let it rest for a few minutes before cutting into it!