I love lasagna. Normally, I opt for a traditional style lasagna, but I had leftover Red Wine Herb Marinara Sauce and thought it would be amazing in a lasagna. I had a bit of summer vegetables left from our garden and knew they would be amazing in my lasagna.
Besides being a lasagna lover, I also love zucchini and squash. However, my husband does not love either of these things. I knew to get him to enjoy this veggie packed lasagna I needed to get nice small bites that didn't overpower the dish. I opted to grate my summer squash and zucchini to give the perfect bite. I was careful to squeeze and pat the veggies dry so my lasagna didn't get soupy. I oped to use sausage over beef or chicken because I knew it would be delicious with the red wine sauce. If you are not a fan of sausage this is great as a strictly veggie lasagna or with a different protein.
What was the verdict from my family? They adored it. I set a few slices aside for my sister and she also loved the meal. The prep time takes a little while, but trust me it is sooooo worth the work! If you need a delicious recipe to use some of the remaining garden veggie give this a try!
Tonight, I am making a batch of white chicken chili and organizing a few things for the Belly to Baby raffle. My friend's daughter is also coming for a short playdate and I know Kellen will be thrilled. I am also jarring my salsa and need to remember to grab a bag of chips on my way home because Ron and I need to do a little quality control!
Ingredients
1 lb mild Italian sausage
1/2 recipe of Red Wine Herb Marinara Sauce
2/3 cup shredded zucchini (water squeezed out)
1/2 cup sliced mushrooms
1 red bell pepper, finely chopped
2/3 cup shredded yellow summer squash (water squeezed out)
½ cup thawed chopped spinach
2 cups ricotta cheese
1/4 c sour cream
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 eggs
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
12 no-boil lasagna noodles
2 1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1 Roma tomato cut into 8 thin slices
Instructions
Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees.
Brown sausage until completely cooked. Drain and set aside.
In a medium bowl, mix together spinach, ricotta, sour cream, Parmesan, eggs, salt and pepper. Set aside.
In a 9x13 baking dish, ladle 2/3 cup of the sauce into the bottom of the dish. Layer 4 noodles over the sauce. Spread ricotta mixture over the noodles. Add 1/3 of the Italian sausage. Next, evenly spread 1/3 of the zucchini, peppers, mushrooms and squash over the ricotta. Top with 1/3 of the mozzarella. Repeat twice more and end with a sprinkling of mozzarella and the roma tomato slices.
Bake covered for 60 minutes. Remove from oven and rest 15-20 minutes. Slice and serve.