Slow-Cooker Vegetable Lasagna

Makes 8 servings

Recipe from Laura Walsh via Eating Well

Husband-Tested in Alice’s Kitchen

This is a meal you make when you’ve got a busy day ahead.  Just layer the ingredients in a slow cooker, turn it on, and 6 hours later, dinner is ready.  Serve this comfort food meatless lasagna with a crisp green salad.

Olive oil cooking spray

1 large red or yellow bell pepper, chopped

4 ounces cremini mushrooms, sliced or chopped (3-4 large)

2 cups packed baby spinach, coarsely chopped

1 (24 ounce) jar low-sodium red pasta sauce

1 (15 ounce) can no-sodium-added diced tomatoes, undrained

1 (15 ounce) carton part-skim ricotta cheese

¾ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese, divided

8 ounces oven-ready whole-wheat lasagna noodles (about 9 total)

2 cups shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese

¼ cup chopped fresh basil (or 6 cubes Dorot Frozen Basil)

·      Coat a 6-quart slow cooker with olive oil cooking spray.

·      Combine bell pepper, mushrooms, and spinach in a medium bowl.

·      Combine pasta sauce, tomatoes, ricotta cheese, and ½ cup Parmesan cheese in a large bowl.

·      Spread 1 cup of the sauce mixture on the bottom of the slow cooker. 

·      Place 3 noodles over the sauce, breaking them as needed to fit in one layer. 

·      Spread another 1 cup sauce over the pasta noodles. 

·      Layer on one-third of the vegetable mixture, 3 more noodles, and 1 cup sauce. 

·      Sprinkle with ½ cup mozzarella cheese. 

·      Continue layering one-third of the vegetable mixture,1 cup sauce ½ cup mozzarella, and the remaining noodles. 

·      Top with a final layer of the remaining vegetables, the remaining sauce, and the remaining 1 cup mozzarella.

·      Cover and cook on Low for 5 hours. 

·      Turn off and unplug the cooker.  Remove the lid.  Place a clean cloth towel over the slow cooker.  Place the lid back on the cooker over the towel.  (This will prevent condensation from building up on the underside of the lid during the 1 hour resting period.)

·      Let the lasagna stand, covered, for 1 hour.  (The resting period is important.  It will allow the lasagna to firm up a bit.  The lasagna will still be hot enough to serve.)

·      Serve topped with the remaining ¼ cup Parmesan and basil.

Nutritional Information:  According to my calculations, 1 of 8 servings = 397 calories; 4.2 grams fiber

Tip:  To save time, prep and mix the vegetables and store in the fridge overnight.  Mix all the sauce ingredients together and store in the fridge overnight.  Then in the morning, it will just be a matter of placing the layers in the slow-cooker and turning it on.

Spinach & Roasted Red Pepper Lasagna

Martha Bost, my mother (born in 1936) made this for her buddies recently.
She took a photo of this dish and sent it to me.  Thanks, Mother!

Recipe from William Sonoma Essentials of Healthful Cooking

Makes 8-10 servings

Homemade lasagna always draws raves and this one didn’t disappoint. The photo in the cookbook convinced me to try this version. I wanted to make a vegetarian lasagna too and this one includes tofu. Meat eaters will not notice that this dish is meatless. No one will realize that tofu has been added. Tofu is easy to digest, low in calories, calcium and sodium, high in protein and cholesterol-free — all of which makes it one of today's most healthful foods. You will need to prepare the Spicy Tomato Sauce recipe which is available on this blog. Make it ahead of time. When making this lasagna, you won’t even need to cook the noodles ahead of time. All of the ingredients can be found at Lost River Market & Deli. This lasagna can be made ahead and reheated. Serve it with a crisp salad, crusty bread and Casa Mon Frare 2005 red wine. We shared this dish with our friends, Andy and Linda, and we all had seconds. And then had plenty left for our lunch the next day. We all agreed that the recipe should be included in the blog. So, here it is.

3 packages frozen chopped spinach

12 oz. soft tofu

2 cups ricotta cheese

2 large egg whites

½ cup freshly grated parmesan cheese

1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

Kosher salt

Freshly ground pepper

8 cups Spicy Tomato Sauce

9 or more dried lasagna noodles

3 large red bell peppers, roasted; seeded or 1 ½ jars roasted red peppers, drained

2 large cloves garlic, minced

Cook spinach according to package directions. Let cool and squeeze out well so that it is dry. (I placed the spinach in a tea towel and squeezed.)

Crumble the tofu in a strainer and drain well. It should resemble cottage cheese. Place in a large bowl. Add the ricotta and egg whites. Stir well until combined. Stir in the parmesan cheese and ½ cup mozzarella. Stir in 1 teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper.

Preheat oven to 350°F.

To assemble the lasagna, cover the bottom of a 9”X13”X3” baking dish with 4 cups of the Spicy Tomato Sauce. Arrange 3 or more dry noodles over the sauce to cover. Cover the noodles with half of the peppers. (There will be spaces.) Cover the peppers with half of the spinach. Sprinkle half of the garlic evenly over the spinach. Using a large spoon, dollop half of the cheese mixture on top of the spinach. With the back of the spoon, spread the cheese as much as possible without pulling up the spinach. There will be some spaces. Top with another layer of the dry pasta noodles and then the remaining peppers, spinach, garlic, and cheese mixture. Cover with the remaining noodles. Spread the remaining 4 cups of the Spicy Tomato Sauce over the top. Cover the baking dish with aluminum foil. Bake until the pasta is almost soft when tested with a knife, about 1 ¼ hours. Uncover. Sprinkle the remaining ½ cup mozzarella evenly over the top. Replace the foil. Continue to bake until the pasta is soft and the cheese on the top of the lasagna is melted, about 15 minutes longer. Uncover and let the lasagna rest for at least 20 minutes before cutting.

No-Bake Summer Lasagna

Serves 4

Recipe from Everyday Food Magazine

Adapted and Husband-Tested in Alice’s Kitchen

Lasagna just appeals, doesn’t it?  But, heating up the oven in this heat is, well, unthinkable. Here’s a way to enjoy the best of lasagna (the pasta, the cheese, the tomatoes, the garlic) without turning on the oven. My husband LOVED this meatless dish.  He said it made his tummy purr.  We both agreed this was company worthy, however, I’m ashamed to say we consumed it all at once!  Plan to make this for your next Meatless Monday dinner or make it to pack in your EasyLunchbox.  Get the ingredients at our community-owned grocery store, Lost River Market & Deli and the HomeGrown Farmers Markets.

½ cup ricotta cheese or cottage cheese

3 Tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan cheese

3 Tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil (divided)

Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

8 lasagna noodles, broken in half crosswise (If you don't have lasagna noodles, you can substitute manicotti noodles.  After they cook, slice them open and spread them out.  You can also use brown rice lasagna noodles to make this gluten free.)

1 garlic clove, minced

2 pints grape tomatoes, halved (I used 2 large tomatoes and squeezed out the seeds.)

2 zucchini (about 1 pound total), halved if large and thinly sliced

1 Tablespoon torn fresh basil leaves, plus more for serving (**See note.)

In a small bowl, combine ricotta, Parmesan, and 2 teaspoons oil; season with salt and pepper. In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook noodles according to package instructions; drain.

Meanwhile, in a large skillet, heat 2 tablespoons oil over medium-high. Add garlic and tomatoes; season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring, until slightly broken down, about 3 minutes. Transfer tomatoes to a bowl. Add 1 Tablespoon oil and zucchini to skillet; season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring, until zucchini are tender, about 5 minutes. Transfer to another bowl and stir in basil.

Place some tomatoes on four plates; top with a noodle and small spoonfuls ricotta, zucchini, and more tomatoes. Repeat layering twice, then top with remaining noodles and tomatoes. Garnish with basil.

**Note:  When I made this, I didn’t have any fresh basil.  So, I used a couple of cubes of frozen Dorot Chopped Basil (see photos below) from the freezer section at Lost River Market & Deli and placed them in the skillet (frozen) with the zucchini slices.  They melted immediately and nicely coated the zucchini.