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4.85 from 13 votes

Vegetable Lasagna

Melts-in-your-mouth spicy Vegetable Lasagna that's made with blended sauteed veggies and ricotta cheese.
Prep Time45 minutes
Cook Time1 hour 30 minutes
Total Time2 hours 15 minutes
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Italian
Servings: 8 servings
Author: Nisha Kapur

Ingredients

for the Marinara Sauce

  • 1 1/2 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 large onion chopped
  • 2 tsp crushed red pepper
  • 4 cloves garlic chopped
  • 1 28 ounces San Marzano tomatoes crush with hands
  • 1 8 ounces tomato sauce
  • 1 tbsp dry oregano rubbed
  • 1 tbsp dry basil
  • 1/2 tsp black pepper
  • 1/2 tsp salt more or less

for the Veggies

  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 2 zucchinis chopped
  • 1 cup carrots chopped
  • 10 oz baby spinach
  • salt to taste
  • 1/4 tsp black pepper

for Ricotta Veggie Mixture

  • 1 serrano chili
  • add veggies from above
  • 16 whole milk ricotta
  • 2 tsp garlic powder
  • 2 tsp basil
  • 2 tsp crushed red pepper
  • salt to taste
  • black pepper to taste
  • 1 cup mozzarella cheese added and mixed by hand
  • 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper optional

for Lasagna Noodles

  • 12-16 lasagna noodles boiled to al dente

for Layering Lasagna

  • spread marinara sauce
  • top wtih 3-4 lasagna noodles
  • top with ricotta veggie mixture
  • repeat above 2 more times sauce - noodles - cheese - sauce - noodles - cheese
  • 1 cup mozzarella cheese

for Garnish

  • fresh parsley, after baking chopped, or basil works too

Instructions

Prep

  • Begin by heating up a large pot of water for the lasagna.
  • Chop the onions and garlic. Open a can of tomato sauce and San Marzano tomatoes.

Prepare the Sauce

  • Heat up a dutch castiron on medium heat. Once hot, add olive oil followed by crushed red pepper and onions. Cook for 2-3 minutes until the onions are golden brown.
  • Add garlic. Saute for 30 seconds.
  • Add tomato sauce and San Marzano tomatoes.
  • Stir well.
  • Add dried oregano, dried basil, salt, and black pepper. Stir. Cover with a lid and cook sauce for 7 minutes.
  • The sauce is ready. Turn off the stove. Set aside to cool.

Saute the Vegetables

  • Chop up zucchini and carrots.
  • Heat up a pot on medium heat, once hot, add 2 tbsp oil to a large pot, then add the zucchini and carrots. Season with salt.
  • Cook down for 10-12 minutes stirring in between. Add black pepper.
  • Add spinach and season with salt. Mix well.
  • The spinach will cook down in about 2 minutes - it's super fast.
  • Squeeze the veggies to remove excess water. Transfer to a bowl. Let it cool.

Prepare the Ricotta Veggie Mixture

  • Add the veggies to a food processor along with one serrano chili (this makes all the difference - trust me).
  • Pulse until blended well. Do not liquefy the mixture, you just want the veggies chopped/mushed.
  • This is what you want.
  • Add the ricotta cheese to the veggies.
  • Pulse.
  • Now add 2 tsp of crushed red pepper and 2 tsp of dried basil. Pulse.
  • Transfer to a large mixing bowl.
  • Add 1 cup mozzarella cheese.
  • Taste the mixture and if you would like add 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper for more heat. Stir well. Sset aside.

Boil the Lasagna Noodles

  • Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
  • Add lasagna noodles to salted boiling water. Follow the instructions on the package and cook the pasta until al dense. DO NOT OVERCOOK the pasta else it’ll get super mushy when baking.
  • Once done, drain the pasta and run it under cold water. Separate the lasagna to the best of your ability to prevent sticking.

Assemble Lasagna - build 3 layers

  • Take a 9" x 12" baking dish. Add a couple of ladles of the marinara sauce we prepared to the bottom.
  • Top with 3-4 lasagna noodles.
  • Spread a generous layer of the ricotta veggie mixture.
  • Top with more marinara. Repeat pattern twice - noodles - ricotta - sauce - noodles - ricotta - sauce.
  • Here's how the lasagna looks so far.
  • Top with 1 cup of mozzarella cheese.
  • Cover with foil. Into the oven at 375 degrees for 30 minutes. Then remove the foil and bake for another 10 minutes. After that, you can broil the lasagna for 1-2 minutes if you prefer your topping more brown.
  • Perfect! Garnish with chopped fresh parsley or basil. WAIT FOR 15 MINUTES BEFORE CUTTING INTO THE LASAGNA, ELSE IT'LL BE A HOT MESS!

Nutrition

Calories: 375kcal | Carbohydrates: 49g | Protein: 16g | Fat: 14g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Cholesterol: 22mg | Sodium: 688mg | Potassium: 981mg | Fiber: 7g | Sugar: 10g | Vitamin A: 7015IU | Vitamin C: 33mg | Calcium: 270mg | Iron: 5mg