Spinach lasagna with meat sauce

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Spinach lasagna with meat sauce

16 ounces of spinach is mixed in with the ricotta, and 16 ounces of meat is added to the sauce for a delicious, homemade lasagna.

Prep Time45

Cook Time1

Resting time15

Total Time2

Servings:

Calories: 441kcal

Ingredients

Lasagna layers

12 lasagna noodles to be boiled
2 ½ cups mozzarella cheese 10 ounces, whole milk, low moisture preferred.

Spinach ricotta filling

½ tablespoon butter
16 ounces baby spinach see note
16 ounces ricotta cheese whole milk preferred
1 large egg
¾ cup Parmesan cheese
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon pepper
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning

Meat sauce

1 lb ground Italian sausage or beef, or a combo
1 yellow onion diced
2 cloves garlic minced
¼ cup tomato paste
2 teaspoon Italian seasoning
28 ounce can of crushed tomatoes
15 ounce can of crushed tomatoes
½ teaspoon salt for sauce, see note for salting sausage or beef

Instructions

Things to prepare

Equipment: get out a dutch oven (to saute spinach and then use for meat sauce), a large bowl (for making ricotta mixture), a large pot (to boil noodles), and your 9x13 baking dish.
Dice garlic and onion. Shred cheese. Cook the noodles according to the package directions for al dente. Toss with olive oil after draining to prevent sticking.

Cook the spinach

Melt butter in a large pot or dutch oven. Add as much spinach that will fit. Cook over medium-high heat for a couple minutes and add the remaining if necessary. Season with a sprinkle of salt and pepper. Continue to cook until fully wilted and water weeps out, 6-10 minutes.
Set aside to cool enough to handle. Squeeze out liquid or press it down on a fine-mesh sieve. Add to a large bowl (where we will make the ricotta filling).

Make the meat sauce

In your same large pot, add onions, garlic, and meat. If using beef, add 1 teaspoon of salt (sausage is usually pre-salted). Cook until the meat is browned and cooked through.
While the meat sauce cooks, preheat the oven to 350℉ and make the ricotta filling.
Once the meat is browned, add the tomato paste and Italian seasoning. Cook until fragrant and tomato paste has darkened, 2-5 minutes. This cooks the metallic flavor out of the tomato paste.
Add the cans of crushed tomatoes and salt. Simmer for 5 minutes until well combined.

Ricotta filling

Add the ricotta, egg, Parmesan cheese, salt, pepper, and Italian seasoning to the bowl with the spinach. Mix until well combined.

Layer the lasagna

Spread 1 cup of sauce on the bottom of a 9x13 baking dish.
1. Layer 3 noodles across the bottom.
2. Spread ¾ cup of ricotta filling on the noodles (¼ cup per noodle).
3. Sprinkle ⅓ cup mozzarella on top.
4. Dollop 1 cup of meat sauce over the cheeses.
Add a second layer of noodles. Repeat with ricotta, mozzarella, and sauce.
Add a third layer of noodles. Repeat with ricotta (use up all remaining mixture), mozzarella, and sauce.
Add the top layer of noodles. Top with remaining sauce. (You should still have 1 cup of mozzarella left at this point, save it).

Bake for 45 min at 350℉ with foil, then for 15 more min without (plus cheese)

Cover your lasagna pan with foil and bake for 45 minutes.
Remove the foil and add the remaining 1 cup of mozzarella cheese. Return to oven and bake for 15 more minutes (until the cheese is golden and bubbly.
Rest for 15 minutes before cutting for it to firm up.

Notes

Spinach: baby spinach doesn't need to be chopped. Regular spinach works, but chop it first. You can also use 8 ounces for a very light spinach flavor, or 24 ounces for a heavier flavor.

Ricotta cheese: I use BelGioioso fresh whole milk ricotta cheese.

Mozzarella: I shred Tillamook whole milk mozzarella myself, but pre-shredded works fine in lasagna too!

For a super cheesy lasagna: double the mozzarella sprinkled on each layer and/or add an extra cup on the top layer.

Salt: the amount you need is dependent on the meat you buy, since ground sausage is often preseasoned with salt.

1 lb ground beef: use 1 teaspoon salt
1 lb ground sausage: don't salt the meat if pre-seasoned (2,300 mg sodium = 1 teaspoon salt, so you can check the package for total sodium across all servings).
50/50 mix: add ground beef to pot with ½ teaspoon salt. Cook that in for a few minutes, then add sausage without additional salt.

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