Spinach Lasagna with Mushroom Ragu
I think pregnancy comes with a small dose of insanity. My poor husband can vouch for that. I think my level of insanity is relatively low, though. Never once have I sent him out at 2 AM because I woke up craving In-N-Out. He’s lucky.
I’ve been craving lasagna for a few weeks, but because lasagna is somewhat time-consuming, I had a hard time fitting it into my schedule. I knew which one I wanted to make, too — the Spinach Lasagna with Mushroom Ragu I saw in the November issue of Food Network Mag.
When I found some extra time, a sudden urge to use my pasta rollers came with it. (See? Insanity.) This definitely isn’t something that you’d do on a weeknight. Although if you made the sauce ahead of time it would shave off a couple of hours. I bet it freezes well, too.
I have a few things to say about this project:
1. According to the recipe, I should have spent about $35 in mushrooms alone. Seriously, now. I skipped the dried porcini’s, substituted regular brown mushrooms for the shiitakes and bought 2 really big portobello caps. The damage? About $10. And the sauce was fantastic.
2. The sauce was somewhat watery, even without the extra porcini water. I let it reduce for an extra half hour and then buzzed it up with my immersion blender. Partly to thicken it. Partly so my kids wouldn’t pick out the mushrooms. I added an extra tablespoon of tomato paste and removed a cup of water from the recipe for next time.
3. Yes, I made my own extra-thin spelt lasagna noodles using this recipe. The dough was easy to work with, and I loved how they turned out.
4. I love cheese, but good grief, there was a lot in this recipe. I cut out a whole pound of mozzarella as well as a pound of the ricotta. I bumped up the amount of spinach, too. Don’t worry, there’s still a lot of cheese in it.
5. Speaking of a lot… I’m glad I had this deep 9×13 pan. I really don’t think it would have fit in my 9×13 Pyrex. If you run into trouble, try splitting it into two pans and freezing one!
The verdict? Perhaps the best lasagna I’ve ever had. Certainly the most time-consuming, so it better be the best, right? That mushroom sauce is so hearty and flavorful we didn’t even miss the meat.
Plus it’ll feed us three times. That’s worth the work right there.
Here are some other lasagna recipes on the site. All of which have been fantastic as well!
Roasted Butternut Squash Lasagna with Goat Cheese, Bacon, & Fried Sage
Roasted Vegetable Polenta Lasagna
Spinach Lasagna with Mushroom Ragu
Yield: 8-10 servings
Prep Time: 1 hour
Cook Time: 3 hours
Total Time: 4 hours
Ingredients:
For the ragu:
2 T heat-safe oil, like grapeseed or coconut
1 medium onion, chopped
1 large carrot, diced
1 stalk celery, diced
4 cloves garlic, chopped
3 T tomato paste
2 portobello mushroom caps, chopped
1 1/2 pounds brown mushrooms (or your choice), chopped
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
2 28-ounce cans of whole or diced tomatoes
3 bay leaves
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsleyFor the lasagna:
3 ounces Parmesan cheese, grated
8 ounces part-skim mozzarella cheese, shredded
8 ounces asiago cheese, shredded
16 ounces whole milk ricotta cheese
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
2 10-ounce packages frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
1/4 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
12 ounces dried lasagna noodlesDirections:
Make the ragu:
Heat the oil in a large, heavy pot over medium heat. Add the onion, carrot and celery and cook until soft, 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic and tomato paste and cook, stirring, 2 more minutes. Add the portobello and brown mushrooms, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper; cook, stirring, until the mushrooms are soft, 5 more minutes.Add the tomatoes and their juices. If you're using whole tomatoes, crush them with your hands as you put them in the pot. Add 1 cup of water and the bay leaves; bring to a boil, stirring occasionally. Reduce the heat to medium low, add 1/2 teaspoon salt and simmer, stirring a few times, until thick, about 90 minutes. Discard the bay leaves and taste, adding more salt, if needed. TIP: You can make the ragu up to 1 day ahead; let cool, then cover and chill. Reheat before using.
Make the lasagna filling:
Mix the parmesan, mozzarella and asiago; set 1 1/2 cups of the cheese mixture aside. Combine the remaining cheese mixture in a large bowl with the ricotta, eggs, spinach, nutmeg and 1/2 teaspoon salt.Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Add the noodles and cook as the label directs. Drain and rinse under cold water; shake off the excess water.
Spread 1 cup of the ragu in a deep 9-by-13-inch baking dish. Add a layer of noodles, then half of the spinach mixture and 2 cups ragu. Repeat with another layer of noodles, spinach mixture and ragu. Top with the remaining noodles and ragu and sprinkle with the reserved cheese. Cover with foil, place on a baking sheet and bake 50 minutes. Uncover and bake until golden, about 25 more minutes. Let rest at least 10 minutes before serving.
adapted from Food Network Magazine, November 2011
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Becca @ Amuse Your Bouche — January 24, 2012 @ 3:32 am
The title of this post alone was enough to have me convinced, but those photos are amazing… I’m almost literally drooling!
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Natalie replied: — January 24th, 2012 @ 8:02 am
Thank you! I am, too, actually and it’s 8 AM :)
Katrina @ Warm Vanilla Sugar — January 24, 2012 @ 3:48 am
This sounds delightful! I love a good lasagna.
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brandi — January 24, 2012 @ 6:28 am
i think your changes make it sound even better! it looks perfect.
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Nicole, RD — January 24, 2012 @ 6:43 am
That looks…incredible! Homemade spelt lasagna noodles? So impressed!
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Bev Weidner — January 24, 2012 @ 6:50 am
That looks so good I might need to sit down.
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gwen — January 24, 2012 @ 7:24 am
The Roasted Butternut Squash Lasagna with Goat Cheese, Bacon & Fried Sage and the Roasted Vegetable Polenta Lasagna are tied on my list of favorite lasagnas, but I know this one would beat even those out of first place. Can’t wait for an excuse to make this!
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Natalie replied: — January 24th, 2012 @ 8:03 am
This one is definitely more traditional tasting than the other ones. I can’t decide if I like it more because it took me most of the day to make…? Ha. I do have to add that it was even better heated up as leftovers.
Cookbook Queen — January 24, 2012 @ 7:46 am
This looks absolutely gorgeous!!! Love love LOVE mushrooms!!
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Gayle @ thesecretlifeofmrsbundt — January 24, 2012 @ 7:59 am
Have tried your other lasagnas and they were awesome, will have to put this on my docket. And don’t worry about the pregnancy crazies, we all had them! I was a food hoarder and also bought (pretty much on a whim) an expensive and totally inappropriate sofa. My friend was moving and ordered like a bazillion checks and address labels with her old address on them. It happens. I wish I could tell you it goes away, but it takes awhile. I started carrying a small notebook with me everywhere I went because I could hardly remember my name postpartum!
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Natalie replied: — January 24th, 2012 @ 8:05 am
A sofa! I love it! (I’m actually in the market for a couple right now because we just moved into a new house.) My taste is a bit more eccentric than I was 6 months ago. I wonder if that’s why? I totally know what you mean about pregnancy/mommy brains, Gayle. I don’t think I’ve gotten much of my short-term memory back from my first two kids!
Heidi @ Food Doodles — January 24, 2012 @ 9:04 am
This. Looks. Amazing. I’ve been loving lasagna this pregnancy and usually it’s not a big deal for me. I really love that you made your own noodles with spelt! I completely agree about the pregnancy insanity – especially with food, my tastes are all over the place. My hubby’s lucky I haven’t sent him out in the middle of the night either :D
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Eliana — January 24, 2012 @ 11:59 am
WOW – you should have issued a Food Porn warning in the title of this post. I almost could not handle how delicious this lasagna looked int he photos. Wish I was enjoying a HUGE piece of this right this second.
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Joanne — January 24, 2012 @ 5:59 pm
I crave lasagna…daily. And I’m not even pregnant. What’s THAT all about?
And I LOVE that you made your own spelt noodles! This has absolutely made my night.
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Kristin — January 24, 2012 @ 6:16 pm
Wow, this looks divine. Hopefully l will someday muster up the stamina to make it!
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Jessica @ How Sweet — January 24, 2012 @ 6:49 pm
this looks absolutely dreamy!
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Cara — January 24, 2012 @ 6:51 pm
If I ever decide to make a lasagna this winter, there’s a good chance it will be this one :)
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Elizabeth @ Chronic Venture — January 25, 2012 @ 6:02 am
mmmmm is there anything better or more comforting than lasagna?! no, no there isn’t. Thanks for sharing!
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Rachel @ Not Rachael Ray — January 25, 2012 @ 8:27 am
This looks so amazing!
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Jolene (www.everydayfoodie.ca) — January 25, 2012 @ 2:55 pm
What a gorgeous looking, cheeeesy lasagna! Lasagna is one of my favourite foods, but I haven’t had it with the mushroom ragu – sounds fabulous! I love anything with mushrooms.
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Lauren — January 25, 2012 @ 4:54 pm
This looks and sounds insanely good! How much time did you have to make all this PLUS homemade pasta from spelt? You are wonder woman!
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Natalie replied: — January 25th, 2012 @ 5:01 pm
Uh… most of Saturday :) But I did other things, too. I did the sauce in the morning. Then I did the noodles (which only took 20 minutes or so… I used my Kitchen-Aid rollers :)) right before I assembled it. I got a wild hair. Or a crazy craving. Or both. Definitely not a weekly thing!
Javelin Warrior — January 27, 2012 @ 10:13 am
This lasagna looks awesome! I feel compelled to feature you in my Friday Food Fetish roundup and on Pinterest. Let me know if you have any objections and keep the amazing food coming…
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Natalie replied: — January 27th, 2012 @ 1:48 pm
Thanks so much for the feature!
Sajini Christman — May 2, 2013 @ 12:32 pm
I just made this…. An almost three year old, an 18th month old, my husband and I are eagerly waiting for it to be done in the oven!!
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Natalie Perry replied: — May 6th, 2013 @ 11:27 pm
Oh great! I hope you enjoyed it as much as we did!