Vegetable Lasagna

Time consuming, but absolutely worth it. Even meat eaters will find this delicious.

Vegetable Lasagna

Make in a 9x13in casserole dish

1/4 cup   Olive Oil

6 oz         Onions, small dice (half of a large yellow onion will give you this amount)

6 cloves of Garlic, chopped

1              Red Bell Pepper, small dice

8 oz         Mushrooms, sliced

1 small    Zucchini, medium dice

1 small    Yellow squash, medium dice

8oz          Tomatoes, diced (roma tomatoes do well)

1/2 tsp    Salt

1/2 tsp    Black Pepper

                Cheese mixture:

1 lb          Ricotta

2              Eggs

8oz          Parmesan, grated

3.8oz can Black Olives, sliced

1/2 tsp    Red Pepper flakes

1/2 tsp    Salt

1/2 tsp    Black Pepper

12 oz       Mozzarella, shredded

1 box       Fresh Basil Leaves, chopped fine (small plastic box from the produce section)

1 TBSP Parsley

32oz    Tomato Sauce for Pasta (Classico brand is fine)

12 No-Boil Lasagna noodles. 3 sheets should be able to cover the casserole dish. DeLallo brand is a good one

Whisk together all cheese mixture ingredients in a bowl and set aside to await assembly of the lasagna.

Heat the oil in a large frying pan or wide pot at medium-high heat.

Sauté The onions and garlic for 2 minutes. Add bell peppers, and sauté 2 minutes.

Add mushrooms and sauté until their juices have evaporated. Add zucchini and yellow squash and sauté 2 minutes or until they are tender. Add diced tomato and stir only until the tomatoes are hot. Add salt and pepper and remove from heat.

To assemble the lasagna:

Coat the bottom of the dish with a thin layer of sauce- just enough to keep the pasta moist.

Build a layer:

                Place 3 sheets of pasta in the dish, forming the first pasta layer.

                Spread 1/3 of the Cheese Mixture over the pasta.

                Spread 1/3 of the Vegetable Mixture over the Cheese Mixture

                Spread 1/4 of the Mozzarella over the Vegetable Mixture and sprinkle with basil                    and parsley

                Top the layer with 1/4 of the remaining tomato sauce

Make 3 layers in total, then cover with the last 3 noodles, the last 1/4 of the mozzarella and 1/4 of the tomato sauce.

Cover tightly with aluminum foil and bake 90 minutes at 350F.

Remove the foil and bake another 15 minutes to brown the top.

Remove from oven and let rest 15 minutes before slicing.