Fast & Easy Vegetarian Lasagna Recipe with No Cook Noodles

Love lasagna but hate the time it takes to make it? Try this recipe for a delicious and quick lasagna that requires fifteen minutes of prep and 1 hour in the oven. This recipe uses fresh spinach, but you could easily add other vegetables to suit your own tastes. Thinly sliced zucchini and diced mushrooms are great add ins. Just follow the basic principles, and you'll soon have an easy and delicious lasagna recipe to add to your recipe that's easy enough for anyone to cook. Sound too good to be true? Try the recipe out for yourself.

Supplies

You'll need a large microwavable bowl or a pre-heated electric wok. You'll need a spoon, a cutting board, and a knife. If you have a garlic press, you'll need that, but if you don't, you can dice the fresh garlic by hand. (You can even substitute garlic powder in a pinch. ) You'll need a pair of kitchen scissors. You'll need an 13 x 9 baking pan. I use a glass pyrex one, so you might need to adjust the cooking time if yours is metal. You'll need an oven that you'll preheat to 350 degrees while you prepare the lasagna.

Shopping List

1 box lasagna noodles (there's no need to buy the "no cook" kind - regular noodles are all you need
2 26 oz. jars of your favorite spaghetti sauce
1 16 oz. tub ricotta cheese
1 bag of shredded mozzarella cheese (you'll need about 2 cups)
1 jar basil pesto (usually 8 - 12 oz)
1 bag fresh spinach
1 medium onion
3 cloves of garlic
Olive oil (if you don't already have it, vegetable oil or butter will do)
parmesan cheese shaker (optional)

[Can't imagine a meal without meat? You can brown ground beef in a skillet and stir in with the onion and spinach mixture or directly into the sauce. You can also add crumbled TVP for more protein, if desired.]

Depending on where you shop, the ingredients should set you back about $20 and this will make enough for a crowd (8 - 12 people). If you are cooking for fewer people, the extra lasagna reheats really well and will last for a while in the fridge. (I can't tell you how long since it always goes pretty fast, but at least 3 days.) Also, you can assemble the lasagna a day or two in advance and refridgerate until you're ready to bake -- if you do this, add an extra 1/4 cup of water [1 1/4 total] before you bake.

A note about the pesto: Yes, you could use dried basil if that's all you have, but I sincerely recommend that you splurge on the pesto (which runs between $3 - 5 a jar) because the taste cannot compare to the dried stuff. The pesto is really the "secret" ingredient of this recipe, and it won't taste nearly as great without it. You could use fresh basil if you have it, but I recommend making it into a pesto (add 2 cups basil for food processor, add in handful of pine nuts or walnuts, add in 1/4 cup parmesan cheese, blend then add in 1/4 - 1/2 cup olive oil.) The crushed basil leaves via pesto impart a better flavor than just leaves.

To make the lasagna:

Dice the onion. Add it to the bowl with a splash of olive oil (about 1 - 2 T.). Stir and microwave for 1 minute. Onions should be just tender. Dice garlic and add to onions and stir. Add entire bag of spinach, breaking up the leaves if they are very large. Don't worry if the bowl is too full -- the spinach will shrink as it cooks. Microwave for 1 1/2 minutes. Remove. Leaves should be shrunken, shiny and wet looking. Use kitchen shears to cut cooked spinach into small chunks (I just put the scissors into the bowl and cut a few times until it's broken up). Stir. Season with a dash of salt and a sprinkle of fresh crushed pepper. (Optional).

To assemble the lasagna:

Pour 1/2 jar of spaghetti sauce into the bottom of your pan and spread evenly along the bottom. Add a single layer of uncooked lasagna noodles, breaking noodles as needed to fit. You don't have to completely cover the bottom -- usually I use three full noodles and a partial noodle width-wise. (If this sounds confusing, you'll understand when you are layering, so don't worry.) Add 1/2 container of ricotta cheese in large spoonfuls on top of noodles. Gently spread to cover the noodles. Add 1/2 jar of pesto evenly over ricotta cheese. Add another layer of noodles. Add 1/2 jar of sauce or so, spreading evenly. Add spinach, garlic, onion mixture (all of it) on top of this. Sprinkle 1 cup mozzarella cheese on top, sprinkle with parmesan cheese. Add layer of noodles. Add remainer of ricotta cheese and remainder of pesto. Add layer of noodles. Add rest of spaghetti sauce.

Now the secret: Gently pour 1 cup of water around the edges of the pan, allowing the water to seep down through the layers. (I add the water to the sauce jars and shake to clean the jars and get extra flavor.) Your container will be pretty full at the point, so be gentle, but don't skimp on the water. You can add a layer of aluminum foil on the rack below the lasagna pan if you are worried about leaks. You can also put a pizza pan underneath to catch drips. It will probably leak, but usually not much. Cover pan with aluminum foil. (You'll have 1 cup of mozzarella cheese left -- don't worry, you didn't forget it.)

Bake for 45 minutes. After 45 minutes, remove from oven. Take off foil, saving to cover the pan and leftovers after dinner. Sprinkle remaining mozzarella cheese on top. Sprinkle more parmesan cheese, if desired. Return to oven for 15 minutes. Remove from oven, allow the rest for 5 - 10 minutes to cool slightly before cutting, and enjoy. That's it -- it's that easy and it's delicious!