It is Italian/Pasta Night
This is the best lasagna. Period. Well, maybe Bryanna's Italian Lasagna with Bolognese Sauce is a rival :)
This is not a vegetable lasagna, because my kids' first question after 'What is for dinner?' is "Is there anything weird in it?' Define 'weird' as 'vegetable.' Ahh. Gets old. I do not know how they overlook the fact that the ricotta-style filling has 8 cups of spinach, but I don't care! They love it and as long as there are no odd bits of zucchini or mushrooms to bite into, they are happy. If it was up to me, there would be pieces of zucchini and eggplant and pepper and mushrooms, but, alas, I leave this one alone. For now.
This lasagna is easy to make, and I hope that is not just because I've been making it for over seven years. It has 5 layers of: pasta, spinach-basil tofu filling, ground Boca, Daiya-Follow Your Heart cheeses, homemade pasta sauce. I use Whole Foods No Boil Lasagna noodles, but I've had success using regular lasagna noodles and not pre-cooking them. Just make sure to cover your pan very tightly with foil (doming it a bit so the cheese does not stick to it) and extend the cooking time about 15 minutes. Adding a 2-3 T of water to the bottom of the pan before assembling the lasagna gives extra insurance of it getting cooked properly.
This has to be one of our more expensive meals, but putting things into perspective, each generous serving is $2.70. You can't even buy a frozen meal for that much.
Cost Breakdown:
noodles: $2
spinach, basil, tofu: $8
Boca: $3
tomatoes: $5
onion, garlic, olive oil: $1
Daiya and Follow Your Heart: $8
Total for 10 servings:
$27.00
Yummm! This really looks good....
ReplyDeleteWow...that really does look delicious. Isn't it amazing that you can "sneak" all that spinach into a kid by just adding cheese and pasta and marinara sauce??
ReplyDeleteTo say that that looks delicious is an understatement. This is something I def. plan to try!
ReplyDeleteBTW, I found you on foodie blog roll and friended you. Check me out at http://www.yummyvegetariandelights.com/
God bless! :)
Thanks, Tiffany and JillyAn.
ReplyDeleteIt is incredibly good, and the spinach-basil complements all the other components. Maybe that's why the kids don't care - everything is in harmony.
In addition to the health benefits of the spinach here, it also cuts down on the expense of the basil. You can use 4 c of basil and 4 c of spinach or 1/2 c basil and 8 c spinach. Basil's flavor is trong enough to work just well with either proportion. The more basil the better, but not everyone has a garden full of this delectable herb.
Of course, the cheese, the tomato sauce and pasta don't hurt, either :)
Hi, Angel! Welcome and thank you! I'm on my way to your site to check you out.
ReplyDeleteThanks for visiting, and I'm putting this recipe on by tonight (Thurs). This is most certainly one my kids will WANT to know how to make. In fact, I think I'm going to get them to make it themselves the next time they are craving it - good family project, I'd say.
Love it!
ReplyDeleteThis is gorgeous. It would be so hard to make a lasagna like this and not stuff it with vegetables (especially the mushrooms and zucchini).
ReplyDeleteWe love it, too, Runners Fuel!
ReplyDeleteMom Chef, sometimes it is the sacrifice moms have to make...to stuff, or not to stuff, the children answer the question.
I don't care what's in it or what you call it, if it's lasagna I'm all in!
ReplyDeleteHi Steve...I'm a little pickier...I seem to recall a lasagna an in-law made...since then, a lasagna by any other name can certainly stink.
ReplyDeleteThanks for visiting!
Lasagna is my son´s favourite dish. He has been asking me to prepare it since we came back from Argentina. We had rented one of those furnished apartments in buenos aires and since I had time, I used to make pasta almost every day. From that time on, he has asked nothing but that, so I cook it for him when I have the chance, I love it too!
ReplyDeleteBrooke