Italian Garden Lasagna

This is a vegetarian lasagna designed to move a mountain of produce in one dish. Six different vegetables get quickly sauteed with basil and oregano, then layered with a three-cheese mix of ricotta, mozzarella, and parmesan between sheets of dry pasta and a thinned jar of meatless spaghetti sauce.

The water stirred into the sauce is crucial. Because the lasagna noodles go in dry, they need that extra liquid to cook through as the whole thing bakes. The vegetables get a quick saute first (not a full cook) so they finish tender-crisp in the oven rather than mushy.

Kitchen Tips

• Wilt the spinach off the heat into the residual warm vegetables. Full-heat cooking turns fresh spinach army-green and leaches bitter compounds.
• Reserve the 1 cup of vegetable mixture as the directions state. It goes on top with the reserved mozzarella and gives you a gorgeous colorful crown instead of a flat cheesy surface.
• Cover with foil for the first half of baking, then uncover to brown the top. This is how the noodles hydrate fully before the top sets.
• Let the lasagna rest 15 minutes before slicing. Hot vegetable lasagna falls apart in wet slabs. Rested lasagna holds clean layers.

Variations

• Add a layer of roasted eggplant for deeper, meatier body.
• Stir a handful of chopped sundried tomatoes into the ricotta for more intense flavor.
• Sprinkle a pinch of red pepper flakes into the sauce for a subtle heat that pairs beautifully with all that cheese.