Spinach Lasagna

I’ve been in the mood for spinach lasagna and have seen several recipes surfing around Food Network and blogs of late. None of them were quite exactly what I was looking for. I did not want the sauce to mimic my chicken lasagna with its tangy cream cheese. I chose to go with a simplified cheese sauce made from a standard roux but mix it with a traditional lasagna stuffing. What was produced was EXCELLENT! A great base to any veggie lasagna and I can’t wait to make this again. It went too fast. So fast, I didn’t even get a chance to snap a picture before we dug in. This is one recipe that will definately be added to the rotation.

Spinach Lasagna
Ingredients:
¾ of a container of Ricotta (about 11-12 ounces)
¾ cup of cottage cheese
1 egg
1 large bag of frozen chopped spinach (two-three of the boxes)
½ tsp salt
½ tsp pepper
12 lasagna noodles (boiled till al dente in salted water)
1 stick of unsalted butter
1 medium yellow onion, diced
2 cloves garlic minced
¼ cup flour
3 ¼ cups milk
1 ball of fresh mozzarella (3-4 ounces)
2 cups shredded mozzarella
1 1/2 ounces of fresh parmesan flaked

Directions:
In large mixing bowl, mix ricotta, cottage, egg, spinach and salt and pepper.

Melt butter in sauce pan and add onions for about 2-3 minutes. Add garlic and cook 1-2 minutes more. Add flour and stir until smooth and thick. (about 1 minute). Add milk and stir. Cook until sauce just coats the spoon. Add fresh mozzarella (lightly chopped into cubes) and parmesan. Stir until thick and mozzarella is just melting.

Add cheese sauce to spinach mixture and fold in until well mixed. Use a 9 x 13 pan and layer spinach sauce, then noodles, and repeat (about three times). Top with remaining sauce and shredded mozzarella cheese.

Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for about 45 minutes until lasagna is bubbly and cheese crust is golden brown.