Megans Incredible Sausage Spinach Lasagna Recipes

SPINACH AND SAUSAGE LASAGNA

Steps:

• In a large pot or Dutch oven, saute the garlic in the olive oil over medium heat. Saute until it starts to brown.
• Add the sausage (out of the casing) to the pot. Brown the sausage and break it up with your spoon.
• Add the wine to the pot, then scrape up any brown bits from the bottom of the pot. Let it simmer for 2 minutes.
• Add the tomatoes, water, basil, salt and pepper. Stir until everything is combined. Cover and let simmer for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
• While the sauce is simmering, fill another large pot with water. Salt the water and bring to a boil. Cook lasagna noodles in the salted water until al dente, about 6-8 minutes. Drain the noodles and set aside.
• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
• Mix together the ricotta, 1 cup of the mozzarella, 1/2 cup of the Parmesan, garlic powder, and the eggs in a large bowl. Salt and pepper to taste.
• In the bottom of a 9-by-13-inch baking pan, ladle 1/2 cup of the sauce and spread it out. Arrange a layer of lasagna noodles covering the sauce. Spread 1/3 of the ricotta mixture over the noodles, then layer a cup of the spinach.
• Repeat these layers until you run out of ingredients.
• The top layer should be a layer of noodles covered with sauce and topped with 1/2 cup of mozzarella and 1/2 cup of Parmesan.
• Cover the lasagna with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Then uncover and bake for another 15-20 minutes, until the cheese is bubbly. Let it rest for 10 minutes before serving.

SPINACH AND SAUSAGE LASAGNA

Steps:

• Cook sausage in a large skillet over medium heat until no longer pink; drain. Stir in the spaghetti sauce, water, Italian seasoning and salt. Combine ricotta, spinach and 1 cup mozzarella cheese in a small bowl., Spread 1 cup sauce mixture in a greased oval 5-qt. slow cooker. Layer with three noodles (breaking noodles if necessary to fit), 1-1/4 cups sauce mixture and half of the cheese mixture. Repeat layers. Layer with remaining noodles and sauce mixture; sprinkle with remaining mozzarella cheese., Cover and cook on low for 3-4 hours or until noodles are tender. Sprinkle servings with Parmesan cheese.

LASAGNA WITH ITALIAN SAUSAGE AND SPINACH

Steps:

• Rinse cooked lasagna noodles and set aside. Be sure that you don't use more than 12 oz. or the lasagna will be too dry.
• Meanwhile, in a dutch oven or other large vessel, put the oil, onion and green bell pepper. Saute over medium heat until the onion is tender.
• Add the sausage and garlic and stir-fry until well browned, chopping up the meat as you stir, to make sure all of the pieces are small.
• Add the diced tomatoes, tomato paste, parsley, oregano, basil and 1 teaspoons salt. Reduce heat to low and simmer for about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
• Meanwhile, press out the water from the thawed spinach so that it is very dry. Put the spinach into a medium-size mixing bowl.
• Add the cottage cheese, egg, 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, 1 teaspoons salt and black pepper to the spinach. Stir until well mixed.
• In another medium-size bowl put the grated Mozzarella cheese.
• In a lasagna pan that you have oiled, put down 1/3 of the tomato-meat sauce.
• Cover with 1/2 of the lasagna noodles.
• Top with 1/2 of the spinach-cottage cheese filling.
• Top with half of the mozzarella cheese.
• Repeat using 1/3 of the tomato-meat sauce, remaining noodles, remaining spinach filling and mozzarella cheese.
• Top with the remaining 1/3 of the tomato-meat sauce and sprinkle 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese over the very top.
• Bake in a 350 degrees oven for 45 minutes.
• You might wonder whether or not there is enough tomato sauce, but once the lasagna heats up and the cheese gets gooey, there is enough sauce. I don't like a a lasagna with lots of runny heavy tomato sauce that covers the taste of everything else in the lasagna. If you feel like you need a bit more, add an 8 oz. can of tomato sauce to the tomato-meat sauce.

SPINACH LASAGNA

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Brown sausage in a medium nonstick skillet over medium-high heat, 5 to 7 minutes, stirring to break up. Meanwhile, place the packages of spinach into a microwave oven and microwave at full power for 7 minutes. Remove to a colander and drain. Mix together the tomato sauce, ricotta cheese, and eggs. Spread a thin layer of the sauce mixture over the bottom of a 9-by-13-inch lasagna pan. Top with a layer of uncooked lasagna noodles, another layer of sauce, a layer of spinach, a layer of sausage, a layer of mushrooms, a layer of mozzarella cheese, and a layer of lightly sprinkled Parmesan cheese. Repeat all 8 layers. Cover with foil and bake for about 1 hour, until bubbly. Remove from oven and let stand for 15 minutes before slicing. Enjoy!

SAUSAGE SPINACH ALFREDO LASAGNA

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• In a skillet over medium heat, cook the sausage until evenly brown. Drain, and mix in the spinach and Alfredo sauce. Season with pepper. Continue cooking until spinach and sauce are heated through.
• In a bowl, mix the Cheddar cheese, ricotta cheese, Parmesan cheese, and egg.
• In a 9x13 inch baking dish, layer 1/3 of the sausage mixture, 1/3 of the noodles, and 1/3 of the cheese mixture. Repeat layers twice, and top with mozzarella cheese.
• Cover, and bake 45 minutes in the preheated oven. Let stand 15 minutes before serving.

SKILLET SPINACH LASAGNA

Steps:

• Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook and stir sausage, breaking into smaller pieces, in the hot skillet until browned and crumbly, 5 to 7 minutes. Mix noodles into sausage.
• Pour crushed tomatoes and tomato sauce over sausage-noodle mixture; bring to a boil. Cover skillet, reduce heat, and simmer until noodles are cooked and sauce is thickened, about 25 minutes. Add spinach, ricotta cheese, and mozzarella cheese; cover skillet and remove from heat. Let lasagna stand for 5 minutes; top with Parmesan cheese.

OUR FAVORITE LASAGNA WITH SAUSAGE, SPINACH, AND THREE CHEESES

Steps:

• Preparation:
• Position the rack in the upper third of the oven and preheat to 375°F.
• Make the sauce:
• In a large pot over medium-high heat, heat the oil. Add the sausage, onion and 3/4 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper; cook, breaking up sausage with a wooden spoon, until browned and cooked through, 8 to 10 minutes. Reduce heat to medium and add garlic, red-pepper flakes, and tomato paste; cook, stirring often, until fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes more. Add tomatoes (along with their juice) and oregano; bring to a simmer, and cook, breaking up the tomatoes with a wooden spoon until in small pieces, about 5 minutes. Taste and adjust seasoning, adding more red-pepper flakes if desired.
• Make the filling:
• In the bowl of a food processor, combine all of the filling ingredients and process until mostly smooth.
• Assemble the lasagna:
• Squeeze the spinach in a paper towel or clean dishcloth until very dry. Transfer to a bowl and season with a pinch of salt.
• Coat baking dish with cooking spray and spread the bottom with 2 cups sauce. Top with a layer of three noodles, then a third of the ricotta mixture (about 1 1/3 cups), and a third of the spinach (about 2/3 cup). Sprinkle with 1 cup grated mozzarella.
• Repeat twice more, skipping the mozzarella on the third layer. Top the lasagna with the remaining sauce. Sprinkle the remaining 2 cups mozzarella in clusters so some of the sauce peeks through.
• Place the baking pan on a rimmed baking sheet. Lightly spray a piece of foil with cooking spray, cover the lasagna, and bake for 45 minutes. Remove the foil and continue baking until lightly browned and bubbly, about 20 minutes more. Let cool at least 10 minutes before serving.
• DO AHEAD: The sauce can be prepared up to 2 days in advance and refrigerated. The filling can be prepared up to 1 day in advance and refrigerated.

SPINACH LASAGNA WITH FENNEL SAUSAGE

Steps:

• Make the pasta: Combine spinach, eggs, salt and olive oil in a blender or food processor and purée until smooth. Transfer to a mixing bowl and stir in flour. Knead mixture into a soft dough. If sticky, add a little more flour. Form into a ball, wrap in plastic, and set aside to rest while you prepare the other elements.
• Make the filling: Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add spinach and let wilt for a few seconds. Drain spinach in a colander and rinse well with cold water. Squeeze spinach dry and chop roughly.
• Put ricotta in a mixing bowl and stir in chopped spinach. Stir in lemon zest and crushed fennel seed. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
• Set a large skillet over medium-high heat and add sausage meat. Cook, breaking up with a spatula, until crumbled. Cook for 3 to 4 minutes, stirring, until just cooked through. Transfer to a bowl and let cool.
• For the béchamel, melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Whisk in flour and let cook for about 1 minute, stirring; do not let mixture brown.
• Whisk in milk 1/2 cup at a time, letting sauce thicken after each addition. Add bay leaf, cayenne and nutmeg and continue cooking over low heat, whisking frequently, for about 10 minutes, to create a smooth sauce. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Thin with a little more milk if necessary; consistency should be that of a not-too-thick milkshake. If needed, strain sauce to remove lumps. Keep warm in a double boiler to prevent thickening.
• Make the tomato sauce: In a saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add garlic and basil and let sizzle without browning, 1 minute or less. Add tomato purée and bring to a simmer. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Cook for about 5 minutes, until slightly thickened. Remove from heat, pull out the basil leaves, and whisk in butter. Set aside.
• Roll out the pasta: Set up a pasta machine and divide the dough into 5 roughly equal pieces. Roll each piece into a thin sheet of pasta about 12 inches long. Rolling twice at the second-to-last setting on the machine should give you the right thickness. Set aside on baking sheets, dust lightly with flour and keep covered with a slightly damp kitchen towel to prevent them from drying out.
• Butter a medium-large baking dish, not larger than 9 by 13 inches. Heat oven to 375 degrees.
• Cook the pasta: Have a large pot of salted boiling water on the stove and a large bowl of ice water nearby. One by one, place pasta sheets in boiling water to par-cook for about 1 minute, leaving pasta quite firm. Using tongs or a spider, lift pasta out and plunge into ice water. Lift out and lay on a clean kitchen towel to blot. Cut into two pieces.
• As the pasta is cooked, assemble the lasagna: Place 2 sheets cooked pasta side by side, in the bottom of the baking dish. Spread pasta with 1/2 cup béchamel and dot with one-quarter of the ricotta mixture. Sprinkle over one fourth of crumbled sausage and 1/2 cup grated Parmesan. Repeat process for each layer. You will have 4 layers. Finish with 2 sheets of pasta. Spread top with 1/2 cup béchamel and sprinkle with remaining Parmesan. (The lasagna can be made up to this point up to 1 day in advance, covered and refrigerated.)
• Cover with foil and bake about 30 minutes, until lasagna is bubbling. (If baking a refrigerated lasagna, this will take longer, up to 60 minutes.) Remove foil and bake uncovered for about 15 minutes, until lightly browned on top. Let lasagna rest for 10 to 15 minutes before cutting.
• Just before serving, reheat tomato sauce. To serve, cut lasagna into 3- or 4-inch squares. With a spatula, transfer each serving to individual plates. Spoon about ½ cup tomato sauce around each serving. Garnish with basil leaves.

BEEF AND SPINACH LASAGNA

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375°. In a large skillet, cook beef and onion over medium heat until meat is no longer pink; crumble beef drain. Stir in the spaghetti sauce, garlic, basil and oregano. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 10 minutes. In a large bowl, mix together the spinach, ricotta and 1 cup mozzarella cheese., Spread 1-1/2 cups meat sauce into a greased 13x9-in. baking dish. Top with 3 noodles. Spread 1-1/2 cups sauce to edges of noodles. Top with half of the spinach mixture. Repeat layers. Top with the remaining noodles, sauce and 1 cup mozzarella cheese., Cover and bake for 30 minutes. Uncover; bake until bubbly, 10-15 minutes longer. Let stand for 10 minutes before cutting. If desired, top with minced fresh basil.