Once upon a cold and dreary Tuesday, a friend and I set out to cook something warm and filling, while catching up and filling my kitchen with laughter (second only to food as my favorite thing with which to fill my kitchen). Unfortunately, while getting ready to head to my place, my cooking partner’s doorknob literally fell off in his hand and made it a distinct security risk to leave his house. So, while my partner in crime was stuck waiting for building maintenance and ordering takeout, I found myself alone with all the makings of a great lasagna.

Fortunately lasagna is one of those dishes that is perfect to make ahead and eat all week, or freeze for later meals. So even though I was disappointed I wouldn’t get to share dinner with my friend, I pressed on and came away with a great, though much quieter than anticipated dinner for one, plus some.

Spinach and Mushroom Lasagna
Recipe by Rose on Fire, with sauce adapted from Smitten Kitchen

Recipe makes 8 servings. The sauce can either be made ahead or set up to cook while you’re taking care of a few things around the house – like sorting the mail, changing your clothes, or taking the dog around the block (as long as there is someone at home to keep an eye on the stove), or feel free to switch out the homemade sauce for your favorite red sauce, though you may need to thin slightly if using no boil noodles as jarred sauce tends to be on the thick side.

Tools: 9×13 lasagna pan, medium bowl, medium sauce pan, a large pot for boiling the noodles if you are using traditional noodles, blender.

2 cups (1 15-16 oz container) ricotta cheese
1 egg
Salt and pepper
2 10oz boxes or 1 15-20 oz bag of frozen spinach, thawed and excess liquid squeezed out
5-9 medium sized mushrooms, thinly sliced (about 1 ½ cups)
2-3 medium garlic cloves, crushed
Olive Oil
1 package (8-9 oz box) lasagna noodles – boil or no boil
1 lb bag of grated mozzarella cheese
1 recipe ‘Set and Forget’ Tomato Sauce with Butter and Onions

‘Set and Forget’ Tomato Sauce with Butter and Onion
1 28 oz can whole peeled tomatoes
1 medium onion, quartered
1 stick (8 tbs) of unsalted butter
4-5 medium garlic cloves, peeled and smashed once with something heavy

Make the Sauce:
1) Place the entire can of tomatoes, onion, butter, and garlic in a medium sauce pan over medium high heat. Once the sauce comes to a heavy simmer, reduce heat to low and continue simmering for 25-30 minutes or until the onion is entirely translucent and the tomatoes begin to break apart.

2) When the sauce is ready, remove 3/4 of the onion and 1/2 of the garlic cloves. Take the remaining sauce ingredients and puree in a blender until smooth. Be careful to leave the lid open slightly as blending hot ingredients causes them to expand. Set aside.

Make the fillings:
1) In your medium bowl, mix up the entire container of ricotta cheese, one egg, and frozen spinach (thawed and well-drained). Liberally salt and pepper, stir in, divide roughly into thirds and set aside.

2) Clean the saucepan previously used for making the tomato sauce, and add a silver-dollar sized pour of olive oil. Over medium heat, cook the mushrooms with a touch of salt and pepper until the mushrooms release their water, and are soft all the way through. Divide into thirds and set-aside.

Put it all together:
1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2) Measure out how many noodles you will need by creating a single dry layer across the bottom of your pan, counting the number of noodles, and multiplying times three. If you are using noodles that need to be pre-boiled, prepare according to package directions. Remove any dry noodles from the bottom of the pan and set aside.

3) Pour a small amount of tomato sauce into the bottom of the lasagna pan, 1/3-1/2 cup, enough to cover the bottom of the pan.

4) Begin layering noodles, ricotta cheese mix, mushrooms, mozzarella cheese, and sauce, in that order in to three even layers. Reserve a small amount of the shredded mozzarella cheese to sprinkle on top of the last layer of sauce.

5) Bake in the oven, uncovered for 40-45 minutes, until the top layer of mozzarella becomes golden brown and crisp around the edge. Remove from oven and let cool 5-10 minutes. Slice into 8 equal pieces and serve.

Storage:
Leftover lasagna can be stored in the fridge for up to 5 days. To freeze lasagna, let cool completely in the fridge, it will make it easier to handle. Wrap individual slices carefully in foil and then in plastic wrap to prevent freezer burn. When ready to reheat, unwrap entirely and plate on a microwave safe dish. Microwave at 50% power for 5 minutes, finish at full power for 1-2 minutes to ensure that lasagna is hot all the way through.