White Veggie Lasagna

When I was a kid, there was a veggie lasagna that we would eat sometimes at my parent’s work. It was so good; my mouth still waters thinking about it. Now, I don’t really like lasagna (apparently I take after my father, who also doesn’t like lasagna; my mother thinks we’re both crazy). In fact, the only recipe that I’ve made that I’ve enjoyed was for Lasagna Roll-Ups.

Until recently, that is.

I kept thinking about that veggie lasagna from my childhood, and so I set up a campaign to find a recipe that would mirror what I remembered. It took some time of searching online as I was pretty particular: must have carrots, no red sauce or mushrooms, easy to make….I’m only a little demanding haha. But I finally found the one! It looked perfect in the picture. And so, I bought the ingredients, fired up the stove and oven, mixed, boiled, simmered, compiled, and baked. And out came perfection. I know you can only judge by the pictures; but let me assure you, there was a house-rockin’ party goin’ on in my mouth. Yum!

Gather the ingredients:

     9 lasagna noodles
     2 eggs, beaten
     2 cups cottage cheese
     1 15 oz. carton ricotta cheese
     2 teaspoons dried Italian seasoning (or similar)
     4 cloves garlic, minced
     2 tablespoons olive oil
     2 tablespoons flour
     1 teaspoon black pepper
     1-1/4 cups milk
     1 10 oz. package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained
     1 10 oz. package frozen chopped broccoli, thawed and drained
     1 cup shredded carrot
     1 8 oz. package shredded mozzarella cheese

Cook lasagna noodles according to package directions. Drain; set aside.

In a medium bowl, combine eggs, cottage cheese, ricotta cheese, and Italian seasoning; set aside.

In a large skillet, cook garlic in hot oil for 1 minute. Stir in the flour and pepper; add milk all at once. Cook and stir until slightly thickened and bubbly (about 3-5 minutes). Remove from heat. Stir in the spinach, broccoli, and carrot.

To assemble, in a greased baking dish, layer 3 noodles. Spread with 1/3 of the cheese mixture, then 1/3 of the vegetable mixture. Sprinkle with 1/3 of the mozzarella. Repeat the layers twice. 

Bake uncovered at 350 degrees F for 35 minutes or until heated through. Let stand for 10 minutes before eating.

The finished product! It also makes great leftovers! For make-ahead directions (which I did), prepare as above through assembly; cover and chill for up to 48 hours. Bake, covered, at 350 degrees F for 30 minutes. Uncover and bake for another 30 to 35 minutes or until heated through. Enjoy as before! :-)