Adventures in Cooking!

Last night I was craving some good, old fashioned, comfort food. Heather and I went to the store in search of some good eats, when the thought of lasagna popped into my head. I've never actually made lasagna before, but I know the basics of how it is constructed & as long as I have directions to follow, it's pretty fool-proof. We came up with our own version that included a lot of veggies instead of a lot of cheese [which turned out super delicious - and super healthy]. I regret not taking any pictures of this wonderful meal last night... but still wanted to share the recipe that we came up with!

V e g g i e L a s a g n a

- 1 pound of whole wheat lasagna noodles [we ended up using roughly 3/4 of a pound of lasagna noodles]
- 2 cups of low-fat ricotta cheese
- 1 jar of pasta sauce [we used 1/2 jar of tomato/basil - 1/2 jar roasted butternut squash]
- 1 med/large zucchini
- 3 roasted red peppers [we used canned red peppers in olive oil]
- 3 green onions

In the food processor, combine the zucchini, red bell peppers and green onions until it is finely minced, but not yet to a puree. Set aside.

In a large pot, boil enough water to hold one pound of lasagna noodles. Cook until al dente.

To assemble: line your baking dish with a little bit of pasta sauce so the lasagna noodles don't stick to the baking dish while it cooks. Line up enough noodles to cover the bottom of the pan. Add a thin layer of ricotta cheese followed by a layer of pasta sauce. Add a layer of lasagna noodles. Add a layer of the veggie mixture. REPEAT this process until you have used all of your ingredients. You should have about 6-7 layers.

Heat in the oven at 350 degrees F for 45 minutes to an hour. Let the lasagna sit for a few minutes to slightly cool down before serving.

*[You can choose to roast the red peppers on your own, but I think it's best to use the roasted red peppers in olive oil, so the veggie mix doesn't come out dry. The olive oil really adds moisture to the veggie mix.]*

Enjoy! :)

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