Summer Veggie Lasagna
This is the ultimate late-summer/fall comfort food. Make it as soon as the summer evenings start to get cooler—when you feel like turning on the oven again!
Ingredients
- 4 small or 2 medium eggplant, chopped
- 2 small or 1 medium zucchini, chopped
- ½ to 1 oz. dried Portobello or porcini mushrooms
- 2 tsp. dried basil
- 2 tsp. dried oregano
- 2 tsp. garlic powder
- 1 tsp. crushed red pepper
- 1 tsp. black pepper
- 1 salt salt
- ¼ to ½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 3 large or 5 small bell peppers, chopped
- ½ of an onion, chopped
- 1 Tbsp. butter
- 1 15-oz. container whole milk ricotta cheese
- 2 cups shredded provolone, fontina, or mozzarella cheese
- 1 cup chopped fresh basil
- ½ cup grated Parmesan
- ½ cup crumbled feta
- 1 large egg
- 4 to 5 cups marinara sauce (find my easy recipe here)
- Desired dried or fresh lasagna noodles, prepped according to package directions
Instructions
- In a medium bowl sprinkle eggplant and zucchini with salt.Let stand 15 minutes; drain and pat dry. Place the dried mushrooms in a small bowl and add enough boiling water to cover; let stand to rehydrate 10 minutes; drain mushrooms and finely chop. Meanwhile, for spice mixture, combine dried basil, oregano, garlic powder, and black pepper, crushed red pepper, and salt.
- Heat ¼ cup olive oil in a large deep skillet. Add the onion; cook over high heat, stirring once or twice 3 to 5 minutes or until onion is browned on the edges and tender. Add zucchini, eggplant, and bell peppers. Continue cooking over high heat, stirring occasionally 12 to 15 minutes or until vegetables are browned and tender. Stir in butter and half of the spice mixture. Let cool.
- In a medium bowl combine the ricotta, fresh basil, 1 cup of the provolone, parmesan, feta, egg, and the remaining half of the spice mixture.
- Preheat oven to 325°F. To assemble, spread about 1 cup of the marinara on the bottom of a 3-qt. rectangular baking dish. Arrange lasagna noodles in dish to fit. Add a little more sauce over the noodles, then one-third of the vegetable mixture, then one-third of the ricotta mixture.Repeat layers two more times, then add one more noodle layer on top. Sprinkle noodles with the remaining provolone. Gently spoon the remaining marinara sauce over the cheese.
- Cover dish with foil and bake 1 hour. Remove foil and bake another 20 to 30 minutes or until lightly browned on top. For additional browning, broil 8 to 10 inches from the heat for 3 to 5 minutes. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.