Meatless Spinach Lasagna

Another day, another recipe. We've been on a veggie kick here lately. We tried this dish (though I realized later that I didn't totally follow the directions) on Monday. It made A LOT of food. So, be prepared. If you're going to make this lasagna...invite a crowd over for dinner. We gave it an 9 on the "do we want to eat this again?" scale. It was GOO-OOD! (And yes...I do take every opportunity to use my blue Burleigh china...in case you're wondering why it's in every photograph of food I take. It makes me happy.)

Ingredients:

1/3 cup butter, cubed

1/3 cup all-purpose flour

3 -3/4 cups half and half

1 cup heavy whipping cream (I didn't say this recipe was good for your hips...just yummy)

3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese, divided

1/8 tsp nutmeg

2 cartons (15 ounces each) Ricotta cheese

1 pkg (10 ounces) frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry

1 medium zucchini, grated

3/4 cup shredded carrot

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp onion powder

12 no-cook lasagna noodles

2 cups (8 ounces) shredded, part skim mozzarella cheese

1/2 cup seasoned bread crumbs

1 tbsp butter, melted

Directions :

In a large saucepan, melt butter. Stir in flour until smooth; gradually add creams. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Stir in 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese and the nutmeg.

In a large bowl, combine ricotta cheese, spinach, zucchini, carrot, salt, onion powder and remaining parmesan cheese.

Spread 3/4 cup sauce mixture in a greased 13x9x2 inch baking dish. Layer with four noodles (noodles will overlap slightly), half of the ricotta cheese mixture, 1 cup sauce and 2/3 cup mozzarella cheese. Repeat layers. Top with remaining noodles, sauce and mozzarella cheese. Combine bread crumbs and butter. Sprinkle over lasagna.

Cover and bake at 375 (degrees F...for my British friends who might crank their centigrade ovens to 375 and burn the house down) for 55 minutes. Uncover (dish will be full); bake 10-15 minutes longer or until bubbly. Let stand for 15 minutes before cutting. Yields: 12 servings.

Anyway, Enjoy!