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Spinach and Beef Lasagna

Leigh Ann Chatagnier

This post was edited from it’s original post.

My love language is definitely in the form of pasta. Just give me all of the pasta, red sauce based pastas in particular, and I’ll love you forever. True story, just ask my hubby. My dream is go visit Italy and cook alongside an Italian grandma, and let her teach me her ways. I would be the happiest camper and my life would be complete. Wouldn’t that be amazing? One day…but anyway, speaking of pasta and Italian dishes, lasagna is one of those dishes that for some reason I only make for special occasions. I am not sure why, because it really isn’t that hard and it freezes beautifully too which makes it perfect for meal prepping. I came up with the recipe a few years ago when I got a hankering for lasagna and the result was out of this world. It's layered with flavor and I even lightened it up just slightly so you can feel a little better about lasagna night at your house any weekday! My spinach and beef lasagna is sure to delight the bellies of all your family and friends and it will soon become one of your favorite pasta recipes to make guaranteed.

While this spinach and beef lasagna is easy enough to make any weeknight, especially if you prep the sauce ahead of time, it’s also a great idea to make for any holiday entertaining you might be hosting! You could easily serve this as your Christmas dinner or for a New Year’s bash.  You can literally prep the whole lasagna ahead of time and then just pop it in the oven right before dinner and you can be stress free for your dinner party. After all, no one wants to be stressing out in the kitchen with hungry people waiting and this way you look like a rock star with not a hair out of place.

Could you make it vegetarian you might ask? Absolutely, just omit the beef and sausage and use mushrooms or just double the spinach!

Can you make this gluten free? Yep, just swap the regular noodles for gluten free lasagna noodles and you are good to go!

This spinach and beef lasagna is comfort food at it's best.  Every bite gives me all the warm and fuzzy feelings and it goes right along with the holiday season so perfectly. I can’t wait for you to give this one a try!

Ingredients:

Sauce-

  • 1 LB Extra Lean Ground Beef

  • 1 LB Hot Italian Sausage (you can use mild if you aren't big on spice)

  • 1, 28 oz. Can of Crushed Tomatoes

  • 1 Cup Red Wine

  • 2 Carrots, finely chopped

  • 1 Onion, finely chopped

  • 4 Cloves Garlic, minced

  • 1/4 Cup Chopped Fresh Parsley

  • 1/4 Cup Fresh Basil

  • Salt and Pepper

Cheese Filling-

  • 16 oz. Ricotta Cheese

  • 1 Cup Cottage Cheese

  • 1 Cup Grated Parmesan Cheese

  • 2 Eggs

  • Salt and Pepper

Other-

  • Lasagna Noodles (about 3/4 of the box)

  • 2 Boxes of Frozen Spinach or Fresh Spinach

  • 8 Slices Mozzarella Cheese

Directions:

  • Make the sauce by browning the beef and the sausage in a large skillet over medium high heat, seasoning with salt and pepper until browned and cooked through.

  • Add in onions, carrots, and garlic at this time and season again with salt and pepper and continue to cook for another 2-3 minutes until veggies start to get tender.

  • At this time add the wine and the tomatoes to the meat and veggies to deglaze the pan and then season with salt, pepper, parsley, and basil. Reduce heat and cook for 5-7 minutes until flavors have combined. Let simmer at least another 15 minutes and then turn off the heat. (This part can be done a day in advance.)

  • Meanwhile, bring a large pasta pot full of water to a boil.  When water is boiling, salt pasta water liberally and add lasagna noodles.  Cook about 8 minutes to get desired consistency.  Drain noodles and spray with olive oil spray and place onto a baking sheet to avoid sticking.

  • The next step is to mix all cheeses, except the sliced mozzarella together in a bowl with eggs, salt, and pepper and stir until combined thoroughly.

  • Defrost spinach and squeeze out all of the excess moisture.

  • Layer a few ladles full of the meat sauce on the bottom of a 9 x 13 baking dish. Then layer noodles, more meat sauce, the cheese mixture, and spread spinach over cheese. Repeat these steps until the casserole dish is full.

  • Top off with a little more sauce, and then finished by covering with sliced mozzarella cheese.

  • Bake at 350 degrees for about 45 minutes to an hour until sauce is bubbly and the cheese is golden on top.

Tell me you are going to make this...you have to make this!  And when you do invite me over.  I’ll bring the wine.