Portabella Mushroom With Spinach and Feta Lasagna (Vegetarian)

Kittencalskitchen's Note:

This is a wonderful vegetarian dish! If desired, regular mushrooms may be substituted for the portabellos, but the regular mushrooms should be sautéed first to release any moisture, To make things easier, you may Classico pasta sauce for this recipe or just use your own favorite sauce --- prep time includes boiling the pasta.

• Total Time: 1 hrs 10 mins
• Prep Time: 40 mins
• Cook Time: 30 mins

Ingredients:

Servings: 8

• 9 -10 lasagna noodles, uncooked
• 1 (14 ounce) can diced tomatoes with juice, undrained (Italian style is okay)
• 1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce
• 1 (6 ounce) can tomato paste
• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar (optional)
• 1 tablespoon dried basil
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/2-1 teaspoon garlic powder
• salt and pepper
• 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese, divided (more if desired)
• 1 cup feta cheese, crumbled (more if desired)
• 1 (10 ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
• 1 egg, slightly beaten
• 1/2-1 lb portabella mushroom, cut into 1/4 inch thick slices

Directions:

1. Set oven to 350 degrees.
2. Grease a 13 x 9-inch baking dish.
3. Cook the lasagna noodles until soft.
4. Meanwhile in a saucepan, stir together the tomatoes (with juice), tomato sauce, tomato paste, vinegar and seasonings; heat till a medium boil; reduce the heat, cover, and simmer for 20-25 minutes.
5. in a medium bowl, stir together 1-1/2 cups mozzarella cheese, feta cheese, spinach and the egg.
6. In the bottom of the prepared baking dish, spread 1/3 of the sauce on the bottom.
7. Layer 3 pieces of cooked lasagna noodles on top of the sauce.
8. Then 1/2 of the cheese mixture.
9. Then 1/2 of the sliced mushrooms.
10. Then another 1/3 of the sauce; repeat.
11. Top with the remaining pasta, then the balance of the sauce and then mozzarella cheese.
12. Cover with foil; bake for 25 minutes, uncover, and bake for 5-7 minutes longer, or until the cheese melts.

Reviews

[Nikoma]

This was very very good! I used 4 large mushroom caps which was perfect. Made the sauce exactly as written and liked it very much. I hold off on the 5th star because I didn't have enough sauce. I topped with 1/2 another can of diced tomatoes. I also used closer to 1 3/4 cup feta and 3 cups mozzarella. The cheese still wasn't truly noticeable. Everything melded so well! Spinach hating Fiance scarfed it down like crazy, as did I. This is a keeper with a couple small modifications! Try it!

[kelsharitt]

Wonderful! This doesn't taste like anything vegetarian that I would expect - it tastes great! As another layer to my lasagna I add provencal roasted olives (seasoned of course) and the combination beats any real-meat lasagna I've had in a restaurant.

[The Wallaces]

Absolutely perfect blend of flavors! This is my new favorite lasagna, the sauce is definitely worth the extra effort and is what makes this dish truly special. I have also added 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper to the sauce when I am in the mood for a little heat, but it is excellent without it too. Whole wheat lasagna noodles worked very well with this. Thanks for posting!