Chunky Vegetable Lasagna

From Seattle's take out shop "Pasta by Request" this is my all-time favorite recipe! It raised $100 dollars for our school's Silent Auction (along with salad and cheesecake). It has a chunky vegetable red sauce and a creamy Parmesan white sauce. It uses feta and mozzarella cheeses. It is very elegant but a real comfort dish. Cut leftovers into squares; freezes great already baked (cut into squares and put in Ziplock freezer bags) or unbaked! Recipe requires Veggie Marinara Sauce. It makes it pretty easy if you make the red sauce the day before and use no-boil noodles.

• Ready In: 1 hr 40 mins
• Serves: 8-10

Ingredients

• SAUCE

• 6  cups  giardiniera, sauce Veggie Marinara Sauce (for Pasta)
• 1⁄4 cup tomato paste

• CHEESE

• 2⁄3 cup feta cheese, crumbled
• 3 1⁄3 cups mozzarella cheese, grated

• BECHAMEL

• 1 1⁄2 cups milk
• 1  cup  cream or 1  cup half-and-half
• 1  pinch white pepper
• 1  pinch thyme
• 1  pinch nutmeg
• 1  pinch basil
• 3  tablespoons butter
• 1⁄3 cup flour, plus
• 1  tablespoon flour
• 1⁄3 cup parmesan cheese, plus
• 1  tablespoon parmesan cheese
• 3  tablespoons romano cheese

• NOODLES

• 12  cooked noodles

• TOPPING

• 1⁄4 cup  unseasoned breadcrumbs
• 2  tablespoons parmesan cheese
• 1  teaspoon  very finely chopped parsley

Directions

1. Mix together mozzarella and feta cheeses and set aside.
2. To make bechamel sauce:heat milk, cream, and spices together in microwave safe bowl and heat until near boil.
3. Melt butter in large saucepan.
4. Add flour and cook for 2 minutes on medium-low heat.
5. Gradually stir in hot milk and cream mixture.
6. Raise heat to medium-high and continue stirring until mixture is smooth and thick, about 5 minutes.
7. Add Parmesan and Romano cheeses and whisk until smooth.
8. To make topping: mix together bread crumbs, Parmesan, and parsley.
9. TO ASSEMBLE AND BAKE:
10. Preheat oven to 400°F.
11. Spread 3 tablespoons of the Giardiniera Sauce in bottom of 9x13 pan.
12. Put in one layer of lasagna noodles.
13. Spoon on 3 cups of sauce.
14. Spread a scant cup of the bechamel across the sauce in two diagonals (no need to spread evenly at this point).
15. Top with 2 cups of cheese mixture.
16. Lay on another layer of lasagna noodles and repeat, using same amounts of sauce, bechamel, and cheese.
17. Top with last layer of noodles, and with fingertips, press lightly to distribute bechamel smoothly in the layers (use every bit of white sauce in pan).
18. Using long narrow metal spatula, "frost" top layer of noodles with remaining bechamel.
19. Be sure to completely cover noodles so that they do not dry out in baking.
20. Sprinkle evenly with bread crumb mixture.
21. Bake lasagna at 400°F for about 60 minutes or until sauce bubble around the edges and top is nicely browned.
22. If top browns too quickly, cover with foil.
23. If baking lasagna straight from the freezer, add about 20 minutes to cooking time.
24. Once out of oven, let lasagna set up for about 20 minutes before cutting.
25. Serves 8-10.