Entrée – Pasta
Sausage, Mushroom & Spinach Lasagna

This recipe was featured on "You're the Chef" episode #209. Buy this episode from WVIA.

Yield: eight dinner portions

Ingredients:

Step 1 - Sausage
2 lb.	Italian sausage links, boiled, skinned, browned and sliced
Step 2 - Vegetables
12 oz.	sliced mushrooms (button or crimini)
(2) 10 oz.	packages of spinach, trimmed
1/4 c.	olive oil
1 Tbsp.	fresh chopped garlic
Step 3 - Cheese Filling
2 lb.	Ricotta cheese
2 each	large eggs
1 c.	grated Parmesan cheese
1 Tbsp.	dried parsley flakes
1 tsp.	dried basil leaf
1 tsp.	dried oregano
1/2 tsp.	ground black pepper
1/2 tsp.	seasoning salt
Step 4 - Lasagna
(3) 1 qt.	jars of prepared spaghetti sauce
(3) 12 oz.	bags of shredded Mozzarella cheese
1 each	box lasagna noodles

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Step 1 - Sausage procedure:
Prepare the sausage and refrigerate until ready to assemble.

Step 2 - Vegetables procedure:
Sauté the mushrooms and garlic in the olive oil over high heat until they brown lightly. Add the spinach to the same pan with the mushrooms and cover with a lid. The steam from the mushrooms will wilt the spinach. After about 1 minute, stir the mushrooms and spinach together. Remove to a flat baking tray to cool quickly.

Step 3 - Cheese Filling procedure:
Combine the Ricotta, eggs, Parmesan, dried herbs, seasoning salt and pepper completely. Refrigerate until assembly.

Step 4 - Lasagna procedure:
Using a large deep-sided casserole or lasagna pan, assemble the lasagna (the noodles do not need to be pre-cooked) in this manner:

Spray the pan with no-stick spray; pour in and spread 1/2 jar of spaghetti sauce; lay in a layer of noodles, carefully trying to cover the bottom without too much overlap (some seams are inevitable and considered OK).

Layer in the spinach and mushrooms; top with a layer of noodles; top with the remaining 1/2 jar of sauce.

Lay the sliced sausage on top; sprinkle one bag of Mozzarella cheese on the sausage. Lay in a layer of noodles.

Top with the Ricotta cheese, spread evenly over the noodles. Top with a final layer of noodles and pour another 1/2 jar of sauce over the noodles, spreading the sauce to cover the noodles.

Cover the pan with aluminum foil and bake at 325°F for about 2 hours, or until the noodles have plumped and softened.

Remove from the oven. At service, top with the remaining Mozzarella cheese and return to the oven for about 15 minutes at 400°F so that the cheese will melt and brown. Serve portions with the remaining sauce and your favorite grated cheese.