Ricotta, Spinach, and Mushroom Lasagna
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil, plus more for greasing the skillet
- 8 ounces white mushrooms, sliced
- 1 clove garlic, cut in half and crushed
- 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves, chopped, or ¼ teaspoon dried thyme
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1 (10-ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed
- 1 cup ricotta
- 1 large egg
- 3 cups marinara sauce (Store-bought or homemade)
- 4 ounces no-boil lasagna noodles
- 2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350°F with one rack in the middle. Preheat the skillet over medium heat for 2 minutes.
Add the olive oil to the skillet, allow it to heat 1 minute, then add the mushrooms, garlic, thyme, ¼ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the mushrooms soften, about 10 minutes. Taste to check for seasoning and add salt and pepper as necessary. Remove and discard the garlic. Pour the mushrooms and any liquid into a bowl and set aside.
In a medium-size bowl, combine the spinach with the ricotta, egg, ¼ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper.
Rub a coating of olive oil on the skillet and then layer the ingredients in this order:
- ¾ cup of the ricotta mixture
- 1 cup of the marinara sauce
- half of the mushrooms and their liquid
- half of the noodles (break the noodles if necessary to cover the whole skillet)
- ¾ cup of the ricotta mixture
- 1 cup of the marinara sauce
- the remaining mushrooms and any liquid
- the remaining noodles
- the remaining ricotta mixture
- the remaining marinara sauce
Sprinkle the Parmesan evenly across the top of the lasagna. Cover the skillet tightly with aluminum foil and place in the oven.
Bake until the mixture is bubbling and the lasagna noodles are tender, about 45 minutes.
Remove the skillet from the oven and transfer it to a rack to cool slightly, about 10 minutes, before serving hot. Leftovers can be refrigerated in a covered container for up to 2 days.
"Will It Skillet?" — my follow-up to "Will It Waffle?" that takes a new look at cooking in cast iron — is now for sale.
Yes, I've gone from waffle iron to cast iron.
The book has been more than two years in the making. Lest that sound like some sort of epic struggle, let me clarify that what we're really talking about here is me making and eating a lot of chocolate cake. For the book. Mostly.
Oh, and giant cinnamon rolls.
And apricot upside-down cake.
And lasagna.
And giant chocolate chip cookies.
And 48 other things. (Incidentally, the book is not mostly dessert, but evidently right now my brain is.)
Some of the people reading this blog have been following my projects for a long time and I'm very grateful for that. Thank you. The people who bought and supported "Will It Waffle?" are why and how "Will It Skillet?" came to be.
Take a look at the video for Ricotta, Spinach, and Mushroom Lasagna above and the recipe below. You might not think to make lasagna with rectangle noodles in a round pan — or to make lasagna in cast iron at all — but that's why the recipe fits so well in "Will It Skillet?"
The best feedback I've received from "Will It Waffle?" has been people telling me that it helped get people into the kitchen and around the table together. I hope "Will It Skillet?" causes you to look at cast iron in a new light and I really hope that you enjoy it.
