Spinach and Ricotta

📝 Ingredients

• 1 box Divella oven ready lasagne 18 sheets
• Salt and pepper Salt pepper Salt pepper (check seasoning for every part of the dish )
• Olive oil enough to drizzle 6-8 Tbls
• 4 Aubergines sliced into 1.5cm rounds
• 600 g spinach washed, stalks removed, steamed and squeezed (I like swiss chard )
• 250 g portobello mushrooms
• 4 cloves grated garlic
• 250 g ricotta (use feta if you can't find ricotta)
• 50 g grated grana padano or Parmesan
• 4 Sprigs of fresh origanum
• 4 Sprigs of Basil
• 1/2 cup chopped spring onion stems
• 2 cooked chicken breasts chopped (optional)
• 1 tin Woolworths chopped tomatoes
• 2Tbls tomato paste
• 1 Tbls dried origanum
• Pinch of sugar (optional - used to cut acidity in tomatoes and enhance their flavour)
• 1 L full cream milk
• 100 g butter
• 100 g flour
• 1 egg
• Grated nutmeg
• Extra grated Parmesan or grana padano

👨‍🍳 Instructions

1. 1--- Oven on to 220°C then turn down to 180º C to bake ---
2. 2Salt the aubergines and leave to drain in a colander for 30min
3. 3Peel and slice mushrooms spread onto baking paper on a baking tray. Salt pepper drizzle olive oil bake for 15min stir half way though. Remove set aside until ready
4. 4Get the spinach prepped
5. 5Spread aubergines in a single layer on same baking tray lined with baking paper. Drizzle with olive oil and bake for 25 min until golden brown. Set aside until ready to assemble. Turn oven down to 180°C While aubergines are baking get onto spinach mix
6. 6In a separate bowl add the chopped prepared spinach along with salt and pepper and about 10 grated scrapes of whole nutmeg. (Or 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg) Add the ricotta and Parmesan. Mix together properly. Taste to ensure you have seasoned it correctly. Add the chopped origanum, basil and spring onion to the mix. Set aside until ready to assemble
7. 7Now for the white bechamel sauce and tomato sauce
8. 8In a small sauce pan add the tomato, tomato paste,salt, pepper, sugar and origanum. Gentle cook in the background while you get started on the bechamel sauce
9. 9In a sauce pan add the butter and place on medium heat to melt. Once melted, add the flour and stir to ensure no lumps form. I use a wooden spoon for this task. Cook for about 2 minutes to form a roux. Add the milk and now use a whisk to vigorously mix, again making sure the sauce is smooth and silky. Don’t go off and do something else. Anyone who is successful at making sauces will tell you to focus on only this task. The sauce will thicken. Taste it to ensure you can’t taste the raw flour. If you can detect a flour taste continue to cook. Add Salt and Pepper to taste. In a separate jug whisk the egg. Now add 1 tbls of thickened sauce to the egg to temper the egg. Add another 2-3 Tbls one at a time to the egg mix ensuring it doesn’t turn into scrambled eggs by stirring all the while. This mix then gets poured back into the white sauce mix slowly while whisking continuously. Cook until the egg is cooked into the sauce like a custard. Grate whole nutmeg into sauce to taste.
10. 10Gather all your prepared ingredients around the lasagna dish.
11. 11Start with a thin coating of white sauce and a few tbls of tomato sauce on the base of the dish spreading as mixing to swirl the sauces together. Now lay 6 sheets in a single layer on top of that.
12. 12Add more bechamel and tomato sauce again spread and swirl together over the Spread a layer of aubergine Sprinkle half the chicken Spread half the spinach Cover with 6 lasagne sheets
13. 13Repeat the next layer the same as the previous ending with the bechamel on top. Sprinkle the cooked mushrooms pressing into the sauce. Finally grate over Parmesan. Cover with foil and bake at 180°C for 30 minutes
14. 14Uncover bake for a further 30min
15. 15Serve with salad and crispy bread
16. 16Serves 8-10 people (My family 6-8 portions)