A traditional white lasagna layered with sauteed spinach, ricotta cheese, and a creamy bechamel sauce. Truly a wonderful and special lasagna that would be a great Italian centerpiece dish for any occasion.
8 ouncesgruyere cheese, or similar, grated, divided
2ouncesparmesan cheese, grated
Ricotta Mixture:
1 ½poundsfresh spinach, rinsed and dried
2tablespoons olive oil
1largeshallot, minced
½teaspoonkosher salt
2poundsricotta cheese
2largeeggs
Bechamel Sauce:
4tablespoonsunsalted butter
4tablespoonsall-purpose flour
3 ½ - 4cupswhole milk
½teaspoongrated nutmeg
Salt and pepper, to taste
Instructions
For Ricotta Mixture:
Rinse spinach leaves well and dry. Trim off any long stems, but some stems are fine.
In a large skillet over medium heat, add olive oil and shallot and cook for a few minutes until shallot softened. Add all the fresh spinach and cook until spinach is wilted and dry (not still releasing water), about 6-7 minutes.
Remove spinach from heat and let cool. Add to a colander and press with a few paper towels to remove more water.
In a food processor, add half of the ricotta mixture, the eggs, and a pinch of salt and pulse until smooth. Scoop out ricotta mixture into a large bowl with remainder of the ricotta cheese (un-processed).
Add spinach to the food processor and pulse until chopped. Stir the chopped spinach mixture into the ricotta mixture. Set aside.
For Bechamel Sauce:
In a medium pot over medium heat, melt butter and whisk in flour. Cook until it turns a light tan color making a roux.
Slowly whisk in the milk in 1 cup batches, waiting for the mixture to thicken before adding more. When all the milk is in and the sauce is the consistency of a light gravy, whisk in half of the cheeses and the nutmeg and set aside.
For noodles:
If you are using no-cook lasagna noodles, you do not have to cook them before using them, but I like to blanch them in salted water so they expand a bit and it ensures your lasagna has the right texture and consistency.
You can also use fresh lasagna noodles if you want to make fresh pasta.
For Spinach Lasagna:
Preheat oven to 400˚F. In a 9x13 baking dish, spoon in about 1/2 cup of the bechamel sauce and add a layer of lasagna noodles. Top with a thin layer of the spinach ricotta mixture and a thin layer of bechamel sauce. Sprinkle sparingly with cheeses.
Repeat this layering (noodles, spinach mixture, bechamel sauce, cheese) until you use up all the noodles. You should get 6-7 layers of lasagna. Top the lasagna with the last of the sauces and the cheese.
Cover the lasagna with foil and bake for 20 minutes. Then remove foil and bake for an additional 20-25 minutes until lasagna is puffed and cooked through.
Let lasagna rest for 10 minutes before slicing and serving.