Spinach and Mushroom Lasagna

With the days being colder and  much shorter now, I begin my baked dinner season.  The best time of the year to bake dinner in your oven I think.  When you are craving comfort foods to warm you up from the inside out, that is what I call the baked dinner season.  I always make lasagna at least twice during the colder months. And this recipe here, is my most favorite way to have lasagna.  I love to use loads and loads of the very best cheeses heavily throughout it.  And I do think that the spinach and the mushrooms go perfectly inside and still keep it hearty without adding in any meat.  Only to be enhanced by a deeply rich red sauce, that brightens up your taste buds.   

2 T. of extra virgin olive oil
1/2 a carton of whole white mushrooms (sliced and chopped)
1 large clove of garlic (minced)

sea salt and fresh cracked pepper

1- 26oz. jar of spaghetti sauce (I used Prego Traditional)

1- 14 1/2oz. can of sliced Italian stewed tomatoes (undrained)
1- 15oz. tub of whole milk riccota cheese
1 large egg
a rounded 1/4 cup of fresh grated Parmesan cheese
1 lb. of frozen chopped spinach (thawed and drained)
4 cups of shredded mozzarella cheese (divided)

1 box of no-boil lasagna noodles (9 to be exact)

-Preheat your oven to 375*.  Warm up the e.v.o. in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat.  Once the pan and oil are good and hot, toss in your mushrooms with a good sprinkling of the salt and pepper.  Saute for about 2 minutes, while continuely stirring, then add in the garlic.  Once you can begin to smell the garlic (about 20-30 sec's) slowly pour in the spaghetti sauce and the stewed tomatoes (use your wooden spoon to chop up the tomatoes in the pan).  Bring this to a good boil, then remove from heat and set to the side.   Now for the filling, in a medium mixing bowl, combine the riccota cheese, egg, Parmesan cheese and a handful of the shredded mozzarella.  Now you are ready to assemble the lasagna.  Start by spreading out about a 1/4 cup of the sauce (I kept the mushrooms and tomatoes from getting into my ladle-so it was a basically just a light layer of the sauce) down in the bottom of a 9x13" baking dish (this will keep it from sticking to the bottom of the pan) and a light layer of the spinach right over that.  Next, lay 3 of the no-boil noodles width wise across and spread with a light layer of the filling.  Follow with a light layer of the sauce, another light layer of spinach and then a heavy handful of the shredded mozzarella cheese.  Repeat these layers again two more times ending the top with the remaining mozzarella cheese.  So, in case I am explaining it incorrectly, my layers go, sauce, spinach, noodles, filling, sauce, spinach, mozzarella, noodles, filling, sauce, spinach, mozzarella, noodles, filling, sauce, spinach and last mozzarella.  Bake at 375* for 30-35 minutes or until the cheese on top is melted and begins to brown lightly.  Serves 6.  Enjoy!