What's Stewing?:: Spinach & Sweet Red Pepper Lasagna

Oh my goodness this was the best veggie lasagna I've ever eaten! My husband loved it so much he said he wanted to eat it again the next night for dinner. This picture does not do it justice since it just looks like a gooey mess of cheese and sauce but it's really all about the taste, right? And it is soooo good! It's so good I'm even eating it for lunch while I'm writing this post. Ok enough raving and onto the recipe...

Ingredients::
100% whole wheat lasagna noodles
1/2 bag frozen spinach
1 14 oz. container of ricotta
1 egg
2-3 TBSP extra virgin olive oil
1 TBSP minced garlic
1/2 medium brown onion
1 red pepper
1/2 jar of pasta sauce
1 can tomato paste

1 can diced tomatoes

1 TBSP red wine vinegar

1 TBSP parsley
1 tsp oregano
1 tsp basil
1 bay leaf
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup shredded mozzarella

Here's how I made it::
1. Cook and drain 9-12 lasagna noodles. Lay out to dry.
2. Prepare filling. Defrost and squeeze out as much water as you can from frozen spinach. Then, lightly scramble egg in bottom of large mixing bowl. Add ricotta and stir with fork so the ricotta breaks up and gets creamy. Incorporate spinach making sure it breaks apart and combines evenly in mixture.
3. Cook sauce. Heat olive oil and garlic in sauce pan on medium heat. Add diced onion and peppers. Saute until lightly cooked. Add pasta sauce, tomato paste, diced tomatoes with juice, red wine vinegar and the rest of the seasonings. Simmer covered for 20 minutes on low heat. Remove bay leaf.
4. Layer your lasagna. Lightly oil 13 x 9 inch baking dish or similar size baking dish. Lay three noodles on the bottom of oiled pan. Smooth 1/3 of ricotta filling over noodles - about half an inch thick. Spoon 1/3 of sauce over filling. Add next layer of 3 noodles, layer of filling and layer of sauce. Add top layer of noodles (or another layer of noodles, filling and sauce if your dish is deep enough). Spoon remaining sauce on top.
5. Bake at 350 for 25 minutes covered with aluminum foil. Sprinkle top with mozzarella and back uncovered for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and let stand 10 minutes before serving.

Enjoy!