Spinach Lasagna

Preparation

1. Step 1

   Prepare: 1 recipe Fresh Pasta (page 89), 2 cups Simple Tomato Sauce (page 264), 1 1/2 cups White Sauce (Béchamel Sauce; page 225).

   Step 2

   Remove the large stems from: 1 bunch of spinach (about 1/2 pound).

   Step 3

   Wash well and drain.

   Step 4

   Pour into a skillet over medium heat: 1 teaspoon olive oil.

   Step 5

   Add the spinach and season with: Salt.

   Step 6

   Cook until almost wilted. Add: 1 garlic clove, peeled and chopped fine.

   Step 7

   Cook for a minute or two more. Set aside to cool. Gather the spinach into a ball, squeeze to remove excess moisture, and chop fine. Mix with: 1/2 pound ricotta cheese, 1 tablespoon olive oil, Salt.

   Step 8

   In a bowl combine the white sauce with: 1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese, A pinch of grated nutmeg, Salt.

   Step 9

   Roll out the pasta into 5- to 6-inch-long sheets. Cook al dente in abundant salted boiling water. Drain, rinse under cold water, drain again, and put in a bowl. To prevent the lasagne from sticking to one another, lightly coat them with: 1 tablespoon olive oil.

   Step 10

   Oil a 10- by 12-inch baking dish, and begin to assemble the lasagna. Spread a few spoonfuls of the white sauce on the bottom of the dish. Lay out a single layer of pasta, trimming as needed to fit the dish, and spread with a third of the ricotta mixture. Add another layer of pasta and spoon in half of the tomato sauce. Add another layer of pasta and pour over half the white sauce and top with another layer of pasta. Repeat until you have 7 pasta layers—3 with ricotta, 2 with tomato sauce, and 2 with white sauce—and end with a final top layer of pasta. Drizzle olive oil over the top, cover with foil, and bake in a 400°F oven for 20 minutes. Remove the foil and sprinkle with: 2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan cheese.

   Step 11

   Bake for 10 to 15 minutes more, until bubbling and golden brown. Remove from the oven and allow to rest for 5 minutes before serving. Lasagna can be assembled ahead of time and baked later. Take it out of the refrigerator an hour before baking.

2. Variations

   Step 12

   Substitute Bolognese Sauce (page 227) or Mushroom Ragù (page 228) for the tomato sauce.

   Step 13

   For the spinach, substitute other greens, such as chard, escarole, or rocket.

   Step 14

   Add sliced mozzarella to the ricotta layers.

   Step 15

   In summer, substitute slices of ripe tomatoes for the tomato sauce. Stir pesto instead of spinach into the ricotta.

   Step 16

   A simpler lasagna-like baked pasta can be made by cutting the pasta into big squares and cooking as above. Spoon some tomato sauce on the bottom of a baking dish, place a square of pasta on the sauce, add some ricotta and Parmesan cheese, and fold the pasta over to form a triangle shape. Repeat with more squares of pasta, overlapping the triangles; top with more sauce; sprinkle generously with Parmesan; and bake for 15 to 20 minutes in a 450°F oven until bubbly and crisp at the edges.