Ricotta Spinach Lasagna

I had a packet of Ricotta lying in my fridge. I had initially bought it for making an Indian sweet, but the amount was too much, so my hubby asked me to make something Italian with it. I did not like the idea of making pasta with it, but then one day I felt like making something with frozen spinach...and thought of "......ricotta?" I knew a recipe of ricotta and spinach, Ravioli, but neither had the time to start making this time consuming recipe nor the motivation. "Hmmm.......... A lasagna?......A spinach ricotta lasagna?? YES!!"
I'm sure all those cooking regularly know what I am talking about. Once you start using an ingredient, know its smell, texture, taste, you get more an more flexible with how to use it without having to look for recipes.

Ingredients:

Filling:
450 g frozen spinach (4 pieces of Iglo spinach)
200 g Ricotta cheese
1/2 tsp vegetable stock
1 pinch black pepper
1 pinch chilli powder
1 tsp dijon mustard
1-2 large tomatoes, chopped
1 large clove garlic, sliced
1 large onion, finely chopped
salt to taste (if required)

Sauce:
1 heaped tbsp all purpose wheat flour (type 405 or 550)
2 tbsp rape seed oil (or butter)
20-30 g Parmesan, grated
200 ml milk
50 ml cream
100 ml water
1 tsp vegetable stock
salt, to taste (if required)

8 lasagne plates (not requiring any precooking)
1-2 tbsp breadcrumbs (optional)
5-6 thin slices of goat cheese (optional)
a bunch Basil leaves, washed and chopped












Method:

• Thaw the spinach in a bowl, covered, in the microwave with a tsp of water
• Or : in a saucepan on the cooktop with 1/4 cup water on low heat and discard the water left after thawing
  
• Stir together ricotta, mustard, vegetable stock, chilli and pepper
• Chop the tomatoes into small cubes, mix with spinach and ricotta cream
• For the sauce heat the oil in a saucepan, add flour and keep stirring till frothy and starts smelling good.
• Take the saucepan from cooktop and add milk while quickly stirring with a whisk.
• Put back on cooktop and cook while stirring regularly. Once it starts cooking, stir with a whisk constantly, reduce heat, add cream, vegetable stock and water.
• Cook for further 2-3 minutes, add parmesan and switch off the heat
• Wet lasagne noodle sheets with water
• Spread some sauce on the base of a porcelain baking dish (approx. size 30 cm x 20 cm) and then place two lasagne plates next to each other. Spread the ricotta-spinach filling over it and a few tablespoons of the sauce.
• Put the next layer of wet lasagne plates, the ricotta-spinach and the sauce and repeat the steps with the third layer.
• Cover with the last two sheets of lasagne, pour the rest of the sauce over it, sprinkle breadcrumbs and put some slices of goat cheese on top and bake in the oven at 180 °C convection oven for 30 minutes (200°C electric)
• Serve garnished with chopped basil

Tip:
I use a dried vegetable stock without any kinds of flavours, aromas, emulsifiers, binding agents, flavour enhancers, i.e., no Maggie and Knorr for me. I have used them before, whenever the recipe called for it and was always irritated with these totally displeasing Maggie/ Knorr taste in the food. Until I discovered that organic vegetable stocks can be a thousand times better substitutes. And that brings a world of difference in the flavour - it also tastes thousand times better, in my opinion.
You'll also find the recipe at the blog : The back burner

Spaghetti with spinach

This is an easy and quick recipe which I made today after coming back from a local 3 day festival, where we had gone to after breakfast. Since it was already half past one in the afternoon, I had to think up of something quick. I had to come back home as my son wasn't feeling so well , partly because it was too hot. So, nobody was in a mood to eat the snacks which were being offered there- crepe, grilled stuff and hotdogs (I don't eat them in any case) ans things like that. And this is what I made at home and was appreciated by both of my "boys"- my hubby and my son.

For 3-4 persons
Preparation time: 20 minutes
Cooking time: 20-25 minutes

Ingriedients:
300 g whole wheat spaghetti
300 g frozen spinach
100 g cooked shrimps
1/2 each of yellow and red bellpeppers, diced
1/3 tin of chopped tomatoes or 1 large fresh tomato, chopped
1 tsp thyme leaves, fresh
1 large piece (4-5 cm) parmesan (4-5 tbsp)
1 tbsp saurcream (schmand)
1 1/2 tsp, heaped, vegetable stock (powder)
2-3 tbsp olive oil
salt to taste
1-2 tbsp finely chopped parsely


Method:

• Cook spaghetti for 8-10 minutes in boiling water with some salt till done (al dente).
• Thaw the spinach in the microwave with 2 tbsp of water in a bowl (6 -7 min.)
  
• or heat in a pot with little water on the cooktop.
• Dice the bellpeppers and tomatoes
  
• Sauté the shrimps quickly on high heat in 1 tbsp of olive oil with a pinch of salt and take them out befre they get too dry. If using fresh (uncooked) shrimps, then cook for longer till they get their pinkish red colour and curl up.
• Saute the bellpepers in 1 tbsp oilve oil on high heat
  
• add spinach, stir and reduce heat to medium
• add chopped tomatoes, thyme and the vegetable stock and stir.
  
• Cook further for two minutes and add the cooked spaghetti, stir.
• Add 1 tbsp saurcream and 1 tbsp of oilveoil and mix.
• Grate parmesan over it and mix.
• Garnish with a tablespoon grated parmesan and the parsely and serve