Meatless Friday: Roasted Vegetarian Lasagna with Creamy Mushroom Sauce

Barbara Stein shares a meatless lasagna dish festive enough to serve during the holiday season.

At this time of the year, there is a good chance you might need a recipe for a dish to serve at a festive dinner on a Friday. There is no reason why a meatless meal cannot be an extraordinary meal, and this dish is a great example.

I made this dish originally because my niece is a vegetarian and it was Christmas Eve (it was not a Friday), but it’s a great dish to have in one’s recipe box for a Friday when something a little more special is required.

I originally found this recipe in a Family Circle magazine. It was really very good, and even though I made a meat dish on that Christmas Eve, most of my company had a little of both. It's not exactly low in fat, but it's probably lower than beef and cheese lasagna. And with the vegetables, it probably has greater nutritional value.

I modified the recipe just a little bit, and mine is below. It's a little complicated, but then, if you've made meat and sauce lasagna, it can be long and involved, too. Nothing is too tough, just a little involved. The only step that gave me trouble was the mushroom sauce. I had a hard time getting it seasoned the way I wanted. The dish gets most of its flavor from this sauce, so make sure it tastes good. Mine needed a lot of salt to get there. A dash of garlic powder, too. Just taste and season as you go. When you are satisfied, then it’s finished.

Roasted Vegetable Lasagna

Serves 8

Ingredients:

• 2 medium-sized zucchini, trimmed and cut into 1/4-inch coins
• 2 medium-sized yellow squash, trimmed and cut into 1/4-inch coins
• 1 large sweet red pepper, seeded and cut into 1/2-inch slices
• 1 large red onion, trimmed and cut into 1-inch wedges
• 3 T. vegetable oil (olive or other)
• 1 t. salt
• 1 t. black pepper
• 8 oz. white mushrooms, cleaned and quartered
• 1 T. olive oil
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 T. butter
• 2 T. flour
• 2-3/4 c. milk
• Salt and pepper, to taste
• Dash garlic powder (or more, to taste)
• 1/4 c. minced fresh parsley
• 2 T. minced fresh basil
• 12 dried lasagna noodles
• 6 oz. Fontina cheese, shredded
• 2/3 c. grated Parmesan cheese
• 8 oz. shredded mozzarella

Instructions:

Heat oven to 425 degrees F. Coat 2 large rimmed baking sheets with vegetable oil.

Place zucchini, squash, red pepper and onion in a bowl and toss with 2 T. vegetable oil. Spread in a single layer on the prepared baking sheets. Sprinkle vegetables with 1/2 teaspoon each of the salt and pepper. Roast at 425 degrees for 30 minutes, stirring halfway through, or until edges are browned. Remove from oven and transfer vegetables to a bowl.

Pulse mushrooms in a food processor until finely chopped. Heat olive oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add mushrooms to skillet. Cook, stirring, for 6 minutes or until all liquid has evaporated. Reduce heat to medium; stir in garlic and remaining 1/2 teaspoon each salt and pepper; continue to cook 1 minute.

Add butter to skillet with mushrooms and cook until melted. Add flour and cook 1 minute, stirring. Add milk to skillet and increase heat to medium-high. Bring mixture to a boil. Reduce heat to medium and simmer for 8 to 10 minutes or until thickened, stirring occasionally. Remove skillet from heat and stir in the salt, pepper, garlic powder, parsley and the basil. Taste, and season to taste.

Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook noodles according to package instructions, about 9 minutes. Drain, rinse with cold water and set aside.

Coat a 13 x 9 x 2-inch baking dish with nonstick cooking spray. Mix together Fontina and Parmesan.

Spread 1/2 cup mushroom sauce into bottom of baking dish, then place 3 noodles in dish. Pour another 1/2 cup sauce over noodles, then sprinkle 1/3 of the vegetables and 1/3 of the cheese mixture over sauce. Repeat layering twice. Top with three noodles, pour the rest of the sauce over top and sprinkle with the mozzarella cheese.

Cover dish with nonstick aluminum foil and bake at 425 degrees for 20 minutes. Raise heat to 500 degrees, Remove foil and cook for another 12 minutes or until browned. Let stand 15 minutes before serving. Makes 8 servings.

I hope that this recipe can be a special part of your holiday celebrations — there are several Fridays in the 12 Days of Christmas! Do you celebrate all twelve days with special dinners?

Copyright 2013 Barbara Stein