Lasagne

Sauce, noodles, cheese...sauce, noodles, cheese...sauce, noodles, cheese. Making lasagne is really that easy. No pre-boiling the noodles. No sauce making. Just have the few ingredients on hand and layer away. If you're feeling guilty with the ease, go ahead and cook a few nuggets of mild Italian sausage to nestle between the layers. There. You actually did have to do some work.

Lasagne
makes one 8x8x2 inch pan, serves 4 - 6

8 lasagne noodles (Rustichella D'abruzzo is my current favorite)
1 24 - 26 oz. jar of tasty pasta sauce (Dave's Gourmet Organic Red Heirloom has me liking store bought pasta sauce for the first time. Try it, it is fantastic! Trader Joe's has a few good ones too -- try Rustico.)
2 links of Italian sausage, crumbled and cooked through (optional)
1 16 oz. container of ricotta (preferably organic, preferably full fat, but do what you have to do)
8 oz. mozzarella cheese, shredded
8 oz. frozen spinach, let sit at room temperature to thaw while you are preparing the other ingredients, then squeeze out excess water
2 oz. Parmigiano Reggiano, grated

1/2 cup boiling water

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Put a few tablespoons of sauce on bottom of glass baking pan then layer noodles (breaking to fit 3 across), ricotta, sausage (if using), mozzarella, spinach, parmesan, and sauce leaving a little space around all sides (about ¼ inch). Repeat layering until you have used up all of your supplies – aim to end with cheese then sauce on top.

2. Slowly pour the boiling water around all 4 sides of the lasagne, then cover tightly with foil. Place on the middle rack in your oven with a sheet pan on a rack below to catch any drips. Bake for an hour, remove the foil and bake 10 more minutes. Remove from oven and let sit for 10 – 30 minutes before serving.