So my Sister in Law made this amazing vegetable Lasagna a few weeks ago that had a homemade alfredo sauce with roasted red pepper, and I was so in love with it that I decided I wanted to try to make something similar. I scoured the internet looking for recipes, but could not find one that I was in love with, so I decided to do my favorite thing and make up my own recipe. This is always a risk of course….but this time my riskiness definitely paid off. I just LOVE how this Roasted Red Pepper Lasagna turned out, and my family was equally as pleased. They were all raving about how good it was. (When I say family I mean my mom, and dad, and 25 yr old brother because I currently live at my parents house while my hubby is in school)
I call this one Roasted Red Pepper Lasagna with Creamy Alfredo Sauce….I know that’s a mouth full, but I just couldn’t bring myself to leave any of those words out of the title, because there are so many different components to this that make it so good. So it is what it is…lol…oh no I’m turning into my mom. That’sΒ one of her famous phrases.
A big thank you to my sister in law Tabitha for the inspiration for this one. She would probably deny it, but she is an amazing cook! Β IΒ love pretty much anything she makes!!! She is also one of my favorite people to go out to lunch with because I feel like she gets me when it comes to food. She’s got great taste in food, so I can pretty much trust any recommendation she makes for a restaurant.
- 16 lasagna noodles
- 4 cups packed baby spinach
- 1½ cups ricotta cheese
- 1½ cups shredded mozzarella
- 2 cups shredded Italian 4 cheese blend
- 8 oz of cooked bacon
- 4 cups of the Creamy Alfredo Sauce (see recipe below)
- ½ cup Parmesan cheese
- 1 jar of Roasted Red Peppers (drained)
- 1 tsp Italian seasoning
- Chives for Garnish
- Boil the Lasagna noodles until they are al dente (cooked but still firm)
- While noodles are boiling cook bacon and then crumble into small pieces
- Make Creamy Alfredo Sauce (recipe below)
- Take half of the Alfredo cream sauce (about 4 cups) and put it in a blender with 1 jar of Roasted red pepper (drained), blend until pureed
- Then put the pureed sauce back into another pot (separate from the other cream sauce) and add another ½ cup Parmesan cheese and bring to a simmer for a couple minutes while stirring
- Allow suace to cool before adding to Lasagna (if you'd like you could make this sauce the night before and then allow to sit in the fridge over night)
- You will use the cream sauce with the roasted red pepper for the inside of the Lasagna, and the rest can be set aside to use as a garnish on top of the lasagna when ready to serve
- Before prepping actual Lasagna Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees F
- In a 12½ x 9½ in baking dish spread 1 cup of the Roasted Red Pepper Alfredo Sauce with a rubber spatula to coat the bottom of the pan evenly
- Cover with 5 al dente lasagna noodles and then spread another 1 cup of Roasted Red Pepper Alfredo sauce over top with rubber spatula
- Add 2 cups baby spinach over that in a nice even layer
- Add ¾ cup Ricotta cheese in small dime size dollops
- Spread evenly ½ cup Mozzarella cheese and then ½ c of the 4 cheese blend over that
- Sprinkle ¼ cup of crumbled bacon over that
- REPEAT THE PROCESS (5 noodles, 1 cup roasted red pepper sauce, 2 cups spinach, ¾ cup Ricotta, ½ cup Mozerella, ½ cup 4 cheese blend, and ¼ cup crumbled bacon)
- For the final layer place 5 noodles and then press down firmly to compact the lasagna more
- Then evenly spread 1 cup of Roasted Red Pepper Alfredo
- Top with ½ cup mozarrella cheese, followed by remaining 1 cup 4 cheese blend, and sprinkle 1 teaspoon of Italian seasoning to top it off
- Place baking pan on foil lined cookie sheet (to catch and drippings) and cook uncovered at 400 degrees for about 30 minutes, or until it is bubbling and cheese is golden brown
- Remove and allow to cool about 10-15 minutes before serving
- To serve cut in square pieces, drizzle desired amount of Alfredo cream sauce over the top ( may need to reheat sauce first), and garnish with crumbled bacon and chopped green onions
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 7 cups milk
- 1 tablespoon all-natural, low-sodium chicken base
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- ΒΌ teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ c. butter
- ¼ c. white flour
- 2 tsp minced garlic
- ¾ cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 2 teaspoons lemon zest
- ¼ cup lemon juice
- Use a large pot to prep the Creamy Alfredo sauce
- In pot combine cream, milk, chicken base, Italian seasoning, black pepper, and salt
- Stir and heat to a simmer over medium heat (stir to keep bottom from burning)
- Once it is simmering, remove from heat and set aside
- In another medium large pot melt the butter and then cook the minced garlic over medium/low heat for a couple minutes
- Then stir in flour to create a roux (flour and fat mixed together to thicken sauces)
- Cook for a couple minutes while stirring to cook out raw flour taste
- Slowly add the milk mixture to the roux, while whisking to prevent lumps
- Whisk until all the lumps are out of the cream sauce
- Bring to a simmer
- Allow to simmer uncovered for 5-10 minutes, whisking occasionally to prevent burning on bottom
- Once cream sauce is thickened to desired consistency stir in Parmesan cheese, lemon zest, and lemon juice
The Sugar n' Spice Gals have made it their mission to make cooking simple, delicious and fun.
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