Vegetarian lasagna

Ingredients:

Tomato and carrot sauce

• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 4 large cloves garlic, thinly sliced
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 large carrot, grated on a coarse grater
• 2 tbsp tomato paste
• 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
• 2 cans of 800g canned plum tomatoes, crushed by hand
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 large sprig basil; + 1/4 cup coarsely chopped leaves
• 1 large sprig of thyme

Assembly

• 1 package (280 g) frozen chopped spinach, thawed
• 450 g ricotta
• 3/4 tbsp. grated parmesan
• 1 large egg
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
• 12 no-boil lasagna sheets
• 450 g grated low-moisture whole milk mozzarella (4 cups)

Preparation:

1. Sauce:

   
   In a medium saucepan, heat the olive oil and garlic over low heat. Cook the garlic, stirring occasionally, until deep golden, about 7 minutes. Increase the heat to medium, add the onion and a large pinch of salt, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is soft, about 5 minutes. Add the carrots and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the tomato paste and red pepper flakes and cook, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes, bay leaf, basil sprig, thyme, and 1 teaspoon salt, increase the heat to medium-high, and bring the sauce to a simmer. Continue to cook, stirring frequently, until the sauce thickens (if you run a spoon through the sauce, you should see the bottom of the pan for a few seconds), about 30 minutes. Once the sauce thickens, reduce the heat slightly to prevent scorching. Add finely chopped basil. Let cool to room temperature before assembling the lasagna. Yield: 1 liter.
   

2. Assembly:

   
   Preheat the oven to 175°C. Use your hands to squeeze out as much water as possible from the spinach. Place it in a large bowl and toss with the ricotta, 1/2 cup of Parmesan, egg, 1 teaspoon of salt, and nutmeg.
   
3. Spoon 3/4 cup tomato sauce into the bottom of a 9 x 13-inch baking dish and spread it out. Lay 3 lasagna strips across the sauce (the sheets won't touch). Spread 3/4 cup tomato sauce on top. Spoon about 1/3 of the ricotta mixture (about 1 cup) over the sauce and spread it out with the back of a spoon (the fillings will mix a little, but that's okay). Top with 1 cup mozzarella.
4. Repeat the layers 2 more times. Top with the last 3 lasagna strips, brush with the last 3/4 cup tomato sauce, and sprinkle with the remaining 1 cup mozzarella and 1/4 cup Parmesan. Spray a large sheet of foil with cooking spray and cover the baking dish.
5. Bake until the noodles are tender and the cheese is melted, about 40 minutes. Remove the foil and continue baking until the cheese is bubbly and the lasagna is lightly browned around the edges, about 15 more minutes. Let rest for 10 minutes and serve.