If you’re like me, your favorite part of a fresh lasagna is the corner piece. This dish is like an entire pan of corner pieces. That’s why when I saw this dish, adapted from Giada De Laurentis, I knew I had to make it and put my own spin on it. The cheese is crisped up on top with scoops of soft spinach and ricotta. I love the differences in textures. There is some prep that goes into this dish, however the outcome is absolutely worth it. You can assemble this ahead of time and pop it into the oven when you’re ready to bake. I like to serve with a side salad (feeds 6). 

You will need 

4 tbsp olive oil

1 pound lasagna pasta, cooked and cut into 2 inch pieces

2 cloves garlic

½ teaspoon red pepper flakes

8 oz baby spinach

1 cup part skim ricotta cheese

 1 lb spicy or sweet Italian sausage, casings removed

1 red onion diced

4 cups Rao’s jarred marinara sauce

2 ½ cups shredded low moisture mozzarella, divided 

1 ½ cups freshly grated parmesan cheese

To begin, preheat your oven to 425 degrees.  I also like to get a large pot of boiling water started since that also takes quite some time to get started. Don’t forget to heavily salt the pasta water! This will add flavor to the pasta and speed up the boiling process. Oil a baking sheet and set aside. 

Heat a skillet over medium and add a tablespoon of oil. Add your garlic and pepper flakes to the hot pan and stir for about a minute, until fragrant. Add your spinach and salt and cook until the spinach is wilted. This should only take a minute or two. Remove your spinach and press out any excess liquid. (You don’t want soggy riccota.) Using a pair of kitchen shears, cut up the spinach mixture into pieces and add to your ricotta; set aside. I could eat this mixture for dinner all by itself, but it gets even better. 

Return your pan to medium heat and add 2 more tablespoons oil and cook your sausage, breaking it apart into pieces. Add in your red onion and cook 3-5 minutes until softened, then remove from heat. 

Cook your pasta for 5 or so minutes, drain, and then cut into 2 inch pieces. * Save ½ cup pasta water!  The salty, starchy water not only adds flavor, but will help glue the pasta and sauce together... it’s like a thickening agent!

Add marinara to the pan with the sausage/onion mixture, pasta water, cut pasta, 1 cup mozzerella, ½ cup parmesan and stir to combine. Spread the mixture onto a baking sheet and dollop with the ricotta mixture. Here comes the best part: sprinkle with even more cheese. Use the remaining 1 ½ cups mozzarella and 1 cup parmesan cheese and bake for about 25-30 minutes until the top is bubbly and lighly browned.  Enjoy!

claire Stabbert is an accomplished cook who loves to try new recipes. While she does enjoy eating at restaurants, she also loves to whip up a good meal at home. Claire gets some of her cooking inspiration from her grandfather and grandmother, Fred and Shirley Stabbert as well as Great Grandma Nellie.