I’ve been kind of hanging out on Twitter, lately. Kind of a lot. And through something called “Re-Tweets”, that I don’t fully understand, I discovered a site called In Jennie’s Kitchen and her 47-Minute Spinach Lasagna. Her inspiration was a Twitter challenge. It sounds – and looks – delicious, and I was intrigued.

After all, spinach lasagna is one of my specialties, but I’ve never made it in batches smaller than platoon-sized, and it usually takes hours. Can you really make a tasty lasagna in 47 minutes? I was intrigued. And inspired.

Jennie uses her own pasta, made from scratch, homemade marinara, ricotta that I suspect she makes herself, and fresh mozzarella. I don’t have a pasta roller/machine, I’ve never made fresh pasta or ricotta (although I did see a recipe for it, recently), no fresh mozzarella, and I’m out of spinach. But did that deter me? Oh, heaven forfend!

I took a look in my pantry and fridge, and realized that I desperately need to go grocery shopping. And then there’s the other consideration – MJ’s diet (which has been going pretty well – he’s down 30 pounds! So my mother asks me why he’s losing weight and I’m not. I told her that I’ve been more preoccupied with him than myself and she understood! I still can’t get over that…), and I’ve tried to be creative in coming up with dinners that would be satisfying, not make him feel like he’s missing out on his favorite foods, and be nutritious in a way that would allow him to lose weight and reduce his blood sugar.

And oh, by the way, could I get such a meal on the table before 9:00 p.m., seeing as I don’t get home from work till about 6:30 and can rarely get my ass in gear before 7:00 – sometimes 8:00? And could I get great flavor with just ordinary pantry ingredients?

Kudos to Jennie, I still couldn’t do better than an hour. Yes, I timed myself. But man! an hour! for lasagna! And MJ loved it. “I hope you remember what you did, ’cause I’d like to see this again.” His highest praise. So, I wrote it down:

Damn! It Takes Me a Whole Hour Vegetable Lasagna

6 lasagna noodles
1 16 oz. package frozen mixed vegetables (I used my store’s brand of “Roma” frozen veg: carrots, cauliflower, zucchini, baby lima beans)
1 Tbsp. Grapeseed or olive oil
1 tsp. Kosher salt
1/2 tsp. Garlic powder
1/4 tsp. Ground black pepper
1 15 oz. container part-skim ricotta cheese
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese (divided)
1/4 cup liquid egg substitute
1/4 tsp. Dried oregano
1/2 tsp. Dried basil
1 Tbsp. Dried chopped onion
1 1/2 cups marinara or your favorite pasta sauce (homemade or jarred)
3/4 cup shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Cook lasagna noodles in boiling salted water for 7 minutes and turn off heat. Do not drain. I add a splash of grapeseed or olive oil – your choice.

Meanwhile, put the frozen vegetables in a microwave-safe bowl, and sprinkle the salt, garlic powder, pepper, and grapeseed (or olive) oil over the top. Cover loosely with plastic wrap (leaving a vent), and microwave for 10 minutes, stir then drain.

In another bowl, mix together the ricotta, 2 tablespoons of the parmesan, the egg substitute, oregano, basil, and onion. Add the vegetables and combine.

In an oven-proof rectangular baking dish (mine measures 11″ x 7-1/2″), spread 1/4 cup of the pasta sauce. Lay down 2 of the lasagna noodles, side-by-side, trimming the ends, if necessary. Spread half of the cheese-vegetable mixture over the noodles, sprinkle 2 tablespoons of the mozzarella and about 2 tablespoons of the parmesan over it, lay down another 2 noodles and repeat layering with cheese mixture, parmesan, and mozzarella. Lay down the last 2 noodles and spread the remaining pasta sauce evenly over the top, and sprinkle the remaining cheese over the sauce. Make sure the noodles are completely covered.

Bake for 20 – 25 minutes. Makes 4 servings.

Exotic? No. Tasty, simple, and quick? Oh, yeah.

Sorry, no pics, but I just couldn’t get set up for a beauty shot. Come on, you know what lasagna looks like…