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Chicken and Spinach Lasagne

Thyme for Cooking Posted on by

Do you use a Béchamel sauce when you make lasagne?

Back in my younger days, when I lived in the US, I made lasagne with ground beef, cottage cheese and tomato sauce.

Well, that and onions, garlic, oregano, and a sprinkling of Parmesan (from the green can).

But I never used Béchamel.

I didn’t make lasagne for awhile – it was one of those dishes one made in college and quit making when one started ‘real’ cooking.

Once I started making my own pasta I started making lasagne again.

I started making lasagne the traditional way, with a Béchamel sauce.

Then, as is my usual way, I just threw caution to the wind and made lasagne with anything that sounded good at the time.

But, I still usually used a Béchamel sauce – mainly because I started using no-cook lasagne noodles – which puts lasagne into the easy weeknight dinner category.  

The other night, as I started making this lasagne, mon mari asked me not to use a Béchamel, just for a change. 

I grabbed another 2 cups of chopped tomatoes and 1 cup of tomato sauce from the freezer.

Chicken and Spinach Lasagne

Total time: 50 minutes

 Ingredients:

  • 2 small (10oz, 300gr) chicken breasts, cut into small, bite-size pieces 
  • 3oz (90gr) bacon, cut into matchsticks
  • 10oz (300gr) fresh spinach
  • 3 small leeks, sliced
  • 2 cloves garlic, crushed
  • 4 cups (30oz, 900gr) tomatoes, chopped, with juices
  • 1 cup (8oz, 240ml) tomato sauce
  • 2 tsp chili powder
  • 2 tsp oreganol
  • 3/4 cup (6oz, 180gr) Greek yogurt
  • 1 cup (8oz, 250gr) ricotta cheese
  • 10 – 20 no-cook lasagne noodles
  • 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
  • 4 tsp olive oil

Chicken and Spinach Lasagne

 Instructions:

  • Sauté bacon and chicken in 2 tsp olive oil until bacon is crisp and chicken cooked through. 
  • Add chili powder, oregano, garlic sauté 1 minute longer.  
  • Add tomatoes, tomato sauce and simmer, uncovered, 5 minutes. Remove from heat.
  • Sauté leeks in remaining 2 tsp olive oil until tender.
  • Add spinach, cover for a few minutes to wilt.
  • Remove from heat and stir in yogurt 
  • To assemble:
  • In a 10″ (25cm) square baking dish, or so… make the following layers
  • 1/4 tomato / meat sauce – mainly sauce, not the chicken
  • 2 – 4 noodles   breaking to fit as needed

  • 1/4 tomato / meat sauce
  • 2 – 4 noodles
  • all of the spinach / leek / yogurt mixture
  • 2 – 4 noodles
  • 1/4 tomato / meat sauce
  • 2 – 4 noodles
  • all of the ricotta
  • 2 – 4 noodles
  • 1/4 tomato / meat sauce
  • sprinkle with Parmesan cheese
  • Cover and bake 400F (200C) for 25 – 30 minutes, or until noodles are done.  Test in center with a sharp knife. 
  • When noodles are tender, uncover and bake 5 minutes longer to brown cheese. 
  • Remove and let rest for 5 minutes. 
  • Cut into squares (or oblongs) and serve.

Maybe this summer I’ll make my very favorite lasagne….

I rarely do because it has to be made at the height of summer – and I’m usually not thinking lasagne or hot ovens then.

It’s made with fresh, home-made, (by me) spinach pasta, rolled paper-thin. The layers are fresh, vine-ripened tomatoes, peeled and puréed, fresh Mozzarella di Bufala, lots and lots of freshly picked basil leaves and a little Parmesan. Because the pasta is so thin and there’s no meat, I usually can make 10 or 15 layers in about 2 inches. 

Unlike the more typical lasagne, this one is light as air, almost like a soufflé

When I make it, I’ll let you know – so you can come for lunch.

Comments

Chicken and Spinach Lasagne — 10 Comments

  1. Katie, the invitation has been sent and I am replying with “yes”, I would love to come to lunch and enjoy your spinach pasta lasagne! Thank you. By the way, your photo looks absolutely delicious.

  2. OK, everything but the Greek yogurt and the spinach is at hand … and my kids love lasagna. But ours are big hulking leeks–about how much chopped leeks — 3/4 cup? A cup?
    And we’ll be over for the summer version … my younger daughter (11) would delight in learning how to make her own pasta, though I must say her first effort, undertaken with three cookbooks and a couple of Internet searches (I have never made noodles of any kind, so I couldn’t advise except to interpret what she was reading) wasn’t bad!

  3. I would have to say that I sometime use bechamel but more often use ricotta or cottage cheese. Your summer lasagne sounds amazing too.

  4. I didn’t used to use bechamel in our lasagne but now we usually do add it. And since we’ve been using fresh pasta, we never par cook the noodles. We just make sure that there is a bit of sauce in the bottom of the casserole before putting down the first layer of noodles.
    Mmmmm, chicken and spinach lasagne – that sounds really good!

  5. Susan, now I’m committed LOL. Thanks!
    Karen, it was probably 1 – 1 1/2 cups… A lot, but they were pretty mild. And well done for your daughter! I need to get back to making all my pasta… It really is easy – I have one of those hand-crank machines for rolling.
    Val, I can’t get cottage cheese… Although I did see it once – a tiny 3oz container for 2 euros.
    Elizabeth, I never ate spinach as a child – now I’m happy to put it in kust about everything!

  6. I was the same, Katie. I couldn’t stand spinach as a child. I couldn’t stand ANY vegetables, with the exception of beets, corn and green beans, as a child. And even those I could only tolerate in small quantities.
    I’m making up for it now though. :^)

  9. This is a great recipe! I added some sliced mushrooms the second time I made it but with or without them it’s easy and absolutely delicious!

  10. Elizabeth, carrots, and in summer green beans and sweet corn were our only fresh veggies…. Canned peas and carrots – please let me never see those again….
    manningroad, I make it a few times a year – with the easy no-cook noodles ;-))
    Tanna, deal!
    Mushrooms are a good addition!

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