Sneaky Lasagna

sneaky lasagna:
i snuck in some veggies you can't taste to make this nutritious and delicious!

sauce:

2 jars of cheap spaghetti sauce (hunt's, store brand, etc.)
1 can of diced tomatoes, or 1 cup of fresh diced tomatoes
half an onion (white or yellow)
3-5 peeled garlic cloves
1/8 cup olive oil
2 cups of well-steamed carrots (optional, but healthy!)
italian seasoning
fresh rosemary (snip a sprig, beat with back of knife blade to bruise and bring out flavor, then snip bits directly into sauce)

filling:

first layer:
1 2 lb. tub of ricotta cheese
1 ball of mozzarella cheese, grated (save some for topping)
1 cup of parmesean cheese
2 eggs
10-12 fresh basil leaves, snipped into small bits or strips

second layer (optional):

1 lb. ground beef, browned
1-2 cups of finely chopped zucchini (saute with beef)

1 package of oven-ready lasagna


start by preparing the sauce. in a pot, cover the bottom with a thin layer of olive oil. heat at medium temperature, then add finely chopped onion and garlic. saute until both ingredients are lightly browned. once browned, dump in the tomatoes. if using steamed carrots, puree with a little bit of the jar sauce, then add to the pot. add the rest of the sauce, then season to taste with italian seasoning. allow to simmer until the rest of the ingredients are prepared; add fresh rosemary before assembling lasagna.

for the cheese filling, combine ricotta, mozzarella, parmesean, eggs, and fresh basil leaves. stir and set aside.

for the meat layer, brown the beef, then add finely chopped zucchini. you can season the meat with italian seasoning for more flavor.

assembly: in a 9x13" pan, spoon enough sauce to coat the bottom of the pan. lay out a layer of the dry oven-ready noodles (4 overlapping covers the pan well), then cover with 1/2 of the cheese mixture. next, apply half of the meat and veggie layer over the cheese mixture, cover with 1/3 of the sauce. repeat noodles, cheese mixture, beef and veggie layer, and sauce. top with one last noodle layer, sauce, and then sprinkle the top with cheese. cover with a slightly tented piece of foil (to avoid cheese sticking to it) and bake at 375 degrees for one hour. to make it extra yummy, throw the pan in the broiler for 60 seconds at the end for bubbly cheese.