Creamy Lasanga

My wonderful sister-in-law Raychel came to my house yesterday, and (as is typical with me) we got to talking food. She had some artichokes and had no clue how to use them. This is the recipe I suggested.

First: This is a pretty good link demonstrating how to clean a fresh artichoke to prepare for use in a recipe like this.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J3tivOcd530&feature=related

Once they're cleaned and prepared, you can boil them for about 10 minutes before cooling and chopping into pieces for this recipe. Or, if you don't have fresh artichokes or don't want to bother with cleaning and preparing them, you can find very yummy canned artichokes in the grocery store. I find them in the same aisle as canned olives and green beans. I don't like the marinated artichokes as well as the plain ones--the plain are much much cheaper, and since I'm putting them in a creamy lasagna, they don't need the extra flavors.

Alright, on to the recipe:

Creamy Lasagna

Sauce:
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
1 onion, chopped
1/2 cup flour
1 quart milk
1 tsp nutmeg
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
1 Tbsp Italian Seasoning
2 (10 oz or so) boxes of frozen spinach, thawed and squeezed dry of all green juice
1 can (or 2 fresh, prepped, cleaned, and cooked) artichokes, drained and chopped
1 can chopped water chestnuts, drained
Optional: 2 chicken breasts, cooked and cubed OR 2 cups cooked lentils

1) In a large pot, melt the butter and add the chopped onion. Cook for 2 or 3 minutes, until onion begins to soften.
2) Sprinkle on flour and whisk to combine until flour soaks up the liquid. (this is called a roux.) Cook for 1 minute.
3) add milk. Whisk thoroughly and bring to a boil.
4) Remove from heat and add all other ingredients. Make sure your veggies are all drained well!

Cheese filling:
1 16 oz container small-curd cottage cheese
8 oz cream cheese, softened
2 eggs
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
1 tsp pepper

5) Mix all ingredients together and set aside.

6) Soften 1 pound lasagna noodles by placing in a shallow baking dish and covering with boiling water. Let sit for 5 minutes, then drain water.
7) In a 13 by 9 pan, place a layer of noodles on the bottom. Cover with half of the cheese filling, then half the sauce. Add more noodles, then the remaining cheese filling and the remaining sauce. Top with the last of the noodles.

Cheese-and-breadcrumb topping:
3/4 cup breadcrumbs
1 tsp Italian seasoning
1/4 cup parmesan cheese
1/4 cup butter, melted

8) mix together breadcrumb topping and sprinkle over the top layer of lasagna.
9) Cover dish with foil. Bake at 350 for about 1 hour, or until noodles are tender and sauce is bubbly all the way through. Enjoy!

Notes:
-You can leave out the breadcrumb topping and just top with shredded mozzarella cheese, if preferred.
-This can be made with chicken, lentils, or just plain.
-A myriad of vegetables can be added, if desired: grated carrots, chopped celery, shelled peas, or chopped broccoli would all be fantastic. Just add to the sauce when you add the spinach and artichokes.
-I'm not sure how to make a roux gluten-free...if you have any ideas, let me know! Because this recipe, with a GF roux, GF noodles, and plain cheese on top, would be mighty fine...