Single Guy’s Kitchen

As much as I hate to admit it, I have to give Rachael Ray credit for this one. I saw the recipe on her show “30 Minute Meals” a long time ago and saved it. Probably two years later I’ve finally gotten around to trying it. I have a bunch of saved recipes that I’ll see while browsing and add them to my folder as “to try” or “for reference.” It’s a bit of an obsession.

This a Ravioli “Lasagna.” Well, it’s not really a lasagna, more of a casserole I suppose. It’s built in layers similar to a lasagna except the ravioli replace the lasagna noodles. There’s less sauce, no ricotta cheese, more vegetables… so like I said not exactly lasagna like. Despite the confusing name, the dish is quite tasty, so on to the ingredients.

Ingredients:

• 2 cans artichoke hearts (in water) - drained and quartered
• 2 small heads of broccoli - trimmed to just the florets or however you like it
• 1 large package frozen spinach (about a pound I think) - thawed and wrung out
• 2 packages of ravioli (about 18 to 20 oz)
• 1 jar pasta sauce (your choice)
• 6 cloves of garlic
• olive oil
• combination of shredded asiago, parmesan, and mozzarella cheese

The dish comes together from three different groups: the ravioli and broccoli, artichoke and spinach, and the sauce. For the ravioli and broccoli, bring a pot of water to boil, salt the water, and add the broccoli and ravioli for about four to five minutes. I used fresh spinach and artichoke ravioli that you can find in the refrigerated dairy section usually. You can pick any type of ravioli you like. You don’t want it al dente but rather a little chewy. This is all going to get put into the oven still so you don’t want to cook the ravioli entirely. I like my broccoli firm so this worked out well for that too.

The other vegetables are cooked in a separate pan with some olive oil. Get the oil (a couple tablespoons) heating and coarsely chop your garlic and add it to the warm oil. Let this go for a couple minutes while you drain and quarter the artichokes. Add your thawed and strained spinach next and then your artichokes. This step can take as little as five minutes or as long as twenty based on what else you are doing. You just want to get everything heated and mixed together. I did the vegetables first so they ended up being in the pan for awhile on low while I got the pasta going. It’s really not a problem, just don’t burn them so keep your heat low and be sure to keep things moving.

With the sauce, just heat it up in a separate pot. You can add any spices if you like but its not necessary.

In a lightly oiled casserole dish, put down one layer of ravioli and broccoli, followed by the vegetables, then the sauce, and finally a couple handfuls of cheese. How many layers you get will depend on the portions you used and the size of your dish. I ended up with a bottom layer of ravioli, the middle filled with all the vegetables, and then just a top layer of ravioli.

I threw this in the oven at 400F with my garlic bread for about 10 - 15 minutes. Just keep an eye on it, make sure the cheese is melted, etc.

Voila! Spinach and artichoke ravioli “lasagna.” Note the “two buck chuck” in the background. It’s good.

This turned out really well I think. It’s not a real sauce heavy dish so if you like a lot of sauce plan on adding another half jar at least. You may want to vary the ravioli filling unless you really like spinach and artichoke too. One last variation, I would use fresh spinach rather than frozen. I really dislike working with frozen spinach and the texture does nothing for me. I think fresh spinach wilted in the pan would be a lot better.

Overall I was really satisfied with this. If you noticed this turned out vegetarian but it does not have to be based on the ravioli choice. I like vegetarian dishes like this. There’s no attempt to substitute for meat, it’s just a good vegetable dish that stands on its own legs.

I hope you enjoy and as always, comments are always welcome.