Pesto Lasagne

I was wondering how lasagne in the crock pot would be... I had low expectations and this turned out great. IT WAS DELICIOUS!! This was a little more work than my usual crock pot recipes are, but that isn't saying much since I like them really easy and fast to put together.



4 cups spinach
1 package of presliced mushrooms
1/2 cup of commercial pesto
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
1 15 oz. carton ricotta cheese
1 large egg, lightly beaten
3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese, divided
1 26 oz. jar of tomato-basil pasta sauce
1 14.5 oz can of diced tomatoes
cooking spray
1 16 oz package of lasagne noodles (I used regular noodles, not the no-boil or ovenready kind)

1. Steam spinach, covered, for 3 minutes or until spinach wilts. Drain and coarsely chop. Combine spinach, mushrooms (you may want to chop them a little too) and pesto into a medium bowl, and set aside.
2. Combine mozzarella, ricotta, 1/4 cup of the parmesan and egg in a medium bowl, stirring well. Set aside. Combine pasta sauce and diced tomatoes in a medium bowl.
3. Spread 1 cup pasta sauce mixture in bottom of a 6-quart oval electric slow cooker coated with cooking spray.
4. You will need to break the corners off of the noodles in order to have them fit in the slow cooker. I found it easiest to break them to fit and spread the cheese mixture on the hard noodle before placing it in the cooker.
5. Make sure you have sprayed the cooker with cooking spray. Then, layer some pasta sauce mixture on the bottom (about a cup or so). Spread cheese on noodles- for my cooker, I had one whole noodle down the middle and then a noodle with broken corners on each side. Lay down noodles. Pour 1 cup spinach mixture over the top and spread evenly. Pour 1 cup pasta sauce mixture over the top. Repeat layers until you have only a cup or more of pasta sauce left. End the lasagne with noodles and sauce. Top with remaining cheese. Cover and cook on low for 5 hours or until done. 8 servings.

My tips: I think a little extra lasagne ingredients are always a plus, so if you have a little extra in the package of pesto or sauce, throw it in! Also, more cheese is always good. This took exactly 5 hours for my slow cooker- the Hamilton Beach (I find that Rival cooks a little hotter, so check it if you are using a Rival). I left it on warm after that for 2-3 hours and it was still perfect! I also was worried that it would be very sloppy and just fall apart in the cooker after pieces were cut. But no- it was firm (but not too firm) and maintained it's shape. Enjoy!