Crockpot Lasagna

All I can hear from the other room is, "Wow, this is yummy!"  "Mom, this is so good!"  And my favorite, "Can I please have some more?"

These phrases are music to a mama's ears, especially coming from the mouths of two somewhat picky kids who don't voluntarily eat many veggies.

I adapted this recipe from CrockPot365 and it was so, so good.  Probably the best lasagna I've ever tasted, actually.   I'm sure the original version is great, but here's what I did, mostly because I used what I had available at the time.

Crockpot Lasagna (for a 6-qt crock pot)

1 box of uncooked regular Lasagna Noodles, any brand (not the quick cooking kind)

1 large container of Ricotta cheese, or half Ricotta, half Cottage Cheese

1 egg

1-2 jars (or equivalent homemade) Marinara Sauce (check back later for my recipe full of pureed veggies)

2 cups Mozzarella Cheese, shredded

1/2 cup Parmesan Cheese, shredded

 1/4 cup Water

Optional: Meat, pre-cooked

Optional: Chopped Veggies like broccoli, cauliflower, zucchini, spinach, etc. 

If using both ricotta cheese and cottage cheese, you may want to blend it up.  I used a stick blender, and I also added a small handful of raw baby spinach.  It turned a very faint shade of green which went unnoticed by my veggie-haters.  Then mix in the egg.

If using meat, mix it into the marinara sauce before you begin.

Pour a layer of sauce into the crock pot.  Add a layer of lasagna noodles, breaking them up as necessary so they fit.   Smear some of the ricotta mixture on the noodles, or plop a little along if it's hard to smear on broken noodles.  It doesn't have to be perfect.

Add a layer of chopped veggies here if you are using them.

Sprinkle some shredded mozzarella and parmesan.

Repeat layers: sauce, noodles, ricotta, (veggies), shredded cheese, etc.  End with a layer of sauce on top.

Pour water over the top and cook on high for 4 hours or low for 8 hours.

Serve!  And be prepared to refill your kids' plates at least once, if not twice!  :)