Cheese & Spinach Tortilla Strata - Three Cheers for Eating Well

I was looking through the newest Eating Well magazine and I saw dish after dish, I wanted to make.  I decided it would be easier to go online to the Eating Well site and look there.  Sometimes, I wonder why I buy cooking magazines when you can find the recipes, online but as I pick up magazine after magazine, I know why that is not enough, for me.  I learn so much from the articles and I enjoy many of the features.

I won a subscription of Eating Well from Simply Sugar Gluten Free.   Amy told me, I was going to love the magazine and she was right.  When, I see it, in my mailbox, I can't wait to find a quiet corner and go through it.  It is not necessarily, their major articles that grab my interest, rather their shorter ones with the thinking questions or headlines, "Are your Tummy Ills All in Your Head?",  "Are you Getting Enough Vitamin D?" or "Is this the Fish of the Future?"   I renewed my Eating Well Subscription when the time came and I plan to continue doing that. Let me share with you a recipe from there.  I can tell you that this is a true winner.


I read the ingredients in this recipe and knew it would be on my table.  It is very similar to lasagna but I used tortilla in place of the noodles or in this case, in place of the bread.  The tortillas worked well in this role and I would make more dishes using them for layering.  I used corn tortillas which are gluten-free.  I forgot to buy the mushrooms and frankly, I think it needs it for the layering.  Otherwise, I pretty much followed the recipes, as is.

Cheese & Spinach Tortilla Strata  adapted from Eating Well

Ingredients:

 

• 4 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 8 ounces mushrooms, thinly sliced (did not have)
  
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper, divided (used less and hubby still could tell)
  
• 1 15-ounce container part-skim ricotta cheese
• 1 10-ounce package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry, or 1 1/2 pounds fresh spinach, cooked, squeezed dry and chopped
• 1/8 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
• 2 cups prepared marinara sauce, divided
• 4 corn tortillas
  
• 1 cup shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese
• 3 large eggs
• 1 cup low-fat milk
• 1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

Method:  

Coat a 7-by-11-inch  baking dish with cooking spray.

1. Heat 2 teaspoons oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add onion and cook, stirring often, until softened but not browned, 5 to 8 minutes. Transfer to a bowl. 
   
2. Combine ricotta, spinach, nutmeg and the remaining 1/4 teaspoon pepper in another bowl.
3. Spoon 1 cup marinara sauce into the prepared baking dish. 
4.   Spoon the ricotta mixture over the tortillas. 
5. Arrange the two more tortillas  over the ricotta. 
6. Scatter the onions over the tortillas. 
7. Top with mozzarella.
8. Spoon the remaining marinara sauce over the top. The pan will be very full.
9. Whisk eggs and milk in a small bowl. Pour the mixture slowly over the casserole, poking the filling gently with the tip of a knife until the egg mixture is evenly distributed and the bread is saturated. 
10. Coat a piece of foil with cooking spray on one side and cover the casserole, sprayed-side down. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours or up to 1 day. (I cooked it right away.)
    
11. Preheat oven to 375°F. 
12. Bake the strata, uncovered, for 40 minutes. Sprinkle with Parmesan and bake until puffed and golden brown, 10 minutes more. Let stand for 10 minutes. Serve sprinkled with parsley. 

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