Classic Lasagna

By Ellie

8 Person

120 Minutes

343 Calories

Here's an old-fashioned meat-and-cheese lasagna made lighter. Whole-wheat lasagna noodles taste great in this recipe, plus they help boost the fiber to 9 grams, which is more than a third of the recommended daily intake and especially good news for a healthy heart.

Ingredients

Meat Sauce

2 tbsp. chopped fresh parsley
½ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1 cup shredded part-skim mozzarella
Ground nutmeg, to taste
Freshly ground pepper, to taste
⅛ tsp. salt
2 cups nonfat ricotta cheese
12 whole-wheat lasagna noodles, (12 ounces)
¼ tsp. crushed red pepper, or to taste
1 tsp. dried thyme
1 tsp. dried basil
1 tsp. dried oregano
½ cup sun-dried tomatoes, (not packed in oil), slivered
2 28-ounce cans plum tomatoes, drained and chopped
Freshly ground pepper, to taste
¼ cup dry red wine
⅛ tsp. salt
2 cloves garlic, minced
12 oz. mushrooms, wiped clean and chopped
1 carrot, finely chopped
2 onions, finely chopped
4 oz. hot or sweet Italian turkey sausage, casings removed
½ tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil

Method

01

To prepare meat sauce: Heat oil in a large heavy pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add sausage and cook, breaking up clumps, until browned, 3 to 5 minutes. Reduce heat to medium. Add onions and carrot; cook, stirring, until softened, 2 to 3 minutes. Add mushrooms and garlic; season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring frequently, until mushroom liquid evaporates, 4 to 6 minutes.
02

Stir in wine, plum tomatoes, sun-dried tomatoes, oregano, basil, thyme and crushed red pepper. Bring to a simmer; reduce heat to low, cover and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 45 minutes. Uncover and cook, stirring frequently, until the sauce is very thick, 30 to 45 minutes more. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper.
03

To prepare filling & assemble lasagna: Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Preheat oven to 350°F. Coat a 9-by-13-inch baking dish with cooking spray.
04

Cook noodles until just tender, about 10 minutes or according to package directions. Drain, then cool by plunging noodles into a large bowl of ice-cold water. Lay the noodles out on kitchen towels.
05

Season ricotta with salt, pepper and nutmeg. Spread about 1½ cups meat sauce in the prepared pan. Layer 3 noodles on top. Spread another 1 cup sauce over the noodles. Dot about ⅔ cup ricotta over the sauce, then sprinkle with ¼ cup mozzarella and 2 tablespoons Parmesan. Continue layering the noodles, sauce and cheeses, finishing with the sauce, mozzarella and Parmesan. Sprinkle with parsley; cover with foil.
06

Bake the lasagna until the sauce is bubbling, 35 to 40 minutes. Uncover and bake until golden, 5 to 10 minutes more. Let cool for 10 minutes before cutting.

Related Tags

Classic Lasagna

4.3

( By Ellie )

01 Information

Grade easy
Serving 8 servings
Calorie 343 Kcal
Prep Time 60 Mins
Cook Time 60 Mins
Total Time 120 Mins

02 Ingredients

Meat Sauce

2 tbsp. chopped fresh parsley

½ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

1 cup shredded part-skim mozzarella

Ground nutmeg, to taste

Freshly ground pepper, to taste

⅛ tsp. salt

2 cups nonfat ricotta cheese

12 whole-wheat lasagna noodles, (12 ounces)

¼ tsp. crushed red pepper, or to taste

1 tsp. dried thyme

1 tsp. dried basil

1 tsp. dried oregano

½ cup sun-dried tomatoes, (not packed in oil), slivered

2 28-ounce cans plum tomatoes, drained and chopped

Freshly ground pepper, to taste

¼ cup dry red wine

⅛ tsp. salt

2 cloves garlic, minced

12 oz. mushrooms, wiped clean and chopped

1 carrot, finely chopped

2 onions, finely chopped

4 oz. hot or sweet Italian turkey sausage, casings removed

½ tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil

03 Method

Step 1

To prepare meat sauce: Heat oil in a large heavy pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add sausage and cook, breaking up clumps, until browned, 3 to 5 minutes. Reduce heat to medium. Add onions and carrot; cook, stirring, until softened, 2 to 3 minutes. Add mushrooms and garlic; season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring frequently, until mushroom liquid evaporates, 4 to 6 minutes.

Step 2

Stir in wine, plum tomatoes, sun-dried tomatoes, oregano, basil, thyme and crushed red pepper. Bring to a simmer; reduce heat to low, cover and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 45 minutes. Uncover and cook, stirring frequently, until the sauce is very thick, 30 to 45 minutes more. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper.

Step 3

To prepare filling & assemble lasagna: Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Preheat oven to 350°F. Coat a 9-by-13-inch baking dish with cooking spray.

Step 4

Cook noodles until just tender, about 10 minutes or according to package directions. Drain, then cool by plunging noodles into a large bowl of ice-cold water. Lay the noodles out on kitchen towels.

Step 5

Season ricotta with salt, pepper and nutmeg. Spread about 1½ cups meat sauce in the prepared pan. Layer 3 noodles on top. Spread another 1 cup sauce over the noodles. Dot about ⅔ cup ricotta over the sauce, then sprinkle with ¼ cup mozzarella and 2 tablespoons Parmesan. Continue layering the noodles, sauce and cheeses, finishing with the sauce, mozzarella and Parmesan. Sprinkle with parsley; cover with foil.

Step 6

Bake the lasagna until the sauce is bubbling, 35 to 40 minutes. Uncover and bake until golden, 5 to 10 minutes more. Let cool for 10 minutes before cutting.

04 Author