Caprese Lasagna

Don't even read this post; just scroll down to the end to get the recipe. Go to the store and buy whatever you need, and make this tonight. Seriously.


I bookmarked Rachael Ray's Caprese Lasagna a long time ago, but I'm really not sure why I waited so long to make it. But it for sure won't take me long to make it again.

It was such a great summery comfort dinner. The flavor combination of the basil, tomato, and mozzarella is one of my favorites, and you all know of my love for all things pasta.


Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons butter
• 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped or grated
• 2 tablespoons flour
• 1 cup milk
• 1 cup chicken stock
• A few grates of fresh nutmeg
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 box oven-ready lasagna noodles
• 4 Roma tomatoes, thinly sliced
• Half a bunch basil, chopped (about 30 leaves)
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

Pre-heat the oven to 375ºF.

Place a large saucepot over medium-heat and melt the butter. Add the garlic to the pan and cook until aromatic, about 1 minute. Sprinkle the flour over the butter and garlic and cook for about 1 minute. Whisk the milk and chicken stock into the butter-flour mixture and bring up to a bubble. Add the nutmeg, season with salt and freshly ground black pepper and simmer until thickened, 3-4 minutes.

Assemble the lasagna by ladling a small amount (about 1/4 cup, just eyeball it) of the sauce into the bottom of a 9-inch x 13-inch baking dish and laying three lasagna noodles over the sauce. Top the noodles with about a third of the sliced tomatoes, a third of the basil, 1/4 cup of sauce and about a third of the shredded cheese. Repeat until all ingredients are used up, topping the lasagna off with a final layer of sauce and shredded cheese.

Cover the pan with foil and bake the lasagna for 30 minutes. Remove the foil from the baking dish and bake another 15 minutes until the cheese is melted and the sauce is bubbly. When ready to serve, top with the remaining chopped basil leaves.

Lasagna Casserole

I originally found this yummy dish on Brooke's blog but decided to change its name. I, too, subbed in mozzarella instead of cheddar, and that plus the ricotta, sauce, etc... it just seemed much less cheeseburger-ish and much more lasagna-ish.


This dinner was absolutely delish... although with all of that pasta goodness, I really wasn't expecting anything less.


Ingredients

• 5 cups uncooked egg noodles
• 1-1/2 pounds lean ground beef or turkey
  
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 3 cans (8 ounces each) tomato sauce - I used about 3 cups of homemade sauce
  
• 1/2 teaspoon sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon pepper
• 1 package (8 ounces) reduced-fat cream cheese
• 1 cup reduced-fat ricotta cheese
• 1/4 cup reduced-fat sour cream
• 3 green onions, thinly sliced, divided
• 2/3 cup shredded reduced-fat mozzarella cheese

Cook noodles according to package directions. Meanwhile, in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat, cook beef and garlic until meat is no longer pink; drain. Stir in the tomato sauce, sugar, salt and pepper; heat through. Drain noodles; stir into beef mixture. In a small bowl, beat the cream cheese, ricotta cheese and sour cream until blended. Stir in half of the onions. Spoon half of the noodle mixture into a 13-in. x 9-in. baking dish coated with cooking spray. Top with cheese mixture and remaining noodle mixture. Cover and bake at 350° for 30 minutes. Uncover; sprinkle with cheddar cheese. Bake 5-10 minutes longer or until heated through and cheese is melted. Sprinkle with remaining onions.

Turkey-Spinach Lasagna

I loooooove lasagna. LOOOOOOOVE IT. I think I get it from my dad - he loves it too. :)



While nothing really beats a good ol' plain lasagna, sometimes I like playing around with it just for something different. I found this Cooking Light version in Brooke's blog and really couldn't wait to make it. I'm glad I did, because it was amazing - definitely a keeper. I can't wait to make this again! I love having spinach in it, because it makes me feel like my bowl full of noodles and cheese is a healthy dinner. ;)



Ingredients

• Cooking spray
• 1 pound ground turkey breast
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 1/2 cups chopped onion
• 2 garlic cloves, chopped
• 2 (26-ounce) jars low-fat marinara sauce (or equivalent homemade)
• 1 (16-ounce) carton fat-free ricotta
• 1/4 cup egg substitute
• 1/4 cup (1 ounce) preshredded fresh Parmesan cheese
• 1 tablespoon dried parsley flakes
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon oregano
• 1 (10-ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained
• 8 cooked lasagna noodles or no-boil
• 2 cups (8 ounces) shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese

Preheat oven to 350°.

Coat a large skillet with cooking spray, and place over medium-high heat until hot. Add turkey, onion,red pepper flakes and garlic; cook until meat is browned, stirring to crumble. Add 5 3/4 cups marinara sauce; cook 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat.

Combine ricotta cheese, egg substitute, Parmesan, parsley, pepper, garlic powder, oregano and spinach; stir well. Spread remaining marinara sauce in bottom of a 13 x 9-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Arrange 4 noodles over marinara; top with cottage cheese mixture and half of the mozzarella.

Spoon half of the turkey mixture over the mozzarella. Arrange the remaining noodles over turkey mixture. Top with remaining turkey mixture and mozzarella.Bake at 350° for 50 minutes or until cheese melts and sauce is bubbly. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

Crockpot Lasagna

After being nervous all day about the lasagna drying out in my crockpot, I must say that I was beyond scared when I opened up the crockpot and saw this:



Even though I added a ton of extra sauce, it totally curled up and burned on the edges.

But really? It wasn't bad at all! I STILL had to add even MORE sauce when serving it (I probably used close to 3 times the amount in the original recipe), but only the top layer was a bit crispy. Everything else? Yummy.

I got this from Kelly, but hers looks MUCH better. I bet mine would have been nicer (and less dry) if I hadn't had to leave it on the "warm" setting for as long as I did.

I certainly wouldn't use this as my default lasagna or anything, and it did take a little more prep work than I would have liked, but not too shabby.

Ingredients:

• 1 lb lean ground beef
• 1/2 large onion, finely chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 8 oz package of no-bake lasagna noodles
• 1 jar of spaghetti sauce (I ended up using about 4 cups of homemade marinara, PLUS a little less than a full jar of sauce)
• 1/3 cup of milk
• 15 oz of ricotta cheese
• 1 egg
• 2 cups shredded mozzarella
  

1. Using a little olive oil, add onion and garlic to a saute pan. Then add beef. Over medium heat, cook until completely browned. Add sauce to meat and simmer for a few minutes.

2. Mix milk with ricotta cheese, add egg and mix completely. Add shredded cheeses and mix well.

3. Using cooking spray or crisco, cover sides and bottom of crockpot.

4. Pour 1/4 of meat mixture into crockpot, then a layer of noodles (you will probably need to break them in order to fit), followed by a layer of the 1/3 cheese mixture. Repeat 3 times. Then top with remaining meat mixture. Make sure all noodles around the edges are covered with sauce

5. Cook on low for 4-5 hours.

Garden Vegetable Lasagna

As I've been developing my culinary skills and interest, I've noticed that while I tend to try new things, I really enjoy experimenting with things I love and trying new variations.

I love a good lasagna (I am my father's daughter! Hi Daddy!) and was excited to try Jenny's garden version. Same great flavor with the added veggies tucked right in - so side dish needed!


I admit that I was very skeptical about the sauce - it just seemed so THICK and pasty! But it really delivered and everyone ate it. The marscarpone gave it a little bit of added flavor and texture, and the veggies... MMMM!!! A great meal for summer, and a great way to lighten up such a classic.

It does take a bit to prepare (plus the hour baketime), so it's not a good work-week dinner, but when you have the extra time to devote to your dinner, it's totally worth it.

Ingredients:
Homemade Pasta Sauce

• 2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1/2 Cup finely diced white onion
• 4 cloves fresh garlic, peeled and minced
• 28 oz can crushed tomatoes
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon fresh cracked black pepper
• 6 oz can tomato paste
• 10 fresh basil leaves, chopped
  

1. Heat oil into a large skillet over medium heat. Saute onion for 5 minutes, stirring often then stir in garlic and cook for 1 minute. Stir in crushed tomatoes, salt, pepper, tomato paste and basil leaves. Reduce heat to low and simmer until ready to use.

Vegetable filling

• 3 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 butternut squash, chopped
• 1 medium zucchini, halved and sliced
• 2 Cups broccoli florets
• 2 Cups diced eggplant
• 4 Cups fresh baby spinach leaves, coarsely chopped
• 3 cloves fresh garlic, minced
• Pinches of salt
  

1. Heat oil into a large dutch oven or pot over medium heat. Saute all ingredients for 10-12 minutes, season with a couple pinches of salt, stirring often or until softened to your liking. Cook longer for softer texture. Reduce heat to low and simmer until ready to use.

Ricotta Mascarpone Layers

• 1 ½ pounds part skim ricotta cheese
• 1 Cup fresh grated parmesan cheese
• ½ Cup soft mascarpone cheese
• 2 Cups shredded mozzarella cheese
• 1 teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon fresh cracked black pepper
• ¼ teaspoon garlic salt
  

1. Place all ingredients into a large bowl; stir until well combined.

• 9 oz oven ready lasagna noodles

To Assemble:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Coat bottom of a large 9x13 inch baking dish with a couple ladles of homemade sauce. Next, layer with lasagna noodles. Spoon 1/3 Ricotta Mascarpone mixture over noodles, spreading slightly (I used my fingers). Top evenly with 1/3 vegetables. Repeat this process 2 more times or until all ingredients are used up. The top layer should be lasagna noodles. Pour remaining sauce over noodles then sprinkle with 2 Cups shredded mozzarella cheese. Bake covered for 45-50 minutes, then remove foil for the last 10 minutes of baking.

2. Let sit in pan for 15 minutes before cutting into it. Serve and enjoy!