Terry’s Lasagna
Long ago I took a course from the American Heart Association on healthy, low-fat cooking. One night I arrived straight from work and super hungry to wonderful smells emanating from the kitchen. It was this lasagna. We had samples that night and I’ve loved it ever since. The original recipe called for vegetable oil and ground beef, and limited amounts of cheese. These days I use olive oil and ground turkey and I add a little more cheese to the mix. A little time-consuming, but always worthwhile. And like most lasagnas, it’s better the next day.
– Terry
Ingredients
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 1½ cups onion, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 medium green pepper, diced
- ½ lb fresh mushrooms, sliced (2½ cups)
- ¾ lb ground turkey or ground sirloin
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- 2lb tomato sauce
- 1 28-oz Italian-style peeled tomatoes
- 1 6-oz can tomato paste
- 2 teaspoon dried basil
- 2 teaspoon dried oregano
- ¼ cup fresh parsley, minced
- 1lb lasagna noodles
- 8 oz part-skim shredded mozzarella
- 8 oz part-skim ricotta
- 1 cup grated Parmesan
Instructions
- In a large pot, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Sauté the onions, garlic and green peppers until softened. Add the mushrooms and sauté until tender. Add the ground meat, salt and pepper. Cook until the meat is no longer pink. Drain off excess fat.
- Add the tomato sauce, tomatoes, tomato paste, basil, oregano and parsley. Simmer 1½ hours or until sauce has thickened. Add a little water if necessary.
- Prepare the lasagna noodles according to the package directions, usually 10-12 minutes or until al dente. Drain, rinse with cold water and separate.
- Combine ricotta and half of the Parmesan.
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Spoon a thin layer of sauce into a 13x9x2″ pan and cover with a layer of noodles. Next place a layer of shredded mozzarella and ricotta-Parmesan mixture. Add some sauce.
- Arrange successive layers in a likewise manner, ending with a layer of noodles. Top with sauce and sprinkle with the remaining ½ cup of Parmesan.
- Bake for about 25 minutes. Remove and let stand for 10 minutes before cutting.
