The Best Lasagna Ever (really)
WOW. I’m swooning. My taste buds are jumping for joy. Someone get the smelling salts, I might faint. If you’re on Weight Watchers and you make this lasagna, it’s going to be one of those meals that makes you say “Oh my gosh, I can’t believe I can eat things like this on my diet” (I know, I know, it’s a lifestyle change, not the d-word, but that didn’t have the same ring to it). Actually, I’m pretty sure anyone who makes this, regardless of dietary preference, is going to be overcome with joy from all the meaty, cheesy, saucy pasta goodness in this dish. I also think the green pepper and the hot Italian turkey sausage added a lot to the flavor profile. It’s lasagna, so of course there is some prep time involved (around 45 minutes, maybe?) but it’s worth every second.
I made a few changes to lighten up the original recipe I used, though I don’t think anyone tasting this would say it tastes “light.” I also changed the serving size from 12 servings to 9 large servings, because I wanted a big piece.
The Best Lasagna Ever (really)
Ingredients
- 3/4 lb 95% lean ground beef
- 3/4 lb Italian turkey sausage links, casings removed (I used Jennie-O Hot Italian Turkey Sausage, and ¾ lb was about 3 links)
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 1 medium green pepper, chopped
- 1 (26 oz) can Pasta Sauce , (I used Hunt’s Traditional)
- 8 oz 1/3 less fat cream cheese, cubed
- 1 cup 1% cottage cheese
- 1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley
- 6 wheat lasagna noodles, cooked and drained
- 1 cup shredded 2 % reduced-fat Mozzarella or Italian cheese blend
- 3 teaspoons Italian seasoning, divided
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350.
- In a sauté pan or large skillet, cook the sausage, beef, onion and green pepper over medium heat, breaking up with a spoon until browned. Set aside 1 cup of spaghetti sauce and combine the remaining sauce into the meat mixture. Bring mixture to a boil and then reduce heat, simmering uncovered for 8-10 minutes.
- In a small saucepan, melt the cream cheese over medium heat. Once melted, remove from heat and stir in cottage cheese and parsley.
- Spray a 9/13 baking dish with cooking spray and spread the meat sauce evenly across the bottom. Top meat layer with 3 lasagna noodles, followed by the cream cheese mixture and 1 ½ t of Italian seasoning. Lay the 3 remaining lasagna noodles over the top and cover with the reserved spaghetti sauce. Sprinkle the mozzarella cheese over the top and the remaining Italian seasoning over that.
- Cover dish with aluminum foil and bake for 35 minutes. Remove cover and bake for an additional 10-15 minutes. Let stand for 15 minutes before cutting.
Notes
322 calories, 24 g carbs, 8 g sugars, 14 g fat, 7 g saturated fat, 26 g protein, 3 g fiber (from myfitnesspal.com) MyWW SmartPoints per (1/9th of the recipe) serving: (SP calculated using the recipe builder on weightwatchers.com) Green: 11 SmartPoints/ Blue: 11 SmartPoints/ Purple: 9 SmartPoints Weight Watchers Points Plus:
9 per serving (P+ calculated using the recipe builder on weightwatchers.com) Adapted from Taste of Home