sharing recipes – lasagna

Last month, while doing our eat-in challenge, we tried many new recipes. I wanted to share a few, especially those I did in the slow-cooker.

This is one I got from the Weight Watchers website. I’m considering trying it again with a few modifications. I’m not a huge fan of ricotta cheese (though my husband is) and I’m wondering how this recipe would taste with cottage cheese versus ricotta. I also don’t think it needed the entire onion – or maybe the one I bought was too big.

I threw this together before work one morning, and it was ready when I got home at 5:30. It makes 6 servings, so we had leftovers for lunch (we ate the leftovers for lunch twice.)

Ingredients:
1 pound(s) uncooked lean ground beef (with 7% fat)
1 small onion(s), chopped
1 medium garlic clove(s), minced
28 oz canned crushed tomatoes
15 oz canned tomato sauce
1 tsp table salt
1 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp dried basil
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes, or to taste
1 cup part-skim ricotta cheese
1 1/2 cups part-skim mozzarella cheese, shredded, divided
6 dry no-cook lasagna noodles
1/2 cup(s) shredded Parmesan cheese, strong-flavored like Romano or Parmigiano Reggiano

Instructions:
Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add beef, onion and garlic; cook, stirring frequently, breaking up meat with a wooden spoon as it cooks, about 5 to 7 minutes. Stir in crushed tomatoes, tomato sauce, salt, oregano, basil and red pepper flakes; simmer 5 minutes to allow flavors to blend.

Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, stir together ricotta cheese and 1 cup of mozzarella cheese.

Spoon 1/3 of beef mixture into a 5-quart slow cooker. Break 3 lasagna sheets in half and arrange over beef mixture; top with half of ricotta mixture. Repeat with another layer and finish with remaining 1/3 of beef mixture.

Cover slow cooker and cook on low setting for 4 to 6 hours. Remove cover; turn off heat and season to taste, if desired.

In a small bowl, combine remaining 1/2 cup of mozzarella cheese and Parmesan cheese; sprinkle over beef mixture. Cover and set aside until cheese melts and lasagna firms up, about 10 minutes. Yields 1/6th of dish per serving.

(And for those of you following the Weight Watchers plan, it’s 8 points.)