Showing posts with label lasagna. Show all posts
Showing posts with label lasagna. Show all posts

Wednesday, January 16, 2013

Lasagna with homemade noodles

Ingredients: 
1 Pasta Dough, rolled out flat:Hand Rolling Pasta Dough with or without the spinach
1 1/2 Cup of Joe's Homemade Pasta Sauce1 Cup Part Skim Ricotta Cheese
8 oz Part Skim Mozzarella Cheese
108g Boca Veggie Crumbles 
1 bunch Fresh Flat Leaf Parsley

* Parmesan Cheese 
* Sea Salt
* Garlic Powder
* Olive Oil

Preparation:
Preheat oven to 425 degrees. 

In a large stock pot bring 4 quarts of water to a boil seasoned heavily with sea salt (should taste like the ocean). Cut pasta dough sheets into lengths approximately 8 - 10 inches long (though it does depend on what you will be making the lasagna in). Boil pasta until it floats, remove and place on a wire rack to dry. 

Spray a small skillet lightly with olive oil seasoned with garlic powder. Add Veggie crumbles to the skillet and saute until browned. 

In a bowl, shred mozzarella cheese to desired size. Additionally, finely chop parsley. 

Spray the bottom of an oven ready casserole dish with some olive oil. Layer in a small amount of sauce followed by an initial layer of noodles. You can alternate the ingredients but it is recommended as follows: 
Layer 7
Noodles
Sauce
1/2 of the Mozzarella
Layer 6
Noodles
Sauce
1/3 of the Ricotta
Layer 5
Noodles
Sauce
1/2 of the Veggie Crumbles
Layer 4
Noodles
Sauce
1/3 of the Ricotta
Layer 3
Noodles
Sauce
1/2 of the Veggie Crumbles
Layer 2
Noodles
Sauce
1/2 of the Mozzarella
Layer 1
Noodles
Sauce
1/3 of the Ricotta



In each layer add as much or as little of the fresh parsley. Top with a small amount of Parmesan cheese and place in oven for approximately 30 - 45 minutes until sauce begins to boil and cheese is melted and bubbling. Place in broiler to finish for approximately 2 minutes. 

Serving
This makes 8 servings, divide the casserole into 8 equal portions. 

Nutrition Information
This is a healthy lasagna recipe since it uses the homemade pasta dough saving on the Weight Watchers Points Plus values for boxed pasta noodles.  Per serving this is approximately 7 WW Points Plus points. 

Tuesday, July 17, 2012

Lasagna In a Mug

This is a take on lasagna whereby you can speed up the cooking time and individualize the contents by cooking individual sized portions in a mug.  I recommend using one of the corningware vented top soup mugs as they are a good size and have a fair capacity to fill. http://www.shopworldkitchen.com/corningware/french-white-pop-ins-mug-1035985

Ingredients: 
4 rounds (Hand rolled Pasta dough cut using cookie cutter into 3" rounds)
1 servings of Part Skim Ricotta Cheese
1.5 servings (46 grams) Part Skim Mozzarella Cheese shredded
1 Cup of Pasta Sauce (http://raygasnick.blogspot.com/2012/06/joes-homemade-pasta-sauce.html) 
1/2 serving (14 grams) Parmesan Cheese shredded

Preparation:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees and place a heat capacitor (such as a stoneware pan or pizza stone) on the low shelf. In mug, place 1 ladle worth of sauce and top with first round. Layer with 1 serving (28 grams) of Mozzarella cheese, top with next round. Place 1/2 ladle of sauce, cover with ricotta cheese and layer next round. Place another 1/2 ladle of sauce and cover with remaining mozzarella cheese. Put final round on top, layer remaining sauce and Parmesan cheese. 

Bake in oven for 15 - 25 minutes until sauce begins to bubble around the edges. 

Serving:
Serve in bowl (recommended to place it on a plate as it WILL be hot.) 

Nutrition Information:
This is a quick, easy and relatively healthy meal. This is 8 Weight Watchers points plus points. 

Recommended Additions:
1. More Layers - this will increase the cheesiness, but it is recommended to alternate mozzarella and ricotta cheeses as when they melt, there will be clear texture differences between layers. 
2. Meat - There are two options on this one: 
    * Ground Beef or Pork directly, 1/4 lb total meat sauteed in some light olive oil lightly salted and peppered
    * 80/20 Beef or Pork: 1/8 lb + 28 grams of soy crumbles to increase the quantity but keep it healthy (adds about 2 - 3 more WW Pts + )
3. Vegetables - Layer some squash or zucchini in between cheese layers or meat layers 

Substitution: 
Substitute tomato sauce with Parmesan cream sauce, substitute beef / pork with chicken and consider adding a layer of spinach in lieu of extra cheese. **** Flavorful, not very healthy ****