I use turkey sausage, whole wheat noodles and part-skim cheese to lighten up a traditional lasagna, but by all means, go for the pork sausage, regular noodles and full fat cheese if that’s what you prefer.
To make this #dinnerdoneby9am I fully assemble the lasagna in the morning, refrigerate all day and bake just prior to serving.
-1 box whole wheat lasagna noodles
-2 Tbsp olive oil
-1 lb Italian turkey sausage
-1 onion, diced
-6 cloves garlic, minced
-1 (29 oz) can crushed tomatoes
-1 (6 oz) can tomato paste
-2 tsp salt, divided use
-1 tsp black pepper, divided use
-1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
-1 Tbsp sugar
-1 Tbsp Italian seasoning
-1 egg
-1 (15 oz) container part-skim ricotta
-4 oz goat cheese
-1 c shredded parmesan cheese
-2 c part-skim shredded mozzarella cheese
Soak noodles in hot tap water for 20 minutes, then drain.
While noodles soak, heat olive oil in large pot over medium heat. Cook turkey sausage, breaking up with a spoon while cooking, until it is cooked through. Set sausage aside. Place onion in the same pot, over medium heat. Cook 10 minutes, stirring. Add garlic, cook 1 additional minute. Add crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, 1 1/2 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp black pepper, red pepper flakes, sugar and Italian seasoning. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer 10 minutes. Remove from heat.
While sauce is simmering, in a medium bowl, combine egg, ricotta, goat cheese, parmesan, 1/2 tsp salt and 1/2 tsp pepper. Stir to combine.
Grease a 13 x 9 dish. Spread 1/3 the sauce on the bottom of the pan. Top with a layer of noodles. Top the noodles with 1/2 of the cheese mixture. Sprinkle that with 1 c mozzarella. Repeat layers of sauce, noodles, cheese mixture. Top with remaining sauce and sprinkle with remaining 1/2 c mozzarella. Bake at 400 for 20-30 minutes, until browned on the edges.
