Light Lasagna

My boyfriend and I just moved into our new apartment about 3 weeks ago and it’s finally starting to feel like a home!  We still have a few more things to get but for the most part, it is pretty far along.  We decided to have our friends, Dylan and Kristin, over the other night so that they could see the place and just to hang out. 

We knew that we were going to go with an Italian theme, so I decided to make a lasagna recipe that I found here.  I had made this once before and absolutely loved it!  It’s true, it is the best lasagna recipe for someone counting points.   The cheeses that are used give the lasagna that creamy cheesy taste and the combination of the ground beef and turkey sausage make it hearty that you really only need 1 piece!  I also paired this with some asparagus with balsamic vinegar, which is one of my recipes that I will share at a later date.

Ingredients for Lasagna:

·         ¾ lb. 95% lean ground beef

·         ¾ lb. Italian turkey sausage links, casings removed and chopped

·         1 medium onion, chopped

·         1 medium green pepper, chopped

·         1 (26oz) can spaghetti sauce

·         8 oz. 1/3 less fat cream cheese, cubed

·         1 cup 1% cottage cheese

·         1 tablespoon parsley

·         6 lasagna noodles, cooked

·         1 cup shredded 2% Mozzarella (again I used my trusty Trader Joe’s brand)

·         Garlic powder

Directions:

1.       Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Spray a 9 x 13 inch pan with fat free cooking spray and set aside.

2.       Cook your lasagna noodles and drain when finished.

3.       While the noodles are cooking, In a large sauté pan, cook the sausage, beef, onion, and green pepper over medium heat, breaking up until browned. 

4.       Set aside 1 cup of the spaghetti sauce and add the remaining sauce to the meat mixture.  Bring this to a boil, then reduce the heat, simmering uncovered, for 8 – 10 minutes.

5.       Once the sauce is set to a simmer, in a small saucepan, melt the cream cheese over medium heat.  Once melted, remove from heat and stir in cottage cheese and parsley.

6.       Add the meat sauce to the bottom of the baking pan.  Top the meat mixture with 3 lasagna noodles, followed by the cream cheese mixture, then some garlic powder.  Top the remaining 3 lasagna noodles over the cheese and spread the reserved cup of spaghetti sauce on top.  Sprinkle the mozzarella and then more garlic powder over top. 

7.       Cover with aluminum foil and back for 35 minutes.  Remove the cover and bake for an additional 10 minutes. 

Nutritional information (serves 9): 322 calories, 14g fat, 24g carbohydrates, 3g fiber, 26g protein

Weight Watchers points per serving: 9 points plus