Chicken and cheese Lasagna

I haven’t made a real lasagna in a while – so I knew it was about time.  When I found this recipe – I knew it was perfect – since it was healthy and pretty easy to make.  My sister only eats turkey or chicken, so this was great recipe to try when she was visiting since it contains ground chicken.  I wanted to use whole wheat lasagna noodles – but my store didn’t carry any.  I actually did find some, but it wasn’t until after I made this – figures! 

I made this to serve with the rolls I made with my niece.  She was also watching me take the photos of this piece of lasagna – and again I turned my back and she grabbed the basil off the top and ate it!  Too funny – I said to her “you stole the basil” and she was so happy and ate it right up!  I think she’s a budding foodie in the works!

Ingredients

• 2 cups nonfat ricotta cheese
• 3 cups shredded, part-skim mozzarella cheese
• 1/2 grated parmesan cheese
• 1 cup chopped fresh basil
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• salt and pepper
• 2 tsp. olive oil
• 1 onion, minced
• 6 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/4 tsp. dried oregano
• 1/8 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 lb. ground chicken
• 1 (28 oz.) can crushed tomatoes
• 1 (28 oz.) can diced tomatoes
• 12-15 whole wheat, no-boil lasagna noodles
• vegetable oil spray

Directions
1. Mix together the ricotta, 2 cups mozzarella, parmesan, 1/2 cup basil, egg, 1/2 tsp. salt and 1/2 tsp. pepper in a bowl until well combined; set aside.
2. In a dutch oven or stockpot, heat oil over medium heat until shimmering.  Add the onion and cook until softened, about 5 minutes.  Stir in garlic, oregano and red pepper flakes until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
3. Add the ground chicken and cook until no longer pink, breaking up with a wooden spoon. 
4. Stir in the tomatoes with their juices and bring to a simmer.  Cook, stirring occasionally, until the sauce has thickened, about 15 minutes. 
5. Off heat, stir in the remaining 1/2 cup basil and season to taste with salt and pepper.
6. Adjust the oven rack to middle position, and preheat to 375 degrees F.  Coat a 13 x 9 inch pan with vegetable oil spray.
7. Spread 1 1/2 cups of the sauce over the bottom of the dish.  Layer 3-4 lasagna noodles over sauce.  Spread 1/4 cup ricotta over each noodle then spread another 1 1/2 cup of sauce over the ricotta.  Repeat layering two more times.  On the final layer, top with remaining 2 cups sauce and 1 cup mozzarella cheese.  Spray a large sheet of foil with vegetable spray and cover the lasagna.
8. Bake until the sauce is bubbling, about 40 to 45 minutes.  Remove foil and continue to bake for about 20 minutes, until cheese is melted and starting to brown.   Let rest 10-15 minutes before serving.
Source: America’s Test Kitchen Healthy Family Cookbook
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