Lasagna Mini’s

One of my New Year resolutions is to decrease my food intake ie: lose 5-7 lbs which is insanely challenging considering I LOVE food.  Not only do I love food, but I love to cook indulgent, decadent, food food.  So instead of depriving myself altogether, I find making mini versions of the food I like, a much healthier alternative.  I can eat some now and freeze some for later.

Ingredients:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Sauce
2 tbls olive oil
1lb ground Turkey
1/2 onion chopped
2 cloves garlic minced
1 bell pepper chopped
2 tbls fresh basil chopped
1 8 oz can whole tomatoes
2 tbls fresh oregano chopped
1 tbls sugar
2 cans tomato paste
salt
pepper

Ricotta sauce
16oz fat free ricotta cheese
1 egg
2 tbls dried oregano

8 oz fresh shredded mozzarella
8 oz fresh shredded monterey & cheddar

Lasagna noodles cooked according to box instructions.  Once cooked and cooled, cut each noodle in half and trim the wavy edged off of each side of the noodle.

Directions:
Heat the olive oil in a skillet, saute onion, garlic and bellpepper for about 3-4 minutes.  Add the remaining ingredients except the ground turkey.  Let simmer for 2 hours.  After the 2 hours, brown the turkey, add to the sauce and continue to simmer for 1 additional hour.

For the ricotta sauce, add the ricotta, egg and oregano, mix well and set aside.

Using a baking tin with 3×3 squares, spray the tin with baking spray, layer each square with one of the cut noodles.
layer 1 tbls of ricotta, 1 tbls cheese, 2 tbls sauce and repeat.   Close the mini’s with the excess noodle from the sides to make a little box.  Add a tbls of sauce on top and sprinkle with cheese.

Bake at 350 for 20 minutes.

       XOXO