This crowd-pleaser is beefed up with veggies in every layer, portobello mushrooms in the meat, spinach in the cheese, and of course tomato sauce in between. No one will notice they’re eating their vegetables, they’ll be too busy devouring their cheesy beef lasagna.
| Level: | Intermediate |
| Total: | 1 hr 50 min |
| Prep: | 35 min |
| Cook: | 1 hr 15 min |
| Yield: | 6 servings |
Ingredients
- 12 ounces whole-wheat lasagna noodles (15 noodles)
- 8 ounces lean ground beef (90 percent lean or higher)
- 2 teaspoons olive oil
- 8 ounces portobello mushrooms, diced (about 3 large mushroom caps)
- 4 cups good quality store-bought marinara sauce
- 1 (15 ounce) container part-skim ricotta cheese
- 1 (10 ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and well drained
- 1 egg, lightly beaten
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- Pinch ground nutmeg
- 1/4 cup grated Parmesan
- 3 ounces grated part-skim mozzarella cheese (about 2/3 cup)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
- Cook the noodles al dente according to the directions on the package. Drain them well then lay out on waxed paper to prevent them from sticking to each other.
- Heat a large nonstick skillet over a medium-high heat. Add the beef and cook until no longer pink, breaking it up into small pieces as it cooks, about 3 minutes. Transfer the meat to a plate, discarding any fat remaining in the pan.
- Add the oil to the same pan and heat over a medium-high heat. Add the mushrooms and cook, stirring occasionally until all the liquid has evaporated and they begin to brown, about 5 minutes. Return the meat to the pan. Stir in 2 cups of the tomato sauce and simmer for 2 minutes.
- In a medium bowl combine the ricotta cheese, spinach, egg, the salt, the pepper and nutmeg.
- Spread 1 cup of tomato sauce on the bottom of a 9 by 13 inch baking dish. Place a layer of lasagna noodles on top, touching but not overlapping. Spread half of the ricotta mixture on top of the noodles. Add another layer of noodles. Top with half the beef-mushroom mixture. Repeat with another layer of noodles, then remaining cheese mixture, more noodles, then remaining beef mixture and finally 1 more layer of noodles. Top the final layer of noodles with the remaining sauce, then sprinkle with the grated cheeses. Cover loosely with foil and bake for 45 minutes. Uncover and bake for 15 minutes more.
- Excellent source of: Protein, Fiber, Vitamin A, Thiamin, Riboflavin, Niacin, Vitamin B12, Vitamin C, Calcium, Iron, Phosphorus, Potassium, Selenium, Zinc
- Good source of: Folate, Copper, Magnesium
Nutrition Facts
| Calories | 530 |
| Total Fat | 16 grams |
| Saturated Fat | 7 grams |
| Cholesterol | 90 milligrams |
| Sodium | 1150 milligrams |
| Carbohydrates | 62 grams |
| Dietary Fiber | 9 grams |
| Protein | 35 grams |
Reviews
This was fantastic! I will add more sauce next time, but overall it was delicious. Believe it or not, it was my first time to ever make lasagna. Even my teenage son gulped it down. This will be made a lot more at my house.
First time I have ever tried Ellie’s Lasagna…all I can say is WOW! I am addicted! I love the spinach and ricotta mixture. Previously, I had only made traditional, loaded with fat lasagna…but this is so much better. I did experiment with the ingredients a bit to get the sauce to a consistency I like and I DID NOT pre-cook the lasagna noodles — I hate watery lasagna. Anyway, it turned out to be total perfection. This lasagna is at the top of my list!!
This was my first Lasagna. It came out great. My husband loved it, he said it reminds him of his grand mother lasagna.
WOW! THEY TORE THIS UP! I made this with ground turkey and added additional seasoning. Only had “NO BAKE” lasagna noodles… added more sauce….outstanding!
shari
shari
I’m not a big fan of ricotta Cheese. I substituted with extra low fat Mozzarella and cheddar. It’s amazing!
My favorite lasagna recipe ever. I added a bit more meat because my partner is on a high protein diet, but it always comes out perfect!
My family & I love this recipe! I did add more sauce this time to make it more “saucey”. Even my picky 3 yo will eat this, so it’s definitely a keeper.
My family loved the lasagna. I added 1lb of meat and two jars of marinara sauce and it came out delicious!
This was amazing! A great classic lasagna recipe! I skipped the mushrooms because I didn’t have any, and used 1 lb of beef.
Way too much spinach, I would only use about half. and I would use just 1 more cup of sauce. Other than that it was super easy considering it was my first lasagna (I have little to no cooking experience.) Because of my diet, I insisted to use turkey.. I don’t think it made a difference. I think it was a very simple recipe, great for someone like myself – the spinach was just a little too much…