Skinny Mushroom Spinach Lasagna
Try this Skinny Mushroom Spinach Lasagna recipe, or contribute your own.
Try this Skinny Mushroom Spinach Lasagna recipe, or contribute your own.
- 1 large egg
- salt + pepper to taste
- 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
- 2 tablespoons minced garlic
- 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 1/2 cup chopped onions
- 2 cups chopped mushrooms
- 2 tablespoons salted butter
- 2 - 10 z packages frozen or fresh spinach defrosted + water squeezed out
- 30 oz non-fat ricotta cheese
- 9 whole wheat lasagna noodles prepared (see note)*
- 1 jar (24 oz) spaghetti sauce (i used and suggest a toma
- 2 cups part skim - mozzarella cheese*
- Carbohydrate 4.84029807175127 g
- Cholesterol 45.5964012391815 mg
- Fat 8.28482993977844 g
- Fiber 0.179105691319695 g
- Protein 9.34159604728063 g
- Saturated Fat 5.03365694768655 g
- Serving Size 1 1 piece (91g)
- Sodium 137.619300572793 mg
- Sugar 4.66119238043157 g
- Trans Fat 0.52777526734117 g
- Calories 131 calories
Step-by-step
- Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat.
- Add the onions and sauté them for 2 minutes or until they start to just become translucent.
- Add the chopped mushrooms and continue to cook for 3-4 minutes.
- Add the garlic, spinach, red pepper flakes, and nutmeg.
- Sauté for just a minute or so until all the ingredients are well mixed together.
- Season with salt and pepper.
- In a large bowl, combine the ricotta, egg, and parmesan cheese.
- Add the spinach mixture to the ricotta and stir to combine.
- Position a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
- Spread a little bit of tomato sauce in the bottom of a 9x13 baking pan.
- Layer with 3 lasagna noodles, ½ of the spinach mixture, ⅓ of the tomato sauce, and ⅓ of the cheese.
- Repeat until all the layers are formed.
- Ending with noodles, sauce, and cheese.
- Bake covered for 20 minutes and then uncovered for 10 more minutes.
- Let stand for 10-15 minutes so that the lasagna noodles can soak up all the extra deliciousness.
- Cut and serve warm.
Spinach contributes more water to a baked casserole than almost any other common green vegetable, carrying a high intracellular water content that must be forcibly expelled before assembly. Thawing frozen spinach or blanching fresh leaves creates a cellular collapse, but simply draining the liquid through a colander leaves enough moisture behind to turn a ricotta filling soupy. Pressing the greens in a clean dish towel or using a potato ricer removes excess water, ensuring the dairy proteins and starches maintain their structure during the baking phase at 375 degrees.
Mushrooms present a secondary moisture challenge due to their spongy cellular walls composed largely of water and chitin. Sautéing these fungi over medium heat allows internal moisture to evaporate before the cellular structure browns, concentrating umami compounds without releasing liquid into the pan later. Cooking the onions and mushrooms together for roughly five to six minutes builds a concentrated flavor base that counteracts the inherent blandness of non-fat dairy products.
Resting the baked lasagna for 10 to 15 minutes after removing it from the oven is a crucial thermal requirement rather than a mere convenience. During this resting window, the internal temperature drops slightly, allowing the starches in the whole wheat noodles and the denatured whey proteins in the ricotta to set completely. Cutting the casserole immediately while piping hot causes the layers to slide apart because the internal emulsions have not yet stabilized.
Adapting this preparation for smaller households requires scaling the ingredient ratios proportionally while maintaining a consistent baking dish depth. Reducing the yield from twelve servings down to six works best by cutting the ingredient quantities in half and transferring the build to an 8x8 inch pan to preserve the identical vertical stacking ratio.
