Recipe Rehab: Lasagna

Lasagna is a classic one-dish meal that is perfect to take to your summer gatherings or potlucks. Layers of noodles, meat sauce and cheese are a tasty combination, but the calories add up quickly and can total near 800 calories per serving. For those watching their calories, this one dish could use up half of your daily allotment! One of our readers wrote in with the request to lighten up her favorite dish.
In order to do this, I will replace the traditional sausage and ground beef with low-calorie summer vegetables, such as eggplant, zucchini and mushrooms. This will not only lower the calories, it will add more fiber and nutrients to the meal. The layers of cheese also help to pack on the calories and cottage cheese fillings tend to be very high in sodium. For the lightened up version, I will reduce the amount of cheese throughout the layers, without sacrificing taste, by using a mixture of low-sodium ricotta and strongly-flavored Parmesan. With a sprinkle of mozzarella on the top, this dish will brown nicely. My version is half the calories of traditional lasagna, so enjoy it guilt free!

Ingredients:

• 9 whole wheat lasagna noodles
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 pound button mushrooms, sliced
• 3 medium zucchini, sliced
• 1 medium eggplant, sliced
• 2 (28 oz.) cans crushed tomatoes
• 1 (6 oz.) can tomato paste
• 1 teaspoon dried basil
• 1 teaspoon dried parsley
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2teaspoon black pepper
• 16 ounces part-skim ricotta cheese
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 cup grated mozzarella cheese

Instructions:
1. Prepare the lasagna noodles according to directions. When cooked through, set aside on paper towels to dry.
2. Sauté the onions and garlic in the olive oil over medium heat. Add the sliced mushrooms, zucchini and eggplant, and cook until tender. Mix in the crushed tomatoes and tomato paste. Season with spices. Simmer for 5 to 10 minutes.
3. In a small bowl mix together the ricotta and Parmesan cheeses.
4. Evenly coat the bottom of a 9-inch by 13-inch baking dish with about a half-cup cup of the sauce. Remove another half-cup of the sauce and set aside.
5. To assemble the lasagna: Top the sauce in the baking dish with an even layer of noodles cutting to fit the pan if necessary. Spread the half of the cheese mixture over the lasagna noodles. Then layer with half of the remaining sauce mixture. Repeat.
6. Top the final layer of noodles with the reserved half-cup of sauce. Sprinkle with grated mozzarella cheese.
7. Cover with tin foil and bake in a 350°F oven for 30 minutes. Uncover and bake for an additional 20 minutes until the cheese has browned.
Serves: 9
Nutrition Content (per serving):
329 calories, 11 g fat, 5 g saturated fat, 45 g carbohydrates, 10 g fiber, 21 g protein, 619 mg sodium, 400 mg calcium