Low Calorie Lasagna Recipe
Roberto Said:
What is a good low calorie, low fat recipe that uses ricotta cheese?We Answered:
Penne with Tomato Ricotta Sauce (Low-Cal)Ingredients:
1 lb penne
1 can stewed tomatoes, with juice
1 can crushed tomatoes
1/2 cup loosely packed fresh basil or 1/2 tsp dried basil
1/2 tsp dries oregano
salt and pepper
2 small garlic cloves - finely chopped
1 and 1/2 cups part-skim ricotta cheese
1/4 cup parmesan cheese
Instructions:
Prepare pasta according to package directions. While pasta is cooking,
combine thestewed and crushed tomatoes, basil, oregano, salt and pepper and garlic in a large saucepan. Heat to boiling, reduce the heat and simmer 15 minutes.
When pasta is done, drain well. Return pasta to cooking pot, add the tomato sauce and heat over low heat, toss to coat with sauce. Remove pot from heat and stir in ricotta and Parmesan cheese until evenly distributed. Divide among serving plates and top with chopped fresh basil or parsley.
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Baked Rigatoni with Sausgae, Spinach and Ricotta
1 pound rigatoni
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 (10 ounce) box frozen spinach, thawed
2 cups ricotta
5 tablespoons grated Parmesan
1/2 teaspoon grated nutmeg
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon fresh-ground black pepper
6 ounces fontina, grated (optional)
Directions
Heat the oven to 450 degrees F. Oil a 9-by-13-inch baking dish.
In a large pot of boiling, salted water, cook the rigatoni until almost done, about 12 minutes. Drain. Put the pasta in the prepared baking dish and toss with 1 tablespoon of the oil.
Meanwhile, squeeze as much of the water as possible from the spinach. Put the spinach in a food processor and puree with the ricotta, 3 tablespoons of the Parmesan, the nutmeg, salt, and pepper. Stir in half the fontina.
Stir the spinach mixture into the pasta. Top with the remaining fontina and Parmesan. Drizzle the remaining 2 tablespoons oil over the top. Bake the pasta until the top is golden brown, 15 to 20 minutes.
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Fusilli with Spicy Chicken Sausage, Tomato, and Ricotta Cheese
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 pound spicy chicken sausages
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1/4 cup dry white wine
1 1/2 cups canned crushed tomatoes in thick puree
1/4 cup water
1/4 teaspoon dried rosemary, crumbled
Pinch dried red-pepper flakes
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsley
1/2 pound fusilli
3/4 cup ricotta cheese
Directions
In a large, deep frying pan, heat the oil over moderate heat. Add the sausage and cook, turning, until browned and cooked through, about 10 minutes. Remove the sausage and, when it is cool enough to handle, cut it into 1/4-inch slices. Pour off all but 1 tablespoon fat from the pan.
Reduce the heat to moderately low. Add the onion to the pan and cook, stirring occasionally, until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook 30 seconds longer.
Add the wine and bring to a simmer. Add the sausage, tomatoes, water, rosemary, red-pepper flakes, and 1/4 teaspoon of the salt and bring to a simmer. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes. Stir in the parsley.
Meanwhile, in a large pot of boiling, salted water, cook the fusilli until just done, about 13 minutes. Drain and toss with the sauce, the ricotta, and the remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt.
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Pasta Shells with Ricotta cheese Stuffing
1 (16 oz.) box large shells,
1 lb. Ricotta cheese
1/4 c. diced Prosciutto, cooked
1/2 lb Ground Beef (optional)
1/2 box frozen spinach, thawed
1 egg, lightly beaten
4 cups tomato sauce
1/4 cup parmesan cheese
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.Boil water for pasta, cook as directed on package.
Heat skillet, brown beef, drain fat. Squeeze water from spinach, mix with beef.
Beat Ricotta, Prosciutto and egg together in a large bowl. mix with beef spinach mixture.
In glass baking dish spread 1 cup of tomato sauce.
Stuff approximately 2 tablespoons of the cheese & beef mixture into each shell and place in a baking dish. Spoon 2 cup of sauce over shells. Cover with aluminum foil and bake 20, remove foil, sprinkle with parmesan cheese. bake 5 more minutes.
Heat remaining sauce, place shells on platter, serve with extra sauceon the side.
Alma Said:
Lasagna Recipe?We Answered:
I have always used large curd cottage cheese for my lasagne. It turns out almost exactly like the expensive ricotta. My original recipe said to put the cottage cheese in a bowl and stir in a raw egg to give it the same consistency. No one has ever complained about my lasagne, and the gourmands say it tastes the same to them.Helen Said:
Does any one have an easy, low calorie vegetarian lasagna recipe?We Answered:
Here's an interesting and delicious veggie lasagna that happens to be low-carb, too! You don't use lasagna noodles, but sliced zucchini instead. It's really delicious! Also note that you can always substitute fat free ricotta and fat free/low fat cheeses to cut down on calories/fat.M's Noodle Free Veggie Lasagna:
• Cooking Spray
• 1/2 lb (7.5 cups) fresh spinach (you could easily use frozen whole leaf spinach)
• 2 lb Zucchini, cut lengthwise into 1/8 inch thick slices
• 15 oz part-skim ricotta
• 1 egg white
• 1/2 c grated Parmesan
• 2 tbsp chopped fresh basil
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg
• 1 can (14.5 oz) whole peeled tomatoes
• 1/2 small yellow or red onion
• 1 clove garlic
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 1 c grated part skim mozzarella
Heat oven to 425.
Coat an 8" x 8" baking pan with cooking spray.
Coat a large skillet with cooking spray, heat over high heat. Add spinach. Stir until leaves wilt (this was easiest to do using tongs), about 5 minutes. Place in a colander to drain.
Coat skillet with cooking spray again; heat over high heat. Cook zucchini in batches, 2-3 min per side. Drain on paper towels.
Squeeze excess moisture from spinach. Mix spinach, ricotta, egg white, 1/4 cup of the Parmesan, basil, 1/2 tsp of the salt and nutmeg in a bowl; set aside.
Puree tomatoes, onion, garlic, pepper and remaining 1/2 tsp salt in food processor.
Spread 1/2 the sauce on bottom of pan. Layer zucchini on top like you would with noodles, then 1/2 the ricotta mixture (i just dug in with my hands bc it's hard to spread around with a spoon). Add a layer of zucchini and remaining half of ricotta and sauce (ending with sauce). add mozzarella and remaining 1/4 cup Parmesan. Bake, uncovered, until cheese browns...about 30 min. Let it sit for 10 min or so before cutting so it sets up.