Spinach & Ricotta Lasagna with Ground Chicken

Ingredients

1 tablespoon olive oil 

1 lb ground chicken or turkey 

1 clove garlic, minced 

1 teaspoon salt 

1/2 teaspoon dried basil 

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano 

Freshly ground black pepper 

1 24-25 oz. jar tomato sauce (whatever your favorite is) 

2 cups chopped fresh spinach (you can use frozen, just be sure to thaw & drain before using) 

2 cups ricotta cheese 

1 cup grated parmesan cheese, divided 

3 cups shredded mozzarella cheese* 

8 oz. lasagna noodles (~8 lasagna sheets, half of a standard 16 oz. box) 

Procedure 

1.     Preheat oven to 400°F. Put large pot of water up to boil for lasagna noodles. 

2.     Add a fat pinch of salt to your pot of water once boiling, then add in the lasagna noodles (they may not fit in your pot, but as they start to cook you will be able to submerge them completely in the water). Cook noodles for ~10 minutes – you want them to be al dente (not fully cooked with a bit of a chew still to them) because they will continue to cook in the oven. Stir noodles every couple of minutes to keep them from sticking (I use tongs to do this). Drain noodles – I like to lay them out on a large plate and drizzle them with olive oil so they don’t stick together. 

3.     While noodles are cooking, cook up the ground chicken. 

Heat olive oil in a large skillet/saute pan over medium heat. Add ground chicken and cook ~5-7 minutes, breaking up the meat as it cooks. Add in the garlic, salt, basil, oregano, and a few grinds of black pepper (~1/2 teaspoon). Mix to coat the chicken well and cook for another minute. Add in the entire jar of tomato sauce. Let the sauce come to a simmer (light bubbles) over medium-low heat.  

4.     Combine ricotta cheese with 1/2 cup of the parmesan cheese, the chopped spinach, and a few grinds of freshly ground black pepper (or a pinch of black pepper). 

5.     Layer the lasagna in a 9x13 in baking dish. Start with 1/3 of the sauce mixture on the bottom of the dish. Lay 4 lasagna noodles down. Spread half of the ricotta mixture over the noodles, then sprinkle on 1 cup of the mozzarella cheese. Layer again with another 1/3 of the sauce, the rest of the noodles, the rest of the ricotta mixture, and another cup of mozzarella cheese. Top with the remaining 1/3 of the sauce, the remaining 1/2 cup of parmesan cheese, and the remaining mozzarella cheese. 

6.     Cover lasagna with aluminum foil. Bake for 35-40 minutes. Remove the foil and return to oven to bake for another 15 minutes. 

7.     Allow lasagna to sit for ~10 minutes before cutting into it. Garnish with fresh basil, if desired. Enjoy! 

*NOTE: for the mozzarella cheese, you can use either pre-shredded or grate fresh mozzarella cheese. I actually prefer to put slices of fresh mozzarella on the top of the lasagna, so I use 2 cups shredded/grated + a few slices of fresh mozzarella laid over the top.