Delicious Lasagna Recipes

Who doesn't love lasagna?  Ok, some don't, so for those of you who do here are three delicious and super easy variations.  I hope you enjoy them as much as my family and I do.  Please leave me comments to let me know how it turned out!

What You'll Need:

• Cooking Spray
• 12 ounces cooked chicken, cut into 1-inch cubes (about 3 cups)
• 1 cup sour cream (regular or reduced-fat)
• 1 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese (regular or low-fat), divided into 3/4 & 1/4
• 1 cup shredded Cheddar (regular or low-fat), divided into 3/4 & 1/4
• 1/2 cup mild, medium, or hot salsa (your liking)
• 1 (4-ounce) can chopped green chiles
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro leaves (optional - I leave this out as I hate cilantro!)
• 1 teaspoon ground chili powder
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper, or to taste
• 8 (6-inch) corn tortillas, cut into 6 wedges (stack a couple of them and use a pizza cutter to cut the wedges - LOVE this tip!)

Preheat oven to 350° F.

Coat an 11″ x 7" baking pan with cooking spray (I prefer glass, but it's not necessary).

In a large bowl, combine chicken, sour cream, 3/4 cup of the Monterey Jack cheese, 3/4 cup of the Cheddar, salsa, chiles, cilantro (optional), chili powder, and cayenne pepper.  Mix well and set aside.

Arrange half of the tortilla pieces in the bottom of the prepared pan, overlapping pieces slightly to cover the surface.  Top with half of the chicken mixture and smooth over with the back of a spoon to even the top.  Layer remaining tortillas over top, and spoon over remaining chicken misture.  Top with remaining 1/4 each of the Monterey Jack and Cheddar cheeses.

Cover with foil and bake 30 minutes.  Uncover and bake 30 more minutes, until top is golden and bubbly.  Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

To reheat, bake in a preheated 375° F oven for 15 minutes.

What You'll Need:

• Nonstick cooking spray
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 16-ounce can whole Italian-style (plum) tomatoes, cut up (reserve juices)
• 1/3 cup tomato paste
• 1/3 cup water
• 2 tablespoons parsley, snipped
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano (optional - I skip this because I don't like oregano)
• 1/8 teaspoon pepper
• 1 15-ounce container low-fat ricotta cheese
• 1 cup shredded reduced-fat Mozzarella cheese
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 2 egg whites
• 6 lasagna noodles, cooked, drained

Preheat oven to 350° F.

Spray a medium saucepan with nonstick cooking spray. Cook onion and garlic until tender. Add the tomatoes, reserved juice, tomato paste, water, 1 tablespoon parsley, salt, oregano and pepper. Simmer uncovered for 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a mixing bowl, combine the ricotta, half the mozzarella, the Parmesan, egg whites and remaining parsley.

Spread 1/3 cup of cheese mixture on each lasagna noodle and roll it up. Pour half the sauce into a 2 1/2 quart baking dish. Place roll-ups seam side down in the dish. Top with remaining sauce and Mozzarella. Cover and bake 40 to 45 minutes. Let stand 15 minutes. Serve.

What you'll need:

• 1 pound ground beef
• 1 can pinto beans, drained & rinsed
• 1 package taco seasoning
• 1 jar (16-ounce) Old El Paso Thick n Chunky salsa
• 1 can (8-ounce) tomato sauce
• 1 jar (1-pound) Alfredo sauce
• 4 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese
• 16 uncooked lasagna noodles
• 2 tablespoons cilantro (optional - you probably know by now that I hate cilantro!)

Before I move on, I must give a shout-out about these Slow-Cooker Liners by Reynolds. They are awesome - especially for those of you, like me, who hate all the cleanup involved with cooking, and slow-cookers are a pain to clean! These bags provide for fast, easy cleanup with no soaking or scrubbing - just cook in it, then toss the bag! I won't use my slow-cooker without them.

In a 12-inch skillet, cook beef until browned.  Drain.  Stir in beans and taco seasoning.

Spray 4-6 quart slow cooker with cooking spray.  Spread 3/4 cup of the salsa on the bottom.  Stir remaining salso and tomato sauce into beef mixture.

In a small bowl, mix alfredo sauce and 3 cups of cheese.

Layer 4 lasagna noodles over sauce in slow cooker, breaking noodles as necessary.  Top with half the alfredo sauce mixture.  Add 4 more lasagna noodles.  Top with half the beef mixture.  Repeat layering.

Cover, cook on low heat for 4-5 hours.  sprinkle remaining cheese over top.  Cover, cook 5 minutes more or until cheese is melted.  Turn off slow cooker and uncover.  Let stand 10 minutes before serving.  Sprinkle with cilantro (I don't - I hate - well, you know that!)

Enjoy!!