Turkey Lasagna

Preparation

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add noodles; cook until not quite tender, about 2 minutes less than the package directions. Drain; return the noodles to the pot and cover with cool water. Set aside.
2. With the food processor motor running, drop garlic through the feed tube and process until minced. Add mushrooms, carrot and celery and process until finely chopped. Turn the machine off, add onion and pulse until coarsely chopped.
3. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add turkey (or beef) and cook, breaking up with a wooden spoon, until no longer pink, 4 to 6 minutes. Reduce heat to medium and add the vegetable mixture, Italian seasoning, fennel seeds, pepper and salt. Cook, stirring often, until the mushrooms’ liquid has evaporated, the mixture has cooked down, the vegetables are soft and the skillet is dry, 12 to 15 minutes.
4. Combine ricotta and egg in a medium bowl.
5. Preheat oven to 350°F. Coat a 9-by-13-inch baking pan with cooking spray.
6. To assemble lasagna: Drain the noodles and spread out on a clean kitchen towel. Spread half the marinara in the prepared baking dish. Layer 3 noodles over the sauce. Spread half the ricotta mixture over the noodles. Top with half the meat mixture, one-third of the remaining marinara and one-third of the shredded cheese. Continue with another layer of noodles, the remaining ricotta, the remaining meat mixture, half the remaining marinara and half the remaining shredded cheese. Top with a third layer of noodles and the remaining marinara. Cover the lasagna with foil.
7. Bake until bubbling, about 45 minutes. Remove the foil; sprinkle the remaining shredded cheese on top. Bake until the cheese is just melted but not browned, 10 to 15 minutes more. Let stand for 10 to 20 minutes before serving.

Tips & Notes

• Make Ahead Tip: Prepare through Step 6; refrigerate for up to 1 day. In Step 7, bake the lasagna, covered, for 1 hour before removing foil and topping with cheese.

• Tip: Sneak some finely chopped vegetables into your ground-meat mixture for lasagna, meatloaf or chili to make servings generous but keep calories and fat in check.

Nutrition