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Saturday, July 2, 2011

Greek-Style Vegetarian Lasagna

Last night I made a vegetarian lasagna. It was DELICIOUS. I have never had a lasagna without meat in it, haha. But i was NOT disappointed. Some of you may know that i was recently diagnosed with Insulin Resistance (if you want to read about this, check out my weightloss blog). My endocrinologist suggested the Mediterranean Diet as the best kind of diet for me & it's a great diet... it's something you can stick to for life & it's how i was trying to eat anyway. A big part of this diet is eating mostly fruits & veggies. I've been looking for healthy recipes & found this one on the Old Ways website (a site that my doctor told me to check out).

I know a lot of people like simple recipes with a few ingredients....and i totally understand that, believe me. I am typically the same way. There are those times, though, that I don't mind a more challenging recipe... I love to cook! This was good & easy to make, but i'll admit... it took forever. I don't think it helped that i was starving, ha! I think that's kind of the nature of lasagna, though...it just takes awhile to make. Anyway... it could be faster, if you read it carefully & plan ahead. :) So. Here it is! 

Greek-Style Vegetarian Lasagna
*original recipe here*

-INGREDIENTS-
1 lb whole wheat or whole grain lasagna noodles
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 10 ounce packages frozen chopped spinach, thawed, excess liquid squeezed out
2 medium zucchini, sliced
1 teaspoon ground oregano
1 16 ounce jar prepared marinara sauce
1/2 cup kalamata olives, sliced (I chopped them instead.)
1 cup part-skim ricotta cheese
2/3 cup crumbled feta cheese
1 egg, beaten
Freshly ground black pepper
*I may or may not have sprinkled mozzarella cheese on top.*

{See the tomato in the pic? I never used it. It didn't say in the recipe where/when to put it in! I honestly don't think it needed it. Also, if i had to do this over again? I'd skip those olives & use black ones instead. I am not an olive fan, but my husband is, so usually if a recipe calls for it, i'll chop them instead of slice them - i like the flavor, just not the texture, i think. So i chopped these but i still didn't like them at all. The lasagna was good, but would have been better (to me) without that.  Anyway... you can totally play with this recipe to make it with what you like.}

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cook lasagna noodles according to package directions, removing from water when they are still a little chewy in the middle (more firm than al dente). Set aside to drain.

2. Meanwhile, in a large skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat and add onion. Saute 3 minutes and add garlic and oregano, sauteing for two minutes more. Add the zucchini and saute until beginning to soften, about 2 minutes. 


Add the spinach and jar of tomato sauce, and cook for about 1 more minute. Turn off heat, cover, and set aside.  



3. In a medium bowl, mix the egg, ricotta, and feta cheese and a generous amount of black pepper. 

4. Assemble lasagna: In a 13 x 9 inch baking pan, spoon a little of the sauce mixture into the bottom. Place a layer of the cooked lasagna noodles across this sauce. Ladle a generous helping of the sauce and veggie mixture over this, and crumble half of the feta-ricotta mixture over the sauce. Sprinkle 1/4 cup of the kalamata olive over this. Repeat this layering two more times, finishing with cheese. Add more oregano and pepper to top of lasagna if desired.


 5. Cover pan with aluminum foil and bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes. Remove foil and cook uncovered, for another 15 - 20 minutes until lasagna is bubbling and cheese is browned on top. Allow lasagna to rest for 20 minutes or so before serving.

 {YUM!}


Nutritional Analysis: 
Per serving: Calories: 190, Protein: 9 grams, Fat: 7.5 grams, Saturated Fat: 2.5 grams, Carbohydrates: 23 grams, Fiber: 7 grams, Sodium: 250 mg. (this is without mozzarella cheese)
Yield: 12 servings

2 comments:

  1. Wow, that is really low calorie for lasagna!!! I'll just have to try that since you said the olives were optional. If they weren't that would be a deal breaker. I suppose I could put them in half the lasagna since Brett likes them but I feel like their flavor overtakes whatever you're cooking. Brett feels that way about mushrooms which I LOVE. Bummer. :) :) Thanks for sharing the recipe!!!

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  2. I've been wanting to try making a spinach lasagna for a while now. Amy's has a great frozen veggie/spinach lasagna that I'm obsessed with, but I've never tried making it myself.

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