Leaner lasagna recipe?

French_Peasant

If only there were a diet that was highly regarded from both a nutritional and a culinary perspective that featured very healthy foods like lasagna and, say, other traditional Mediterranean foods, appropriately moderated. It could also--and I'm just daydreaming here--remind us to get adequate exercise as an excellent foundation for health, and as a counterbalance for eating the delightful, traditional, healthy foods. I really wish someone would invent a diet like that. Of course it makes the self-flagellation as a demonstration of one's dietary purity a lot less fun, if one can maintain a lithe physique on the same crap Garfield the Cat eats. It just depends on what one enjoys more: eating well or self-flagellating.

I have also observed, over my life, that delicate, refined people who have the vapors (aka barfing) over something as plebian, as disgustingly proletarian, as cottage cheese can suddenly be cured, and indeed brought to a state of simpering rapture, when they are told, "Please excuse me, I misspoke--I meant to say fiocchi di latte, traditionally handcrafted by artisans in a cassetta di campagna." Fiocchi di latte is, as anyone of culture and taste knows, an ancient European fresh cheese with small curds (and sometimes larger curds) that has long been widely used in Italian cuisine, including for lasagna, and is listed as interchangeable with ricotta in many Italian recipes (if you are not fluent in Italian, just looks for "fiocchi di latte o ricotta"); they are pretty much the same thing, just using different starters (bacteria vs. vinegar). And naturally both are far superior to cottage cheese, which you can get at WALMART.

kshama2001

French_Peasant wrote: »

If only there were a diet that was highly regarded from both a nutritional and a culinary perspective that featured very healthy foods like lasagna and, say, other traditional Mediterranean foods, appropriately moderated. It could also--and I'm just daydreaming here--remind us to get adequate exercise as an excellent foundation for health, and as a counterbalance for eating the delightful, traditional, healthy foods. I really wish someone would invent a diet like that. Of course it makes the self-flagellation as a demonstration of one's dietary purity a lot less fun, if one can maintain a lithe physique on the same crap Garfield the Cat eats. It just depends on what one enjoys more: eating well or self-flagellating.

I have also observed, over my life, that delicate, refined people who have the vapors (aka barfing) over something as plebian, as disgustingly proletarian, as cottage cheese can suddenly be cured, and indeed brought to a state of simpering rapture, when they are told, "Please excuse me, I misspoke--I meant to say fiocchi di latte, traditionally handcrafted by artisans in a cassetta di campagna." Fiocchi di latte is, as anyone of culture and taste knows, an ancient European fresh cheese with small curds (and sometimes larger curds) that has long been widely used in Italian cuisine, including for lasagna, and is listed as interchangeable with ricotta in many Italian recipes (if you are not fluent in Italian, just looks for "fiocchi di latte o ricotta"); they are pretty much the same thing, just using different starters (bacteria vs. vinegar). And naturally both are far superior to cottage cheese, which you can get at WALMART.

Tacklewasher

kshama2001 wrote: »

Why didn't the Wookie get a medal???????

Tacklewasher

crazyravr wrote: »

Tacklewasher wrote: »

crazyravr wrote: »

@Tacklewasher well played, well played.... but you know what I mean

Actually, before I joined MFP, I had no idea that there was another kind of zoodles.

Before today I had no idea there was this thing in the can lol

It's a Canadian thing apparently.

GottaBurnEmAll

TIL that everyone else thinks lasagna has to have meat.

My grandmother never made it that way, so neither do I. She always just made a pot of meatballs and some braciole on the side.

pinuplove

@French_Peasant Aww, I feel like you've defended my culinary honor. Thanks for that

I'm not offended if someone says cottage cheese in baked ziti (or lasagna) makes them barfy. It's rather amusing that something so simple has incited such a vehement reaction. Shrimp makes me barfy - bugs of the sea I like what I like. Incidentally, that recipe is the ONLY way I like cottage cheese.

amy19355

Francl27 wrote: »

LazSommer wrote: »

Just eat regular lasagna and don't eat half the pan.

I don't have a 'regular' lasagna recipe that doesn't use Italian sausage and/or cottage cheese That's why I came here to ask, lol.

I believe the point is that the ingredients matter less than the portion size.

Don’t mess with my lasagna cheeses and meats! I’ll settle for a small piece of luscious ness.

nicsflyingcircus

cheryldumais wrote: »

crazyravr wrote: »

cheryldumais wrote: »

This may not be what you're looking for at all but I made it with zuchinni in place of the noodles and it was amazing. The pasta can really jack up the calories alot. I used a lower fat mozzarella and if you used ground turkey you could cut a bit more there. I still used some parm and I use a cheese here called quark in place of the ricotta just cause I prefer the taste. Good luck.

Ok. Anytime, and I do mean anytime, we substitute veggies for pasta, its not the same dish. So what you are making is a veggie casserole. Not lasagna. Ditto for zoodles, its not spaghetti. It will never be the same.

Actually it was just like lasagna and we all enjoyed it immensly. Not everyone is going to feel the same. But that's what makes us all individuals.

I actually have done this, slicing the zucchini into very thin slabs, salting and removing the excess liquid. I don't care if it gets called lasagna, or casserole or whatever. For me, the filling is the star, don't care much for the pasta portion, so this allows me to eat a somewhat larger portion of the parts I truly enjoy, while also getting a vegetable I like.

MeganReid1991

I use mushrooms, zucchini, garlic, carrot, onion with the sauce, extra lean ground beef or I use turkey!
I use low fat mozzarella and low fat cottage cheese and full fat ricotta cheese.
I use whole grain noddles.
Honestly it’s still fairly high calories but with the whole grain pasta and lots of veggies I think it’s super filling!