Spinach and Turkey Sausage Lasagna

From Light & Tasty


Lynette Randleman's turkey sausage lasagna proves you can layer on great taste while keeping a luscious comfort food light. “My husband likes it better than the traditional tomato-based version,” she adds from Buffalo, Wyoming.


INGREDIENTS


* 3 tablespoons butter
* 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1/4 teaspoon pepper
* 3 cups fat-free milk
* 3 ounces reduced-fat cream cheese, cubed
* 3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
* 1 pound Italian turkey sausage links, casings removed and crumbled
* 1 medium onion, chopped
* 4 garlic cloves, minced
* 1 teaspoon dried oregano
* 1 teaspoon dried marjoram
* 1/2 teaspoon fennel seed, crushed
* 1 jar (7-1/4 ounces) roasted sweet red peppers, drained and chopped
* 1/2 cup white wine or reduced-sodium chicken broth
* 2 packages (10 ounces each) frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
* 3/4 cup small-curd 2% cottage cheese
* 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
* 9 lasagna noodles, cooked, rinsed and drained
* 1/2 cup shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese


SERVINGS 12
CATEGORY Lower Fat
METHOD Baked
PREP 60 min.
COOK 55 min.
TOTAL 115 min.


DIRECTIONS



In a saucepan, melt butter. Stir in flour, salt and pepper until smooth. Gradually stir in milk. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 1-2 minutes or until thickened. Stir in cream cheese until melted. Stir in Parmesan cheese just until melted. Remove from the heat; set aside.
In a large nonstick skillet coated with nonstick cooking spray, cook sausage, onion and garlic over medium heat until sausage is no longer pink; drain. Stir in oregano, marjoram and fennel; cook for 1 minute.
Add roasted peppers and wine or broth. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 3-5 minutes or until liquid is reduced to 3 tablespoons. Remove from the heat; set aside. In a small bowl, combine spinach, cottage cheese and nutmeg; set aside.
Spread 1/2 cup cheese sauce in a 13-in. x 9-in. x 2-in. baking dish coated with nonstick cooking spray. Top with three noodles, half of the sausage mixture, half of the spinach mixture and 1 cup sauce; repeat layers. Top with remaining noodles and sauce. Sprinkle with mozzarella cheese.
Cover and bake at 375° for 40 minutes. Uncover; bake 15-20 minutes longer or until heated through and top is lightly browned. Let stand for 10 minutes before cutting. Yield: 12 servings.




NUTRITIONAL INFO



Nutrition Facts: 1 piece equals 279 calories, 11 g fat (6 g saturated fat), 43 mg cholesterol, 664 mg sodium, 27 g carbohydrate, 3 g fiber, 19 g protein. Diabetic Exchanges: 2 lean meat, 1-1/2 starch, 1 vegetable, 1 fat.