Healthy Recipe Tuesday

Today's cookbook is "The Food You Crave" by Ellie Krieger. I love this book mostly because it has taught me so much about healthy cooking. I have learned tons from Ellie on her show "Healthy Appetite" on Food Network about how to substitute different things to make my meals healthier. She has some great tips. But her recipes are even better. One of my favorite things that I learned from her was how to use winter squash puree to make homemade mac and cheese instead of milk. Sounds crazy but it works. She uses to packages of frozen squash puree as the base for her sauce and melts the cheese right in it. It is yellow just like cheese so you don't see it and it is so mild in taste that you really don't taste it. My husband even liked it. It is definitely one to check out if you are starting your journey into healthy cooking.

My recipe today is one from the book but I have altered it to add even more healthy ingredients. I LOVE lasagna and I could never give it up so I had to come up with a way to make it healthy. Here it is:

Tomato Sauce ( this makes a lot so save some and freeze it. You won't need it all for the lasagna)

1 Tbsp olive oil

1 med onion chopped fine

2 cloves garlic minced

1 carrot chopped fine

1 zucchini chopped fine

1 summer squash copped fine

2 cups fresh spinach copped fine

2 28oz cans of chopped tomatoes (low sodium if possible)

1/4 c tomato paste

1 tsp dried oregano

1 bay leaf

salt and pepper to taste

Heat a large pan over med heat and add the oil. When it glistens, add the onion, carrot, squash, and zucchini. Saute for 5 minutes. Add garlic and spinach and saute for another minute. Add the remaining ingredients and cook uncovered at a simmer until thickened for 30 minutes. Set aside for the lasagna.

Lasagna

3/4 c part skim mozzarella

12 whole wheat lasagna noodles

1 15oz container of part skim ricotta cheese

1/4 c pesto (homemade if possible)

1/2 c freshly grated Parmesan cheese

1/4 chopped fresh parsley

1 c chopped fresh spinach(optional)

2 egg whites

pinch of nutmeg

salt and pepper to taste

Cook noodles according to box to be al dente

Preheat oven to 375

Mix the ricotta and remaining ingredients in a large bowl reserving the mozzarella for the top

Spread 1/2 c sauce in bottom of a 9x13 baking dish sprayed with nonstick spray. Take a noodle and spread the cheese mixture down the center and roll up and place in the dish with the flat side down. Continue until all rolls are in the dish. Pour sauce over the top and sprinkle with the mozzarella and any leftover parsley. Cover with foil and bake for 30minutes. Take foil off and continue to bake for 15 minutes or until cheese is slightly browned and bubbly. Let sit out for about 10 minutes to cool before serving. Enjoy!