WFD: Not Ya Mama's Lasagna

This is the perfect dinner for anyone trying to lose 10 lbs before her Sister's September wedding... okay not really, but I love this lasagna! The thing that sets this lasagna apart from traditional recipes is the absence of ricotta cheese (which I am not a fan of). You can prepare this dish and freeze it, or heat immediately.  I think everyone should have a lasagna in the freezer at all times!



Ingredients:

• 1/8 cup vegetable oil  
• 1/4 cup butter
• 2 med. onions, chopped
• about 12 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1.5 lbs. ground turkey
• 1 (6 oz.) cans of tomato paste
• 1 (13 oz). can tomato sauce
• 1 (13 oz.) can tomatoes
• Seasoning to taste (salt, black pepper, cayenne pepper, basil)
• 1 large box lasagna noodles
•  grated Mozzarella (I used half a block as pictured above)
• grated cheddar cheese (I use half a block as pictured above)

Preparation:

Meat Sauce:Heat oil and margarine.  Add onions and sauté until onions very soft.  Add garlic.  Sauté for a few more minutes.  

Add browned ground turnkey.   

Add tomato paste, tomato sauce, tomatoes, and ¼ cup water. Bring to a boil and add seasoning to taste.  Simmer, covered, for 1 hour.  After 1 hour, you may need to add more water to get the sauce to the right consistency. 

Noodles:
Cook lasagna noodles according to directions on box.  Drain.  
Assembling lasagna:
Begin assembling lasagna by covering bottom of pans with a layer of meat sauce.  Add extra water to this layer of sauce; it will help prevent sticking.  Layer noodles on the sauce, patching open areas with noodles that may have split during cooking.  Follow the noodles with more sauce and then sprinkle cheeses on top.  Repeat layers of noodles, sauce, and cheeses until you fill pan.  (Generally,  4 layers in a standard 13 x 9 pan.) 

Cooking: 
Place pan in 375 degree oven for 30 minutes.  Let it sit for about 5 min before cutting.

Freezing: 
You can cover with aluminum foil to freeze.  To cook frozen pans, allow to partially thaw and bake covered at 350 degrees for one hour.  Uncover pan for last 10 minutes of cooking.