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Meaty Lasagna with Cottage Cheese

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4.9 from 17 reviews

This quick and easy cottage cheese lasagna is the definition of classic comfort food! It can be made up to 5 days in advance so you can prep it whenever you have time and enjoy a hearty, homecooked meal when it’s convenient for you!

Ingredients

Units Scale
  • 12 lasagna noodles
  • 1 lb. ground beef
  • 5–6 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 teaspoons dried oregano
  • 32 oz. spaghetti sauce
  • 5 oz. fresh baby spinach, chopped
  • 5 oz. grated Parmesan, divided
  • 8 oz. shredded whole milk mozzarella, divided
  • 24 oz. 4% milkfat cottage cheese
  • 2 large eggs
  • Kosher salt
  • fresh cracked pepper

Garnish

  • fresh chopped parsley
  • grated Parmesan

Instructions

  1. Heat oven to 375 degrees.
  2. Cook lasagna noodles about 3 minutes less than their recommended cooking time. Toss in olive oil so they don’t stick together.
  3. Cook ground beef in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Crumbling with a spatula as it cooks. Add garlic, oregano, and a couple pinches of salt and pepper. Cook for about a minute, stirring occasionally.
  4. Pour spaghetti sauce into the pan and stir to combine.
  5. In a large bowl combine fresh spinach, 1/2 the mozzarella cheese, 1/2 the Parmesan cheese, cottage cheese, eggs, and a couple large pinches of salt and pepper.
  6. Spread 1 cup of sauce in the bottom of a lightly greased 9×13 inch baking dish.
  7. Layer three noodles on the bottom of the dish, overlapping them slightly.
  8. Divide the spinach filling into 1/3’s. Spread 1/3 of the filling on top of the noodles.
  9. Drizzle a heaping 1/2 cup of meat sauce over the spinach filling and layer another 3 noodles.
  10. Spread another 1/3 of the creamy spinach filling on top of the noodles.
  11. Drizzle a heaping 1/2 cup of the meat sauce over the spinach filling and layer another 3 noodles.
  12. Spread remaining spinach filling over the noodles. Drizzle with a heaping 1/2 cup of the meat sauce and top with the remaining 3 noodles.
  13. Spread remaining meat sauce over the noodles in an even layer.
  14. Top lasagna with remaining shredded mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses.
  15. Cover tightly with foil and bake for 30 minutes.
  16. Remove foil and bake for another 5 minutes.
  17. Let sit at least 10 minutes, then slice. Garnish with Parmesan and parsley, and enjoy!

Equipment

Notes

  • For the best texture, don’t follow the instructions on the box of lasagna. Cook the noodles for about 3 minutes less than the box suggests. This ensures that the noodles are flexible enough to work with, but don’t fall apart. They will come out perfectly al dente after they’re baked!
  • Don’t forget to salt your pasta water! Pasta water should be as salty as the sea. I like to add at least 1-2 tablespoons and sometimes more. This is your only chance to season the pasta itself. And don’t worry about the pasta being salty, much of that salt actually washes away when you drain the noodles.
  • Make your sauce a little spicy with a couple pinches of red pepper flakes. It’s an easy way to give this homemade lasagna recipe a delightful kick!

Nutrition

Find it online: https://midwestfoodieblog.com/the-easiest-cottage-cheese-lasagna/