Chicken Sausage and Mozzarella Lasagna

By cwyorkiex3

If you think of lasagna as a gut-busting meal, this version might blow your mind. Each saucy square gets tons of taste from chicken sausage and smoked cheese, but thinner layers of sauce and cheese make for a lighter dish. It’s so good you might ask for seconds.
Casey Barber

Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons canola or vegetable oil
• 8 ounces part skim ricotta cheese
• 1 pound hot or mild Italian chicken sausage, removed from casings if linked
• 1/2 pound shredded fresh mozzarella cheese, smoked if available
• 1 jar tomato sauce
• 1/2 pound shredded packaged mozzarella cheese
• 1 box no-boil lasagna sheets
• 1/4 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese

Preparation

Step 1

•Preheat the oven to 375˚.

Heat the oil in a large skillet or saute pan over medium heat. Add the loose sausage and cook, stirring, until browning and no longer pink, 8-10 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and reserve.

Spread a thin layer of tomato sauce across the bottom of a 9”x13” casserole dish. Top with a layer of lasagna noodles, then spread a very thin (no more than 1/4-inch thick) layer of ricotta cheese across the noodles.

Sprinkle 1/3 of the fresh mozzarella and 1/3 of the packaged mozzarella on top of the ricotta, then add another layer of lasagna noodles. Spread more sauce on top of the noodles, then spread evenly with the chicken sausage.

Repeat with another layer of lasagna noodles, thinly spread ricotta cheese, and another third of each mozzarella cheese.

Finish with a final layer of lasagna noodles, another layer of sauce, the final third of each mozzarella cheese, and an even sprinkling of Parmesan cheese.

Cover the baking dish with foil and cook for 45 minutes, or until the sauce is bubbling and the cheese is fully melted and starting to brown. Let rest for 10-15 minutes before serving.