Ingredients
- For creamy garlic sauce:
- Creamy garlic sauce (recipe below)
- 12 lasagna noodles, cooked
- 1 pound chicken tenderloins (about 8 to 10 tenderloins), cooked and diced
- 3 cups shredded parmesan cheese
- 4 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
- 1 (6-ounce) bag baby spinach, raw
- 12 strips bacon, cooked crispy
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1 tablespoon chopped flat-leaf parsley
- 8 cups (1/2 gallon) 1% low-fat milk
- 2 tablespoons natural chicken base
- 4 ounces (8 tablespoons) butter
- 4 cloves garlic, pressed through garlic press
- 4 ounces flour (about 12 tablespoons)
- Pinch or two salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- Pinch ground nutmeg
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
Preparation
Step 1
Directions: For the sauce, add the milk and the chicken base to a large saucepan or medium pot, whisk to combine, and bring to the simmer. Then, turn off the heat.
While the milk heats, add the butter to another large saucepan or medium pot, along with the garlic, and place over medium heat; allow to melt together, and stir the garlic into the butter to soften. Sprinkle the flour into the melted butter and garlic, stirring to combine. Stir for about 1 to 2 minutes to cook out the raw taste of the flour.
Slowly add the hot milk into the butter, garlic, and flour mixture, whisking constantly to avoid lumps from forming. Allow the sauce to simmer for a few moments until thickened.
Once thickened, turn off the heat and finish by whisking in a pinch or two of salt, the black pepper, the nutmeg, the Italian seasoning, and the parmesan cheese. Keep warm, or allow to completely cool and keep in refrigerator to use later.
To assemble the lasagna:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit, and lightly grease a 9-by-13 baking dish. Spread a thin layer of creamy garlic sauce over the bottom of the pan.
Add 4 lasagna noodles over the sauce and then add another more generous layer of the sauce on top. Sprinkle over about half of the diced chicken, followed by about 1 cup of Parmesan and 1 cup of mozzarella. Sprinkle about half of the bag of baby spinach, followed by about a third of the chopped, cooked bacon.
Repeat the lasagna noodle, sauce, chicken, cheese, spinach, and bacon layers. Cover with final layer of lasagna noodles, followed by remainder of sauce, cheeses, and teaspoon of Italian seasoning. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes until golden and bubbly. Garnish with remaining bacon and parsley before serving.