Lightened Up Lasagna

cookingnutrition basic
Written By Judy Doherty, MPS, PCII

 

Lightened Cheese Lasagna

This recipe uses silken tofu along with ricotta cheese to create a creamy filling that is lower in fat and calories.

  • 8 ounce box lasagna noodles
  • 52 ounce jars pasta sauce (2 26-ounce jars)
  • 32 ounces fat-free ricotta cheese
  • 12 ounce silken tofu (firm is best)
  • 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning (or use oregano, basil, and thyme)
  • 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
  1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
  2. Place ricotta, tofu, and Italian seasoning in a food processor and blend on high speed.
  3. Layer lasagna in this order in a 9"x12" pan: sauce, noodles, ricotta filling. End with sauce on top then sprinkle with mozzarella cheese.
  4. Cover the lasagna with foil and bake for one hour in the oven or until heated through and noodles are tender. There is no need to cook the noodles.
  5. Allow lasagna to stand for 5 minutes, then cut into 10 cubes and serve hot.

If you use low-sodium or no added salt pasta sauce or tomato sauce you will reduce the sodium by 60% or more.

Main Course
Italian
lasagna

Judy Doherty, MPS, PCII

Judy Doherty, MPS, PCII discovered her love of cooking at her grandmother's side, stirring raisin oatmeal on a Saturday morning. By 15 she had her first food service job. At 18 she was accepted to the Culinary Institute of America, where she graduated second in her class, then went on to the Fachschule Richemont in Switzerland to study pastry arts and baking. A decade with Hyatt Hotels followed before she founded Food and Health Communications with a single conviction: food that is good for you should taste extraordinary.

Judy holds a Master of Professional Studies in Food Business from the Culinary Institute of America, a Bachelor of Science in Culinary Arts from Johnson and Wales University (Summa Cum Laude), two art certificates from UC Berkeley Extension, and the CIA's Pro Chef II certification. She has earned the American Culinary Federation Bronze Medal, Gold Medal, and ACF Chef of the Year award.

Today she develops every recipe on this site, shoots and styles food through her food photography and motion studio, and publishes nutrition education materials for dietitians, schools, extension offices, and health professionals through nutritioneducationstore.com. She uses the latest nutritional science and Dietary Guidelines to drive her creativity — whether that means a new twist on fajitas or Italian brownies made with toasted nuts and cooked honey. Her mission has never changed: help everyone make food that tastes as good as it is for them.

https://nutritioneducationstore.com
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