Friday, March 9, 2012

Italian Sausage Lasagna


  • 1 lb. Italian sausage
  • 12 lasagna noodles, uncooked
  • 1 medium onion, chopped
  • 2 cloves garlic, chopped
  • 1/2 Parmesan cheese, grated
  • 2 cups fresh spinach, lightly packed and chopped
  • 2 cups mozzarella cheese, shredded
  • 1 tsp. dried oregano
  • 2 Tbsp. olive oil
  • 1 large egg
  • 24 oz. small curd cottage cheese
  • 1 jar (24 oz.) marinara sauce
  1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.  Cook pasta until al dente.  Drain, lightly oil and set aside.  
  2. In a medium sauce pan, saute the sausage, crumbling with a wooden spoon, until no longer pink.  Add onion and garlic and continue sauteing for another 4 minutes until the sausage is cooked through.  Add marinara sauce to the sausage mixture and set aside.  
  3. In a medium bowl, blend cottage cheese, egg, half of the Parmesan cheese and the chopped spinach; set aside.  
  4. Coat a 9x13" baking dish with olive oil and spread 1 cup of the sauce mixture on the bottom.  Top with 3 lasagna noodles.  Spread 1/4 of the cottage cheese mixture on the oodles and layer on 1 cup of the sauce mixture.  Sprinkle 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese over this.  Repeat this three times starting with the noodles and finish with the remaining 1/4 cup of Parmesan cheese.  Sprinkle with oregano.
  5. Preheat oven to 350° and bake for 45 minutes until hot and bubbly.  Let stand 10 minutes before cutting.