Sunday, September 2, 2012

Lazy Lasagna

The first meal that I will be cooking (prepping) is Lazy Lasagna. It is all over Pinterest (including my "Food and Drink" Board).

The idea is that you can modify a regular dish/meal, divide it into parts/portions, and cook it directly into a mason jar/sealable container. This makes it easy to pre-portion your meals (and not eat all of it at once...) and take to work (or just have ready to eat). Cook it then, Eat it now (or cook now, eat later).

This particular mason jar recipe comes from The Big Red Kitchen: a Regular Gathering of Distinguished Guests. It is in the oven as I type.

Lazy Lasagna

Ingredients:
  • 12 ounce wide egg noodles
  • 1 pound ricotta
  • 1 egg
  • 1 hand full Parmesan cheese
  • 1/2 tsp kosher salt
  • 2 cups mozzarella cheese
  • 3 cups favorite marinara sauce
  • 12 (8 ounce) wide-mouth mason jars or 1 9×13 inch baking dish
  • (Note: I used 6 (16 oz) wide-mouth jars)
Directions:
  1. Boil noodles according to package directions.
  2. Drain and add back to the pot.
  3. Mix in 2 cups of sauce.
  4. In a bowl mix together ricotta, egg, Parmesan cheese, salt, and mozzarella.
  5. Fold cheese mixture gently into the noodles, do not over stir.
  6. Place in greased jars or baking dish and top with the remaining sauce, and sprinkle with more Parmesan cheese.
  7. Bake in 350 degree oven for 35 minutes.
  8. Reheat: Microwave, 4 minutes at 50% power, poke with a fork halfway though


Ingredient Serving SizeCal. Number of ServingsCal. Cost
12 oz Pasta (Bowtie) 1 1/4 cups210 6 servings1260 $1.43
15 oz Ricotta Cheese (Part Skim) 1/4 cup80 7 servings560 $2.00
24 oz Pasta Sauce (Traditional) 1/2 cup80 5 servings400 $1.69
3 oz Parmesan (Only used 1.5 oz) 2 tsp20 17 servings340 $0.75($1.50)
2 cups (8 oz) Mozzorella (Part Skim) 1/4 cups80 8 servings640 $2.50
Salt* 1/2 tsp0 1 serving0 $0.00
1 Egg* (Large) 1 egg90 1 serving90 $0.21($2.50)
Total Calories3290 $8.58Total Cost
Servings6 6Servings
Calories/serving548 $1.43Cost/serving


2 comments:

  1. How did the lasagna turn out? I followed the link and she had used the shorter, wider jars. I was wondering what difference that had made, if any.
    I applaud your weight loss goal and hope to lose a little weight myself before your wedding. Maybe these recipes will help. (I've got the four kids, but I'll probably just make these for my lunches.)

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  2. I used 6-16 oz wide mouth jars, instead of her 12-8oz jars.

    I just ate my first one today and it tastes great! (I made these at midnight the night of the post)

    The jars didn't make much of a difference, but perhaps the re-heating process. Being larger jars it takes more time for the microwave to heat all the way through.

    I reheated mine for 3 minutes at 50% power. (Note: I would take it out halfway and poke it with a fork, because when I opened the microwave the lasagna had slid up the jar...) It was a little cold in the middle, so I would suggest 4 minutes at 50% power, poking it halfway through.

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