Heidi No Noodle Lasagna

I was gifted this beautiful Le Creuset casserole dish by my friend Heidi. So, of course I had to name a recipe after her, hence the Heidi No Noodle Lasagna.

If you are like me and love the flavors of lasagna but the noodles not so much. Then this is the dish for you. I love the added vegetable of kale with this plus it came out of my garden so that makes it extra special for me.

Heidi No Noodle Lasagna

Kale is one of those ingredients that is polarizing. Lucky for me I happen to love kale raw or cooked. In this Heidi No Noodle Lasagna it is cooked in boiling water so it will be nice and tender. There are so many health benefits of kale, and you can check them out here.

I am always trying to find ways to lighten a recipe in calories but not in flavor. In this case it was super easy for me because I just omitted the pasta. The calories in the no noodle lasagna is 322 and a similar recipe that used lasagna noodles was 470. What a huge difference. I added a salad from my garden with my favorite salad dressing and had a feast. A little tip on salad dressing, is to add it on the side and dip your salad into the dressing, rather than pour it on.

Heidi No Noodle Lasagna
Heidi No Noodle Lasagna

Heidi No Noodle Lasagna

If you are like me and love the flavors of lasagna but the noodles not so much. Then this is the dish for you. I love the added vegetable of kale with this plus it came out of my garden so that makes it extra special for me.
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 40 minutes
Rest Time 4 minutes
Course Main Course
Cuisine Italian
Servings 6 servings

Ingredients
  

  • 2 medium bunches of kale
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 2 tsp olive oil
  • 1 lb Italian sausage
  • 3 cups pasta sauce
  • 1 tsp dried basil
  • 4 tbsp grated Parmesan cheese
  • 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
  • fresh basil-garnish

Instructions
 

  • Preheat oven to 375. Spray a 9×12 casserole dish with non-stick spray.
  • Heat the oil in a large skillet and remove the sausage from the casing, unless you are using bulk sausage. Cook until browned, breaking it apart as it cooks.
  • When the sausage is cooked, add the pasta sauce and basil.
  • Stir to combine and simmer for 20 minutes, or until thickened. While sauce is simmering add salt to a large pot and bring it to boil.
  • Remove kale stems and cut kale leaves into ribbons 1/2" wide.
  • When the water starts to boil add kale and reduce heat so it's a gentle boil, cook for 4-6 minutes. Watch so the kale doesn't overcook.
  • Drain kale into a colander and use a salad spinner to remove as much water as possible.
  • In the casserole dish, layer 1/2 the kale, 1/2 the sauce, 2 tablespoons of Parmesan and 1 cup of mozzarella. Repeat layers.
  • Cover with foil and bake for 20 minutes, then remove foil and bake for an additional 20 minutes until cheese is bubbling and browning.
  • Let the lasagna sit for 5 minutes before cutting.

Notes

This freezes well and reheats nicely in the microwave.
Keyword casserole, heidi no noodle lasagna, kale, lasagna