Slow Cooker Sausage and Squash Lasagna

• Serves: 8

• Source

Ingredients

• 9 ounces part-skim ricotta cheese
• 1 ounce Asiago cheese, grated and divided (about 1/4 cup)
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley, divided
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives, divided
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 6 garlic cloves, divided
• 6 cups water
• 1/2 cup red wine vinegar
• 1 large yellow crookneck squash, cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices
• 1 large zucchini, cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices
• Cooking spray
• 12 ounces hot turkey Italian sausage links, casings removed
• 2 cups chopped onion
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 3 (3.5-ounce) packages shiitake mushrooms, stemmed and sliced
• 1 cup unsalted chicken stock (such as Swanson) $
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh basil leaves
• 1 (25-ounce) jar lower-sodium marinara sauce (such as Dell'Amore)
• 12 uncooked lasagna noodles
• 4 ounces fontina cheese, shredded and divided (about 1 cup)

Instructions

1. Combine ricotta, 2 tablespoons Asiago cheese, 1 tablespoon parsley, 1 tablespoon chives, pepper, and 1 garlic clove, grated, in a bowl; set aside.
2. Bring 6 cups water to a boil in a large skillet; stir in red wine vinegar. Add squash and zucchini; cook 2 minutes. Drain.
3. Heat skillet over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add sausage; cook 7 minutes, stirring to crumble. Stir in onion; cook 8 minutes or until onion is tender.
4. Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add mushrooms; cook 10 minutes or until mushroom liquid nearly evaporates. Mince 5 garlic cloves; stir into mushrooms. Stir in stock, basil, and marinara. Bring to a boil; remove from heat.
5. To assemble lasagna, spoon 1 cup marinara mixture into the bottom of a 6-quart electric slow cooker. Top with 4 noodles, breaking noodles to fit cooker. Layer half of squash mixture, half of sausage mixture, and 1/4 cup fontina cheese over noodles; top with 1 cup marinara mixture. Arrange 4 noodles over marinara mixture; top with ricotta mixture. Sprinkle with 1/4 cup fontina; top with remaining half of sausage mixture and remaining half of squash mixture. Arrange remaining 4 noodles over squash mixture; top with remaining 1 1/2 cups sauce and 1/4 cup fontina. Cover and cook on LOW for 4 hours.
6. Preheat broiler.
7. Uncover slow cooker; sprinkle lasagna with remaining 1/4 cup fontina and remaining 2 tablespoons Asiago. Broil on middle rack of oven for 2 minutes or until cheese browns slightly. Sprinkle with remaining 1 tablespoon parsley and remaining 1 tablespoon chives. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

CategoryRecipesDinner