Easy Skillet Lasagna

The holidays are such a wonderful time of year. However, things get so busy and hectic that I'm having trouble finding time to cook. So I thought it would be a great time to develop something quick and easy that can last a few days. Lasagna is so yummy and delicious, but it's always been a special occasion or weekend meal. No more! This skillet lasagna takes less than 40 minutes to put together and makes an incredible weeknight meal. The best part is that it makes enough for some great leftovers and will keep for 3 days in the fridge.

Don't be intimidated by all the steps, basically you brown up some meat, I used chicken sausage, but you could use turkey or ground beef, and then layer a lasagna in a cast iron skillet and bake it. The key to making this work quickly is to use slightly more sauce than you would making a normal lasagna, the extra sauce helps to "cook" the noodles. I used fresh pasta sheets, which I found at the store, but you can also use no boil lasagna noodles. Either will work well.

As usual, I've lightened up this recipe by using whole wheat noodles, cutting back the cheese, and using lean chicken sausage.


Read more for the full recipe

Ingredients:
1lb whole wheat lasagna noodles (fresh or no boil)
6 cups homemade pasta sauce (or jarred sauce)
1lb italian chicken sausage, casings removed
8 oz part skim ricotta cheese
4 tbsp grated parmesan, divided
1 tsp extra virgin olive oil
pepper
fresh parsley

Step by Step Instructions: Preheat oven to 375

1. In your skillet, saute sausage in olive oil on medium heat, breaking up into small chunks

2. Remove cooked sausage and set aside

3. Ladle one cup of pasta sauce into the bottom of the skillet, spread around in a thin layer

4. Break up lasagna sheets into 3-4" strips, lay strips across the bottom of the skillet, creating one layer

5. Spoon half the sausage mixture on top of the noodles

6. Sprinkle with 1 tbsp parmesan

7. Top with 1.5 cups sauce

8. Add another layer of broken noodles, making sure to cover the sausage completely

9. Spread remaining sausage across the layer of noodles

10. Top with one tbsp parmesan

11. Top with 1.5 cups sauce

12. Add the final layer of broken noodles, making sure to cover the sausage mixture

13. Top with another cup of sauce

14. Sprinkle remaining parmesan on the top

15. Using a tablespoon, spread dollops of ricotta equally across the top of the lasagna

16. Season with pepper

17. Cover with tinfoil and bake for 20 minutes

18. Uncover and bake an additional 5 minutes

19. Serve sprinkled with parsley