Turkey Chili & Squash Lasagna
We make the turkey chili that fills the layers of our lasagna from scratch, and this simple, speedy recipe can be used in other dishes too (think: as a pasta topper, bread bowl filler, spooned onto nachos, and the list goes on).
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Serves: 10
Hands-on time: 25 minutes
Total time: 1 hour, 45 minutes
INGREDIENTS:
- 2 tsp extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 large yellow onion, finely chopped
- 1 green bell pepper, diced
- 1 lb ground turkey breast
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tsp chile powder
- 1/4 tsp hot chile pepper flakes
- 1/4 tsp ground cumin
- Pinch each sea salt and fresh ground black pepper
- 4 cups peeled and cubed butternut squash (1 small squash)
- 2 cups strained tomatoes (TRY: Pomi Strained Tomatoes)
- 1 cup low-sodium chicken broth
- 1 cup BPA-free canned unsalted black beans, drained and rinsed (TRY: Eden Organic Black Beans)
- 1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro
- 1 egg white
- 1 1/2 cups pressed skim cottage cheese
- 6 fresh whole-wheat lasagna sheets, divided
- 1 cup part-skim mozzarella cheese
- 2 tbsp grated low-fat Parmesan cheese
INSTRUCTIONS:
- Preheat oven to 375ºF.
- In a large nonstick skillet, heat oil on medium. Add onion, green pepper, turkey, garlic, chile powder, pepper flakes, cumin, salt and black pepper. Cook, breaking up turkey with a wooden spoon, until browned, about 6 minutes. Stir in squash, tomatoes, broth and beans and bring mixture to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover and simmer until thickened, about 20 minutes. Stir in cilantro.
- In a small bowl, combine egg white and cottage cheese. Set aside.
- In a 13 x 9-inch baking dish, add enough turkey mixture to just coat bottom of dish, avoiding squash pieces (to prevent creating a lumpy base). Arrange 2 lasagna sheets over top of turkey mixture, overlapping to fit. Layer a third of cottage cheese mixture, then a third of turkey mixture over top. Repeat with remaining 4 lasagna sheets, cottage cheese mixture and turkey mixture. Top with mozzarella and Parmesan. Cover with foil and bake until bubbly, about 40 minutes. Uncover and continue baking until browned, about 10 minutes.
Nutrients per serving (1-cup turkey lasagna): Calories: 306, Total Fat: 6 g, Sat. Fat: 2 g, Carbs: 16 g, Fiber: 7 g, Sugars: 5 g, Protein: 26.5 g, Sodium: 185 mg, Cholesterol: 85 mg