Classic Lasagna Recipe With A Twist Recipe

Do you know how hard it can sometimes be to get your kids to eat their veggies? And, for that matter, as long as we're being totally honest with ourselves here, you know how hard it can sometimes be to get yourself to eat your veggies? Recipe developer and food photographer Stephanie Rapone has arrived at the perfect solution in the form of this recipe for classic lasagna with a twist — where the "twist" is that it contains a whole lot of "stealth" vegetables. 

Nestled within this rich, classic, homestyle lasagna are two whole carrots and as many as two whole zucchini, not to mention the 28 ounces of crushed tomatoes that this recipe uses. That's instead of commercially prepared tomato sauce, which, depending on the brand, may include additives like sugar (via ABC News). But no one else has to know how healthy this dish is. That can be our little secret.

"Lots of kids don't love veggies," Rapone told Mashed, "but lots of kids love lasagna." This version is basically a secret vegetable delivery system. In addition, it swaps turkey sausage for the usual ground beef, which significantly cuts the amount of saturated fat per serving (via Healthline). 

Start by taking the cream cheese out of the refrigerator to allow it to soften and come to room temperature. Also, preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. 

Next, heat three to four cups of water to "very hot" (it need not boil). For her part, Rapone likes to heat her water in a tea kettle because that makes it easy to pour over the noodles, nine of which you'll place in a pan large enough to accommodate them. Pour the hot water over the noodles, cover with plastic wrap or foil, and let the water do its softening magic on the noodles while you do the rest of your prep.

In a large skillet, heat one tablespoon of the olive oil over medium-high heat until it's just hot, but not yet smoking. Add the chopped onion and the kosher salt and stir. Once the onion begins to soften, which should take about three to five minutes, add the grated carrots and zucchini and stir to mix. Please note that garlic is left out of this step intentionally. That's because garlic cooks more quickly than any of these other vegetables and, therefore, adding it later reduces your risk of burning it. 

Continue stirring every two to three minutes while cooking until the mixture starts to brown and the zucchini has reduced in volume by about half. This whole process should take no more than 10 minutes. 

For the cheese mixture, you're going to need a bowl that's big enough to accommodate around six cups of wet ingredients, plus room for mixing. Place one and a half cups of mozzarella cheese, half the parmesan cheese, all of the ricotta cheese, and all of the cream cheese in the bowl. Crack an egg over the mixture and add the fresh basil. Use a spatula to fold it all together until fully combined.

We know that cream cheese isn't typically an ingredient in classic lasagna recipes, but Rapone says that it cuts the ricotta's potentially grainy texture and lends a welcome creaminess to the finished product. 

Cover your assembled lasagna with foil and place it in the center of the oven. Set a timer for 35 minutes. When the timer goes off, uncover the lasagna and bake for another 10 minutes or until the cheese on top is browned and bubbly. At this point, remove the pan from the oven, place it on a heat-proof surface, and allow it to rest for at least 15 minutes (but preferably at least 25 minutes) before slicing. 

Rapone can't emphasize enough how important this last step is to help the layers to "set up" and will make for a more attractive presentation when you cut into the lasagna. You can pop the individual servings in the microwave to get them piping hot once again if desired, or you can serve the individual portions on plates you have warmed up. Garnish with fresh basil.