Italian Sausage Lasagna with Zucchini

 

I love zucchini, and it fits perfectly in this delicious lasagna. With plenty of cheese and sauce, you'll think you're cheating, but one only 310 calories or 8 Weight Watcher points!

Italian Sausage Lasagna with Zucchini

19 oz turkey Italian Sausage
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 cans (28 ounces each) crushed tomatoes
1 can (6 ounces) tomato paste
1/3 cup minced fresh parsley
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon pepper
3 medium zucchini, sliced lengthwise
1 tablespoon butter
1 egg
15 ounces ricotta cheese (I prefer low fat cottage cheese)
3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese, divided
6 lasagna noodles, cooked and drained
3 cups (12 ounces) shredded 2% mozzarella cheese, divided

In a large skillet, cook sausage and garlic over medium heat until meat is no longer pink; drain. Add the tomatoes, tomato paste, parsley, sugar, basil, oregano and pepper. Cover and simmer for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. In another large skillet, cook the zucchini in butter until tender. In a bowl, combine the egg, ricotta cheese and 3/4 cup Parmesan cheese; set aside.

Spread 1-1/2 cups meat sauce in an ungreased 13-in. x 9-in. baking dish. Layer with three noodles, half of the zucchini, half of the ricotta mixture, 2 cups of mozzarella cheese and 2 cups meat sauce. 
Layer with remaining noodles, zucchini and ricotta mixture. Top with 2 cups meat sauce.

Bake, uncovered, at 350° for 45-55 minutes or until bubbly. Sprinkle with remaining mozzarella and Parmesan. Bake 5 minutes longer or until cheese is melted. Let stand for 15 minutes before cutting. Serve with remaining meat sauce or save for another use. Yield: 12 servings.

Nutritional information

1 slice, CALORIES 310, FAT 14 g, CARBS 22 g, FIBER 4 g, PROTEIN 26 g, Weight Watchers Points plus: 8 points

Kroger coupon deals

More deals at Kroger! Love it. I use krogerkrazy.com to find matches between coupons and sales. Check it out.

-Cheerios, free

-Poptarts, $.49 each

-Gummy Bears, $.50

-Kroger brand fabric softener sheets, 40 count, free

-Kroger brand sandwich bags, 50 count, free

-Kroger brand low dose aspirin, free

-Angel bathroom tissue, $.35 each

-Oikos Greek yogurt, free

This Week Menu Plan

Dinners

Navajo Tacos *
Zucchini Sausage Lasagna *
Homemade Pizza, Salad
Homemade Chicken and Noodles *
Philly Cheese Steak Sloppy Joes *
Cilantro Lime Chicken *, rice
Parmesan Chicken, potato salad

Lunches served with fruit

Hot dogs
Italian Sausage Kale Soup *
Canned soup (from a coupon deal)
Grilled cheese
Super Sandwich *

Breakfasts

Eggs
Toast
Waffles
Poptarts (coupon deal)
Cheerios (coupon deal)

* recipes coming this week!

Brownies with Peanut Butter Cream Cheese Icing

I found this on Pinterest and had to try it. Yum!

For the brownie:

• 2 c. sugar
• 1 c. flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 c. butter
• 2 eggs
• 1 c. water
• 1/3 c. cocoa
• 1/2 c. buttermilk
• 1 1/2 tsp vanilla

Combine flour, sugar, baking soda and set aside

In a medium saucepan combine butter, cocoa and water and bring to boiling while stirring constantly. Remove from heat.

Add chocolate mixture to the flour mixture, beat on medium speed until combined.

Add eggs, vanilla and buttermilk & beat for one minute (batter will be thin)

Pour into greased 9 X 13 pan

Bake at 350 for 30-35 minutes

For the icing:

• 1/4 c. butter, softened
• 1/4 c. reduced fat cream cheese, softened
• 1/4 c. reduced fat peanut butter
• 3 tbsp milk
• 2 c. confectioner’s sugar

Cream together first three ingredients and then gradually add sugar to desired consistency, The milk can be left out for a stiffer icing, or if the milk makes the icing too thin, additional sugar can be added. Spread on cooled brownies.

Lighter Smoky Bacon Tomato Pasta

Lighter Smoky Bacon Tomato Pasta

1/2 pound turkey bacon, chopped
One 28-ounce can diced tomatoes, drained
salt and pepper,
dash each garlic powder and oregano
4 ounces reduced fat cream cheese, cut into pieces
12-14 oz whole wheat pasta, cooked according to package instructions

In a large skillet, cook bacon until browned. Add tomatoes, salt, pepper, garlic powder and oregano. Cook until heated through, then add cream cheese. Cook and stir until cream cheese is melted. Stir in pasta and serve. Serves 8.

Nutritional information

1/8 recipe, CALORIES 286, FAT 10 g, CARBS 38 g, PROTEIN 14 g, FIBER 8g, Weight Watchers Points Plus 8 points

This Week's Coupon Bargains

I love getting a good bargain. Here are this week's coupon deals from Kroger:

Poptarts 8 count (not pictured) $.99 each

Puffs facial tissue $.39 each x 4

Old El Paso Taco Seasoning free x 2

Yoplait Greek Yogurt free x 2

Angel Soft Towelette Paper $.15 each x 2

Nature's Own Bread $.69 each x 2

Peanut Butter Oatmeal Sandwich Cookie: Girl Scout Do-Si-Do copy-cat recipe

My eldest daughter loved this cookies. She actually liked them better when I used margarine instead of butter and they were a bit softer.

Peanut Butter Oatmeal Sandwich Cookies

3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup butter, softened (real butter makes them crisp, like the Do-so-dos)
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract 
1 cup quick cooking oats 
3 tablespoons butter, softened
1 cup confectioners' sugar 
1/2 cup smooth peanut butter 
2 1/2 tablespoons milk

In a large bowl, cream together 1/2 cup butter or margarine, 1/2 cup peanut butter, white sugar, brown sugar, and vanilla. Add egg and beat well.

In another bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Add these dry ingredients to the creamed mixture. Stir. Add oatmeal and stir.

Drop by teaspoons onto greased baking sheet, and press each mound down with a fork to form 1/4 inch thick cookies. Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 10 minutes, or until cookies are a light brown.

To Make Filling: Cream 3 tablespoons butter or margarine with the confectioners' sugar, 1/2 cup smooth peanut butter, and the cream. Spread filling onto half of the cooled cookies, then top with the other half to form sandwiches. Made 17 cookies for me.

Bacon Mushroom Lentils

Can u tell I was craving bacon when I made this weeks menu? This is the second dish featuring bacon this week. I have used turkey bacon which is 65% less fat than regular bacon and 1/2 of the cost. Plus, I like turkey bacon. :)

Bacon Mushroom Lentils

1 1/4 cups dry lentils

4 cups water

2 chicken bouillon cubes

half a 12 oz package turkey bacon, chopped and browned

2 tbs butter

8 oz fresh mushroom, quartered (don't be tempted to substitute canned. It's worth the extra $1 or so)

1 slice onion, chopped 

Salt and pepper to taste

Sprinkling of dried parsley

Add lentils, water, and bouillon cubes to a sauce pan. Bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat and simmer until lentils are tender about 30 minutes. Drain. In a large skillet melt butter. Add onions and mushrooms and saute until mushrooms are tender. Stir in bacon and lentils. Cook until heated through. Season with salt, pepper and parsley. Serves 6.

Nutritional information

1/6 recipe, CALORIES 216, FAT 9 g, CARBS 21 g, PROTEIN 13 g, FIBER 8g, weight watchers points plus 8 points

Guacamole Bacon Tomato Grilled Cheese

This sandwich is so good words can't describe. It's my idea of the perfect sandwich.

Guacamole Bacon Tomato Grilled Cheese

3 strips of turkey bacon, cooked
1/4 cup shredded Monterrey jack cheese (reduced fat if you can find it)
2 TBS guacamole (mash avocado with garlic powder, salt and pepper)
1 slice of tomato
2 slices of French bread
2 teaspoons margarine

Butter one side of each slices of bread. Place one slice, buttered side down, in a hot skillet. Sprinkle half of the cheese on bread. Then layer on guacamole, bacon and tomato. Top with remain cheese and add other bread slice, buttered side up. Flip the sandwich when bottom is browned. Cook another minute or so until the other side is browned. Enjoy!

Nutritional information

1 sandwich, CALORIES 391, FAT 16 g, CARBS 39 g, PROTEIN 19 g

Pepperoni Pizza Quesdillas

Combine the Picky Kid Quad's favorite foods, pizza and quesadillas, and you've got a winning dish.

Pizza Quesadillas

5 whole wheat tortillas
2 cups shredded mozzarella made with 2% milk
1 package turkey pepperonis
28 oz spaghetti sauce
2 tbs oil

Heat oil in a frying pan. Place one tortilla in the pan. Sprinkle tortilla with a thin layer on mozzarella. Cover half of the tortilla with a layer of pepperonis. After the tortilla is browned and the cheese has started to melt, about 2 minutes, fold tortilla in half. Remove from pan and place on paper towels to remove excess oil. Repeat with the rest of the ingredients.  Divide spaghetti sauce in 5 small bowls. Heat each for 30 secs - 1 min. In the microwave. Cut quesadillas into 4 wedges. Serve sauce with quesadillas for dipping.

Makes 5 quesdillas.

Nutritional information

1 quesadilla with sauce, CALORIES 332, FAT 17.1 g, CARBS 32.6 g, FIBER 5.7 g, PROTEIN 18.3 g, Weight Watchers Points plus: 9 points