Tag: ricotta cheese
Mushroom Turkey Swiss Chard Whole Wheat Lasagna
This is a great, delicious recipe I came up with. No one could tell it was super healthy. I bought whole wheat pasta sheets and layered them with mushrooms and ground turkey. I bought a big bunch of Swiss chard which I sautéed it up and added the greens to the ricotta filling. The lasagna was yummy and it was gone in no time…
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 medium shallot, chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, chopped
- 1 bunch Swiss chard, greens and stalks separated and chopped
- 1 cup cremini mushrooms, chopped
- 1 cup shitaki mushrooms, chopped
- ½ pound dark meat ground turkey
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 2 cups marinara sauce
- Salt
Heat a large frying pan with the olive oil. Add the shallot and garlic and sauté for a minute on medium heat. Add the Swiss chard whites and sauté for a minute. Add the mushrooms and sauté for 3 to 4 minutes on high heat. Add ground turkey and separate with the back of wooden spoon. Stir and cook for a minute or two. Add the tomato paste and cook for a minute. Add the marinara sauce and bring to a boil. Simmer for about 15 minutes. Adjust seasonings and let the mixture cool off.
- 1 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- Salt
Heat a medium frying pan with the olive oil and add the greens from the Swiss chard. Saute on high heat, stirring consistently till the greens have wilted. Add salt and let the mixture cool off.
Ricotta Filling
- 1 cup ricotta cheese
- 2 cloves garlic, grated
- ½ cup Parmigiano Reggiano, grated
- ½ cup Mozzarella, grated
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 egg, beaten
Transfer the ricotta cheese, garlic, Parmigiano, mozzarella, salt and the egg to a medium bowl. Add the Swiss chard greens and mix well.
- 6 to 8 whole wheat lasagna noodles, cooked
Start to layer the lasagna by starting with a small ladle of the turkey mixture at the bottom. Add the noodles on top and spread a third of the turkey mixture on top. Add half of the ricotta filling. Repeat the process and top with noodles and then the last third of the turkey mixture. Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 30 to 45 minutes. Cool for 10 minutes before serving.
Leftover Chicken Lasagna
After I made the delicious stew, I had some chicken left over- this is a great way to make a completely new dish!!! If you haven’t cooked the stew and don’t have leftover chicken- just buy a rotisserie chicken…
- Leftover chicken breast, meat taken off and chopped, mixed with any leftover gravy. It should be about a cup.
- 1 cup ricotta cheese
- 2 garlic cloves, chopped
- ½ cup grated Parmigiano Reggiano
- 1 tablespoon fresh thyme, chopped
- 1 tablespoon fresh rosemary, chopped
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 egg, beaten
Mix all the ingredients in a medium bowl and keep aside.
- 3 to 4 cups fresh tomato sauce
- 9 lasagna noodles (I used no bake ones)
- 1 medium sized oven proof dish
- 5 to 6 small slices of fresh mozzarella
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Dip the no bake noodles in tomato sauce and place three at the bottom of the dish. Add half the amount of ricotta cheese mixture and top with half the amount of chicken. Top with three more no bake noodles (dipped in tomato sauce) and repeat the process. Finally top with the last three no bake noodles (dipped in tomato sauce) and add at least a cup of tomato sauce on top, covering all corners (add more sauce if needed). Top with fresh mozzarella and then cover with aluminum foil. Bake in oven for 45 minutes. Take out and let it rest for at least 15 minutes before serving.
Fresh Ricotta and Strawberries with Toasted Banana Bread
We were going to have some friends over for dinner and I was debating what to serve for dessert. I had the banana bread I had baked the day before. I decided to take it a step further and make an actual dessert out of it. I had fresh ricotta in the fridge- I added some honey to it. It tasted like delicious sweet cream! I then sliced the strawberries and added some vanilla sugar to them. If you don’t have vanilla sugar, add some regular sugar with half a teaspoon of vanilla extract. I let them macerate (soak) for an hour- even if the strawberries are not sweet, this process makes them juicy and delicious! I decided to toast the banana bread to make it a bit more sturdy. I added a dollop of the sweet ricotta cheese on top of the bread and then added the strawberries with some juice. A sprinkle of powdered sugar finished the dish! It was quite delicious. Toasting the bread added another layer of texture to the dessert with the soft strawberries and the creamy ricotta! All in all it was a successful attempt! We finished off the night with some double espresso vodka!!
1 loaf banana bread (there is a recipe on the blog)- cut into one-inch slices
- ½ cup fresh ricotta cheese
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1 cup strawberries, sliced
- 1 heaping teaspoon vanilla sugar
- Powdered sugar for garnish
Add the sugar to the strawberries and macerate them for at least an hour. Mix the ricotta cheese with the honey and keep aside.
Toast a slice of the banana bread and place it on a serving plate. Top it with a dollop of ricotta cheese and then the strawberries. Sprinkle with powdered sugar and enjoy!