Heirloom Tomato Lasagna

Heirloom Tomato Lasagna

One of my tried and true recipes is my lasagna recipe. It’s my go-to dish when I have company for dinner because I can prepare it the day before and stick it in the oven an hour before the guests arrive and get the house smelling and cheesy and yummy. During the summer I shy away from that recipe because it tends to feel like a heavy meal with all the noodles and cheese. So this summer, I tried a new take on lasagna with a fresh summery twist in this Heirloom Tomato Lasagna. Fresh summery twist means lighter in taste and lighter in calories. Win/Win!

Here’s how I lighted it up:

1. Instead of loading up the cheese in every layer, I only used grated Parmesan cheese on the top layer.
2. I loaded it up with a variety of vegetables, including, of course, the beautiful heirloom tomatoes, along with onions, spinach and mushrooms.
3. Instead of using ricotta, I used greek yogurt with eggs, which gives it a creamy layer that’s loaded with protein without too much fat.

The creamy greek yogurt spinach mixture is easy to whip up:

The ground beef and vegetable mixture is super hearty and tasty. Wanna make it vegetarian? You can completely remove the ground beef and add another vegetable or legume or nothing at all.

And the heirloom tomatoes all layered on the baking dish are just too pretty to eat!

Even when they’re baked…they still retain their vibrant color.

If you’re not a fan of all these changes in this Heirloom Tomato Lasagna recipe from traditional lasagna, try only one change but report back to me and let me know what worked!

• 6-8 large heirloom tomatoes
• Cooking spray
• 1 15 oz container greek yogurt (or ricotta)
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 2 cups baby spinach, chopped
• 1/2 cup fresh basil, chopped, divided, plus more for garnish
• 4 garlic cloves, minced, divided
• Salt
• Fresh cracked pepper
• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1/2 lb lean ground beef
• 8 oz white mushrooms, chopped
• 2 tsp Italian seasoning
• No-boil lasagna noodles
• 4 oz shredded or grated parmesan cheese, divided

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 375° F and spray 13x9 baking dish with cooking spray.
2. Slice the heirloom tomatoes thinly. Arrange some of the slices in a single layer on the bottom of the baking dish and reserve the "prettier" slices for the top of the baking dish. Roughly chop the remainder of the heirloom tomatoes and set aside.
3. In a small bowl, stir together the greek yogurt, eggs, spinach, 2 garlic cloves and 1/4 cup of the basil. Season with salt and fresh cracked pepper.
4. Heat the olive oil in a large pan on medium, then brown the ground beef. Add the remaining garlic, along with the onions, mushrooms, chopped extra heirloom tomatoes and season with the Italian seasoning and remaining 1/4 cup of basil. Add salt and pepper, as desired.
5. In the baking dish with the arranged heirloom tomatoes, add a layer of the lasagna noodles (about 3 or 3 and half), then 1/2 of the greek yogurt spinach mixture and half of the meat mixture. Repeat with another layer of the lasagna noodles, another layer of the greek yogurt spinach mixture and another layer of the meat mixture. Top it off with half the Parmesan cheese, then add a final layer of the lasagna noodles, followed by the remaining sliced heirloom tomatoes and remaining Parmesan cheese.
6. Spray the top of the lasagna with cooking spray, especially the corners to ensure the noodles soften completely. Cover the baking dish with foil and bake for 45 minutes.
7. Remove the foil after 45 minutes and broil for 3 minutes until the cheese is golden and crispy.
8. Garnish with fresh basil if desired. Cut and serve.