Almost every winter I make a big pan of The Pioneer Woman’s lasagna and it feeds us for the next 20 days (ok, maybe a few less, but seriously, it makes a lot of food). I never got around to it this year, and though I’d like to say we’ve completely moved on from craving such heavy comfort food with winter ending, the thermometer still reads about 20 degrees when I wake up in the morning lately so, yeah, we haven’t.
But we are still intent on making healthier choices these days, and eating our way through a huge pan of lasagna for days on end doesn’t exactly fit in with those plans. As delicious as it would be π Fortunately, I found a different way to satisfy our craving with these adorable portion-controlled mini lasagnas.
The mini lasagnas include all of the components you’d expect in traditional lasagna – the ricotta, the meat sauce, the mozzarella – it’s all there. There’s just one modification; rather than pasta noodles, the vessels for the lasagnas are wonton wrappers. You assemble and bake the lasagnas right in a standard muffin tin, then they just pop right out for serving. Traditional lasagna is always so messy to cut and serve (and I guess that’s part of the fun), but I love how neat and easily portioned things are with this version!
After a steady diet of lean protein and veggies for dinner for the past few weeks I can’t even tell you how much I enjoyed the cheesy goodness of these lasagnas. The exposed edges of my wonton wrappers became crispy in the oven but the part in the muffin pan did not so it provided some of that chewiness that the pasta otherwise would have contributed. Two of the mini lasagnas come in at under 400 calories, and served with a salad on the side, it was an awfully fun guilt-free meal π
Though there is a recipe provided below, you could take this idea and run with it using your favorite lasagna recipe. I’m thinking mini veggie lasagnas are next on my agenda…
Muffin Tin Mini Lasagnas
barely adapted from Can You Stay for Dinner?
{Note: I reduced some of the oregano called for the in the original recipe and liked it just the way it was, but Shane wished I’d included it all. You’ll have to taste and season as you go to decide what works for you.}
12 oz ground turkey
1 medium onion, chopped
1/2 cup chopped mushrooms
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 (15 oz) can tomato sauce
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano, divided
pinch red pepper flakes
1 1/2 cups part-skim ricotta cheese
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
24 wonton wrappers
1 1/2 cups shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese
Preheat oven to 375 F. Spray a 12-cup muffin tin generously with nonstick cooking spray.
Add the ground turkey, onions, mushrooms, salt, and pepper to a large skillet set over medium to medium-high heat. Using a wooden spoon, break the turkey up into small crumbles and cook for about 10 minutes, or until the turkey has browned. Stir in the garlic and cook for 30 seconds to 1 minute, just until fragrant. Add the tomato sauce, 1 teaspoon of the oregano, and the red pepper flakes, and stir to combine. Taste and season with additional salt and pepper if desired. Bring the sauce to a gentle boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Remove from the heat and set aside.
In a medium bowl, stir together the ricotta, the remaining 1/2 teaspoon of oregano, the basil, and a pinch each of salt and pepper.
To assemble: Press 1 wonton wrapper into each well of the muffin pan – be sure to press them into the bottom and sides of the pan. Working with half of the ricotta mixture, divide it among the wells of the pan evenly, pressing the ricotta into an even layer. Working with half of the tomato sauce, divide it among the wells of the pan, spreading in an even layer rather than mounding. Sprinkle 2 teaspoons of the mozzarella over the top of each mini lasagna. Press a second wonton wrapper onto each mini lasagna then repeat the process of layering using the second half of the ricotta mixture, the remaining half of the tomato sauce and finally two more teaspoons of the mozzarella per cup.
Bake the mini lasagnas for 10 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and bubbly. Remove the muffin pan to a wire rack and let the mini lasagnas cool for a few minutes before removing them. Garnish with fresh basil before serving, if desired.
Makes 12
I just love this idea! This is such a great idea for not only the cuteness factor, but also for portion control.
These are seriously brilliant!
These are too adorable!!! I LOVE recipe with little baked wontons! π
I adore this idea, Tracey! Great idea. We love lasagna and the leftovers!
This is not only an amazing idea, but a really cute way to serve dinner π Can’t wait to try it!
Such cute little lasagnas. I actually was planning to making mini lasagnas out of wonton wrappers tonight. Maybe I’ll put them in muffin tins π
These were a really fun meal, thanks for making them!
oh my, I love this! Such a clever idea, and fun too! π
although i dont know if this would be practical for me to make for dinner (or maybe it would) next time i have a party this are going on the menu. yum!
These lasagnas look so cute and yummy!
Paige
http://thehappyflammily.blogspot.com
I’ve been wanting to make something similar for ages and keep forgetting about it! Now I’m craving mini lasagna cups π If only I had all of the ingredients…
I’m so excited that you are sharing more of the healthy ideas!! We also just started to try and eat better for our trip to Europe in May… It is so difficult for me to think of things to make that are GOOD for you, so THANKS!! I really appreciate your efforts!
Love these Tracey! Perfect for portion control!
Yours look like little cups of perfection! I tried this once and it was a big fail, haha, maybe I should try again – they sound and look so delicious! maybe too cute to eat π nah, never!
I’m always looking for new uses for ground turkey…and the fact that these are healthy is even better!!
These are so cute and pretty and I love the portion-controlledness!!!
I love anything mini! what a fun way to eat lasagna!
I’ve always wanted to try this! They’re so cute and I’m sure it helps with portion control, which is something I desperately need!
Who can resist cute little lasagna’s? They are just so darn adorable. Indulgences in little packages are a nice way to satisfy those comfort food cravings.
I only make lasagna for special occasions because..yeah. Then I’ll be eating it for a lifetime. Or at least it will feel that way after day 10. Love these mini lasagnas!
Cool idea! I’ve heard of using wonton wrappers to make ravioli, but wouldn’t have thought to use them this way. I bet B&G would love to help me make these!
I love this idea. It would be great for having guests because you could make lasagnas according to food preferences. They’re so cute, too.
Tracey, these are adorable. And they look delicious. This is totally happening!
They were great. The noodles are my least favorite component of lasagna so these were perfect! They were a bit difficult to get out of the tin but I made it work with an offset spatula.
Everyone has been raving a bout this one so I have to try it. Looks perfect for a luncheon on Thursday. Thanks for this one.
They look delicious. And comforting. And healthy.
This is such a cute idea! I was in search of a snack with mozzarella to take to my class and this will be perfect! I’m a nutrition student, and I’m currently taking a course on Functional Foods and Nutraceuticals. We were assigned a functional food and asked to develop a new, innovative product. Mine was grape and I decided to use grape pomace extract (which it turns out can act as a natural preservative) and add it to mozzarella cheese for additional health benefits. While I present, my classmates can take a bite into this cute, delicious-sounding snack! I do have a dilemma…my commute is about an hour..do you think it will sit well. In other words, will it taste good even when it’s not warm. Also, do you think just doing one layer will be ok? Thank you for sharing!
Hey, I am a French girl who found your website, I love the recipes I found, and since I saw this recipes yesterday night I couldn’t keep out of my mind the idea of making it, so I tried it today. But since I am in France I don’t necessarily have the same ingredients like the wonton wrappers. So I modified just a little bit the recipes, but still was amazingly good, so thanks π
Love these. I’m sure my kids will love it. Can’t wait to make them. Now I have to find wonton wrappers. I’ve never seen them at my grocery store.
Adorable idea, as gummy pasta isn’t too good. Also added about 1/32 tsp. of pulverized fennel seeds and used an 8-ounce can of tomato sauce. Can’t wait to bake these and EAT ’em tonight in Boise where it’s 8 (eight) degrees.