The Best Sweet Potato Lasagna

The Best Sweet Potato Lasagna

Oh, I have a recipe for you today, the best sweet potato lasagna I’ve ever made. This lasagna is a delicious and healthy alternative to traditional lasagna! I made it the other night for my family and they just loved it!

I’m always trying to create new healthy recipes. This sweet potato lasagne is only 100 calories or 3 Weight Watcher points per slice and it’s so delicious!

It was so easy to make and it’s a healthy dinner with all good ingredients!

It’s gluten-free too!

This recipe makes eight servings but you could double the ingredients to make more portions.

So let’s talk about the ingredients in this healthy Sweet Potato Lasagna.

About The Ingredients:

Sweet Potato: The sweet potato has been around for over 5000 years. It’s lower in calories it’s slightly higher in fiber and has a lower glycemic index. Sweet potatoes are great to use in many recipes.

Pasta Sauce: There are many good brands to use. I made mine homemade and will include the recipe at the bottom of the post.

Ground Turkey: Adding ground turkey is a healthier alternative to ground beef.

Carrots: Carrots add depth of flavor and texture to the pasta sauce. The carrots also help to mellow out the acidity of the tomatoes and add a subtle sweetness to the sauce.

Spinach: Adding spinach to pasta gives it a beautiful ingredient that adds color and flavor to the lasagna.

Egg: The egg in this recipe is used to blend with the ricotta cheese it’s also a great binder.

Mozzarella Cheese: Mozzarella Cheese is a southern Italian semi-soft, non-aged cheese traditionally made from Italian buffalo’s milk. It is now commonly made of cow’s milk. Mozzarella has low lactose levels this ingredient is often used in pasta dishes because it melts evenly.

Ricotta Cheese: Ricotta is a soft fluffy mild cheese that is commonly used in Italian dishes like lasagna.

Spices Used In This Recipe

Salt: Using salt in a recipe enhances the flavors.

Garlic Powder: Garlic enhances the flavors in many foods and is great in pasta dishes. I think garlic and garlic powder are the powerhouse of the kitchen ingredients.

Onion Powder: This ingredient can be substituted in a recipe in place of onions. Generally, one tablespoon of onion powder is equivalent to one medium-sized onion.

Red Pepper Flakes: An ingredient that gives a hint of spice. This is a special little ingredient my Italian Calabrasie mother-in-law adds to her sauce. She makes jars of red pepper flakes and preserves them every summer.

Dried Parsley: The dried parsley isn’t nearly as flavorful as fresh. As an ingredient, it gives a nice light flavor to this recipe and also a beautiful color to the recipe.

Italian Seasoning: Use Italian seasonings in this recipe for extra taste. This mix is made up of several dried seasonings, bay leaves, oregano, thyme, rosemary, parsley, crushed red pepper flakes, garlic powder, and cumin to name a few.

Onion: The onion is a vegetable that comes in many shapes, sizes, and flavors. The onion has many health benefits as well like vitamin C. I used a yellow onion in this recipe for its hearty flavor.

Extra Virgin Olive Oil: Olive Oil has many health benefits and pasta sauce relies on a great-tasting olive oil to enhance its flavor. There are four main types of olive oil, extra virgin olive oil, virgin olive oil, pure olive oil, and light olive oil. An olive oil‘s flavor can range from sharp and peppery to smooth and buttery. 

Ingredients:

• 3 Sweet Potato’s
• 1 Jar of Pasta Sauce ( any brand will do)
• 1 lb Ground Turkey
• 2 Large Carrots
• 1 Cup Spinach Chopped
• 1 Large egg
• 1/2 Cup Part Skim Mozzarella Cheese
• 1/2 Cup Part Skim Ricotta Cheese
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 Tablespoon garlic powder
• 1 Tablespoon onion powder
• 1/8 tsp red pepper flakes
• 2 Tablespoon dried parsley
• 1/2 tsp Italian seasoning
• 1 Small onion
• 3 tsp of Extra Virgin Olive Oil ( use a good brand)

How To Make The Best Sweet Potato Lasagna

1.) Preheat oven to 375 degrees

2.) Add 3 tsp of olive oil to a frying pan, 1 small onion, lightly brown on low.

3.) Then add to the pan 1 pound of ground turkey, 1 tsp salt, brown on low.

4.) In a stock pot add the jar of sauce or homemade sauce, browned ground turkey, and the rest of the seasonings, garlic powder, onion powder, red pepper flakes, dried parsley, Italian seasoning, and cook on medium heat for 10 minutes to bring to a low boil, then cook on low heat for 25 minutes.

5.) While the sauce is cooking peel, wash, and then bring to a boil 3 sweet potatoes until just about soft, for about 20 minutes.

6.) Peel, wash and grate 2 carrots and wash and chop spinach, set both aside.

7.) Once sweet potatoes have cooked remove using a spoon strainer and let sit for 5 minutes and then slice into thin 1/10 inch thick slices.

8.) At this time mix the egg with the part-skim ricotta cheese and set aside.

9.) Spray a 7 x 11 lasagna pan with cooking spray and add a thin layer of pasta sauce to the bottom of the dish.

10.) Begin to assemble the lasagna there is enough for 3 layers, adding 1/3 layer of sweet potatoes overlapping, begin by spooning sauce over the sweet potatoes, and then a thin layer of ricotta cheese mixture, 1/3 grated carrots, 1/3 of the chopped spinach, and 1/3 part-skim mozzarella cheese, the same for each layer.

11.) Cover the dish with foil and bake for 25 minutes then remove foil and bake for an additional 10 to 15 minutes.

Once done let stand for 5 minutes before serving and then serve with a salad and enjoy!

Tips On Making Sweet Potato Lasagna

• Use a good olive oil the taste of pasta depends on a good oil.
• Ground Turkey 99/1 is the lowest in calories.
• Adding some seasonings to the pasta sauce helps to enhance the tomato sauce.
• Use one sweet potato for each layer of the lasagna, overlapping is fine.
• Cover the dish with foil so the mozzarella cheese doesn’t burn and get crisp.
• I only used one layer of the ricotta cheese mixture on my lasagna recipe it was pretty rich with three layers. Calories are the same as the recipe for three layers.
• Use a fork to check the sweet potatoes as they are boiling so they don’t get too soft.
• If the sweet potato’s are sliced too thick they will take longer to cook.
• Each oven bakes differently, check to make sure the sweet potatoes are done.
• Letting the lasagna dish sit for five minutes before serving lets all the flavors blend.

Storing Leftover Lasagna

Lasagna is great the next day if properly stored. Either save leftover lasagna in a sealed container or wrap well in the dish. It will stay nicely in the refrigerator for 2 to 3 days. Lasagna can be placed in the freezer as well. Save in a freezer-proof container and save for up to one month.

This recipe makes 8 servings you can double the recipe to add more servings.

Here is the post with my homemade Italian pasta sauce, included is a print-off recipe https://houseofmar.com/gluten-free-pasta-with-meat-balls/.

I also wanted to add a little information about the benefits of using onions in our recipes this is from the Cleveland Clinic https://health.clevelandclinic.org/are-onions-good-for-you/

I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as my family and I did!

Blessings to a wonderful week!

Mary Anne,