Slow-Cooker Turkey and Vegetable Lasagna

As I learned from one of my favorite authors, Susan Mallery awhile back, you can make lasagna in the Crock Pot!  Well, who knew??  Not me- until I saw the recipe on Susan's blog.  I have made her recipe a few times, and it is fantastic!  This weekend, while pondering the contents of my refrigerator, seeing all of the veggies that were about to go bad unless they were used NOW, I devised a plan for a vegetable lasagna, based on my experience with making Susan's recipe.  I had a package of ground turkey breast too, so decided to use that as well.  The result is a very robust, yet light, healthy lasagna that takes just a few hours in the slow cooker.  Disclaimer: yes, it does take some prep time.  You do have to sautee the turkey and vegetables, but after that it is very easy to put together, and then you can forget about it until dinner time!

I used the veggies that were hanging around in my fridge at the time, but you can use whatever you have on hand.  The important thing is that you sautee them really well, because any water that they retain is going to stay in the slow cooker when they are cooking in there.  No one likes a watery lasagna!  I would stick to veggies that sautee well, and stay away from the hardy winter veggies like turnips and the like.  I used broccoli, carrots, onions, asparagus, zucchini, mushrooms, and spinach in mine, and  I used a 6-quart oval slow cooker for this dish.

Turkey and Vegetable Lasagna
Serves: At least 8.  This is a dish you can make for a crowd, or in anticipation of leftovers

1 package (1.25 lbs) ground turkey breast
1/2 of a large onion, diced
3  tbsp olive oil, divided
Chopped vegetables- about 3-4 cups total, chopped small and uniform in size (I used carrots, broccoli, asparagus, zucchini, and mushrooms
1 bag baby spinach, chopped
2 jars store-bought spagetti sauce
10 oz. mozzarella cheese, shredded
About 1 lb ricotta cheese
1/2  box no-boil lasagna noodles

1.  Heat 1 tbsp olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat and add onion.  Stir and cook until tender, then add turkey.  Cook, breaking up meat with a spatula, until cooked through.  Drain and set aside.

2. Clean out pan and heat the other 1.5 tbsp olive oil over medium heat.  Add carrots, sautee for 3 minutes, then add broccoli and asparagus and sautee 3 more minutes or until barely tender.  Add zucchini and mushrooms and sautee 3 more minutes.  Add spinach and sautee 1 minute until spinach has wilted and most of the liquid has evaporated.  Set aside.  Note: cooking times approximate.  Use your own judgement when sauteeing the vegggies!

3.  In slow cooker, spread about 1/4 cup spagetti sauce in the bottom of the crock.  Add lasgna noodles, breaking up to fill in uncovered spots.  Spread with more sauce to cover.

4.  Add 1/2 of the turkey and onions, then 1/2 of the vegetables, distributing evenly.  Spoon 1/2 of the ricotta cheese onto the vegetable mixture, spreading over the vegetables as you go.  Sprinkle with 1/3 of the shredded mozzarella cheese.

5.  Place another layer of lasagna noodles over cheese and repeat with sauce, the rest of the turkey, vegetables, ricotta, and 1/3 of the mozzarella.

6.  Top with final layer of noodles and the rest of the sauce.  Place lid and cook on LOW for about 4 hours or until noodles are cooked through and sauce is bubbly.

7.  Sprinkle remaining 1/3 of the mozzarella cheese on top, replace lid and cook 20 minutes more.

8.  Allow to sit for 10 minutes before cutting and serving.