Lasagne

I know it's not very pretty...but it's delicious!

Last Christmas my Mom gave an amazing gift to the women in the family: a compilation of family recipes she'd been given by her sister, hand-written and ranging from favorite childhood lunches to elaborate dinner party dishes. One of the recipes is for a lasagne that is insanely rich, filled with béchamel sauce, cheese, noodles...

This isn't that recipe.

Instead, I'm going for something a bit lighter (well, a LOT lighter) that you can enjoy any day of the week without having to be rolled into bed afterwards. It's also in keeping with my low-carb-high-protein kick, and you wouldn't believe the nutritional numbers behind this. I'm talking 394 calories for one-quarter of a 8x13 pan of lasagne. Oh yeah, it's a lot of food. You won't even miss the noodles.

P.S. You may have noticed I haven't updated in a while. Well, budget's been tight, and most of the food I've been eating is more functional (as in, packs the right amount of macros) and affordable than photogenic. Ah well. Such is the life of a college student.

Low Carb Lasagne
Serves 4

1¼ lbs ground chicken breast (99% fat free)
4 tablespoons grated Parmesan, divided
1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
2 teaspoons fennel seed, ground
Salt and pepper
1 large eggplant, washed
3 cups tomato sauce
8 oz part-skim mozzarella cheese, grated

1. Preheat oven to 375.
2. In a medium bowl, combine ground chicken breast, 2 tablespoons of the Parmesan, Italian seasoning, fennel, and salt and pepper. Wearing culinary gloves, mix until well-combined. Set aside.
3. Slice eggplant into quarters, then cut each quarter lengthwise, making long strips. 
4. Use half of the eggplant to cover the bottom of an 8x13 baking pan. Spoon half of the tomato sauce over the eggplant and spread even. Add half of the cheese, and then all of the chicken. Add the rest of the eggplant, sauce, and mozzarella. Sprinkle top with remaining Parmesan.
5. Bake for 50-60 minutes, or until cheese is melted and the sauce is bubbly.
6. Let cool and serve.