Quick Creamy Lasagna

Source: Miami Herald

If your kids are old enough to be home alone after school, they're probably old enough to heat the oven and pop this in for you. For most families, this makes enough for at least two meals. Leftovers can be refrigerated for several days and reheated in the microwave. Or cut them into individual portions and freeze for those inevitable nights when everyone needs to eat at a different time.

Complete the meal: Cook a package of frozen broccoli florets or simply make a green salad.

• Salt

• 15 ripple-style oven-ready lasagna noodles (such as Ronzoni; from 2 boxes)

FILLING (choose one)

• Chicken: 4 cups cooked, shredded meat (from 1 rotisserie chicken)

• Seafood: 2 cups (1 pound) pasteurized lump crab meat plus 2 cups cooked salad shrimp

• Vegetarian: 1 pound sliced mushrooms sautéed and mixed with 2 thawed, squeezed-dry (10-ounce) boxes frozen chopped spinach

TO COMPLETE DISH

• 1 ½ teaspoons dried basil

• 12 ounces reduced-fat cream cheese, softened

• ½ cup reduced-sodium chicken or vegetable broth

• 1 (24- to 26-ounce) jar good-quality marinara sauce

• 4 cups (1 pound) grated part-skim mozzarella cheese

• 3/4 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese

• Vegetable oil spray

Place oven rack in lower-middle position; heat oven to 400 degrees.

Dissolve 1 ½ tablespoons salt in 2 quarts piping hot tap water in a 9-by-13-inch baking dish. Add noodles and soak until soft, about 10 minutes. Drain and set aside.

Meanwhile, mix filling of choice with basil, 8 ounces of the cream cheese and 1/4 cup of the broth. In another bowl, mix remaining 4 ounces cream cheese and 1/4 cup broth; set aside.

Smear 1/4 cup marinara sauce on bottom of baking dish. Layer ingredients in this order:

• 3 noodles

• scant cup marinara

• 1 cup filling (scant if vegetarian)

• 3/4 cup mozzarella

• 2 tablespoons Parmesan

Repeat layering 3 times, for a total of 4 layers.

Top with remaining 3 noodles, cream-cheese broth mixture, 1 cup mozzarella and 1/4 cup Parmesan.

Spray a large piece of aluminum foil with oil and place it, oil side down, over the pan, sealing tightly. Bake until bubbly throughout, 40 to 45 minutes (50 to 55 minutes if it went straight from the refrigerator into the oven).

Leaving the lasagna on the same rack, remove the foil and broil until spotty brown, about 5 minutes. Let stand 10 minutes before cutting. Makes 10 to 12 servings.

Source: Adapted from Perfect One-Dish Dinners by Pam Anderson (Houghton Mifflin, $32, Sept. 20).

Per serving (based on chicken filling): 496 calories (40 percent from fat), 21.4 g fat (10.9 g saturated, 6.2 g monounsaturated), 103.4 mg cholesterol, 38.3 g protein, 35.4 g carbohydrates, 2.3 g fiber, 866 mg sodium.