Kale and Mushroom Lasagna

Ingredients:
1 T olive oil
1/2 large onion, chopped small
6 large garlic cloves, finely chopped
8 oz brown mushrooms, chopped small
1 tsp. ground fennel
1 tsp. dried basil
2 1/2 C marinara sauce
1/3 C water
4 C finely chopped fresh kale (or spinach)
2 C cottage cheese
3 eggs, beaten
1/2 C finely grated Parmesan cheese
6 uncooked lasagna noodles
2 C low-fat Mozzarella or other low-fat white cheese

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 375F. Heat olive oil in large, heavy frying pan over medium heat; add onions and saute until they start to soften, about 3 minutes. Add the chopped garlic, chopped mushrooms, ground fennel, and dried basil and saute about 5 minutes more, or until the mushrooms lose their water and the liquid has evaporated. Add the marinara sauce and water and turn heat to low and simmer for 15 minutes.

While sauce simmers, bring pot of generously salted water to a boil and blanch the kale. Add the chopped kale to the boiling water and cook 3 minutes, then pour into a colander placed in the sink. Let the kale drain well and cool at least 5 minutes. (*if using spinach, boil only for 1 minute, since it is a softer green).

While kale is cooling, mix together the cottage cheese, beaten eggs, and finely grated Parmesan. Add cooled kale and stir together.

Spray a 9x12 inch lasagna dish with non-stick spray. Lay 3 uncooked noodles across the dish. Cover with 1/2 the mushroom sauce, spreading it across the noodles so they are all covered with sauce. Then add 1/2 the cottage cheese mixture, spreading it out with a rubber spatula, and sprinkle over 1 C of Mozzarella. Make a second layer of noodles, mushroom sauce, cottage cheese mixture, and cheese.

Cover the dish tightly with foil and bake 50-60 minutes without removing the foil. Then take the dish out of the over and remove foil. (I used a toothpick to check and see if the noodles were fairly soft at this point. If not, I would cook a few more minutes with foil on.) Cook 25-30 more minutes more with foil removed, or until the lasagna noodles are soft, and the lasagna is bubbling and lightly browned on top. Let lasagna cool 5-10 minutes before cutting; then cut into pieces and serve hot.