Sweet Potato Lasagna
I’d never tried sweet potato lasagna before, so when my mom gave me the vegetable sheeting attachment for my birthday, I decided it was the perfect time to play around with this recipe. If you’re looking for a way to lighten up lasagna and not miss out on any of the flavor, this is the perfect dish for you. I love sweet potato, so it seemed like a match made in heaven. You can definitely make this dish without having a sheeting device, but it certainly makes cutting the sweet potatoes into thin sheets super easy. Meat is optional, this dish is delicious with or without it.
*Meat optional – LB Ground meat (I used Italian seasoned ground turkey)
3 med sweet potatoes- peeled and thinly sliced
4 cups baby spinach
1 clove garlic
1 1/2 cups Quesadilla Melting Cheese (or whatever cheese you prefer)
Bechamel Sauce:
3 3/4 cups Nonfat Milk
6 TBsp Oil (Avocado, Canola or Olive)
6 TBsp Flour
Salt & Pepper
Prep your sweet potatoes first by peeling them then cutting them into thin slices lengthwise (the idea is to get them as close to lasagna noodle size as possible). If you don’t have a sheeting machine, a mandoline works great as well. They’re quite inexpensive and a great tool to have whenever you need to slice something thinly. You can also slice the sweet potato with a knife, just be very careful. You want to get the sweet potato as thin as possible. It doesn’t matter if pieces end up different sizes. When you layer them in the lasagna just piece them together like a puzzle.
In a large skillet, brown your ground meat then set aside in a bowl. In the same pan add the oil and start heating over low/med heat. While you do this, heat your milk in the microwave. You just need to get it hot, don’t boil it. Once the oil is heated add the flour and whisk until well combined. Cook for 3-4 minutes stirring frequently, but don’t let it brown. Add the hot milk and whisk until combined, whisk often until the sauce is thickened. Bring to a boil then lower heat and simmer(low).
While your sauce is simmering sautee your spinach and garlic in a little oil. Cook just long enough for the garlic to soften and the spinach to wilt. Let cool slightly then place inside a double layer of paper towels and squeeze the excess moisture out over the sink. This will help your lasagna from being too runny. Add 1/2 cup of the cheese to the sauce and whisk lightly until melted then chop the spinach and garlic and add them to your bechamel sauce. Add the meat into the sauce, salt & pepper to taste then remove from the heat.
In a large baking dish (9×13) spread a thin layer of the sauce, then your sliced sweet potato then more sauce and just a light sprinkle of cheese. Continue this until you have four layers. Top with the remaining cheese and bake for 40 minutes at 375 degrees. Remove from the oven and let it sit for 10 minutes, I know this is a hard thing to do, you just want to dive in. This allows the lasagna to firm up so when you cut it, it doesn’t run across your plate. Trust me, resist the urge 
Enjoy!
