Week 27: Recipe #3--Lasagna "Cupcakes"

I'm lovin' the dinner as a cupcake idea.  Not only have all of these cupcake recipes I've tried turned out great, but they are also wonderful for portion control.  This recipe is from a blog called Emily Bites (see link below).  She takes classic recipes and lightens them up (each cupcake is 4 Weight Watcher points).  I thought these were delicious, and even though a wonton wrapper is in place of the lasagna noodle, I couldn't tell the difference.  I served these with a green salad and some garlic cheese bread.  Makes 8 cupcakes.

Photo from Emily Bites blog

You'll Need:

• 1/2 lb. 95% lean ground beef
• 1 1/2 tsp. Italian seasoning
• 5 oz. mushrooms, chopped (I left these out--personal preference)
• 16 wonton wrappers (look for them in the produce department)
• 4 oz. fat free ricotta cheese
• 1 1/2 oz. parmesan cheese, freshly grated
• 1 c. pasta sauce
• 4 oz. reduced fat 2% shredded mozzarella cheese

Preparation:

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.  Lightly mist 8 cups in a muffin tin with cooking spray and set aside.
2. In a saute pan or large skillet over medium-high heat, add the ground beef and Italian seasoning and brown the beef, breaking it up with a spoon.  Add mushrooms and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, for a few minutes until mushrooms are browned as well.
3. Push a wonton wrapper into the bottom of each of the eight sprayed cups in the muffin tin.  Using about half of the ricotta, spoon evenly into the wrappers.  Follow by spooning some of the meat into each cup (using about half ) and then splitting 1/2 cup of the sauce between each cup.  Sprinkle about half the mozzarella and half the parmesan evenly over the top of each cup.  Press another wonton wrapper on top and repeat the layering steps with the remaining ingredients.
4. Bake for 18-20 minutes until golden brown.  Let cool 5 minutes before removing from muffin tin.  

Recipe and link:  http://www.emilybites.com/2011/07/lasagna-cupcakes.html