Healthy & Easy Whole Wheat Pasta Lasagna

1 lb ground beef
3 cups (26 oz. jar) spaghetti sauce
1 ½ cups water
1 ¾ cups ricotta or small curd cottage cheese
2 cups shredded mozzarella, divided
½ cups grated parmesan cheese
2 eggs
¼ cup chopped fresh parsley
½ tsp salt
¼ tsp ground black pepper
9 pieces of whole wheat lasagna noodles, uncooked

Heat oven to 350 degrees. In a saucepan over medium-high heat, brown meat; drain. Add spaghetti sauce and water, simmer about 10 minutes. Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, stir together ricotta or cottage cheese, 1 cup mozzarella cheese, parmesan cheese, eggs, parsley, salt and pepper (I keep a bag of frozen spinach in the on hand to add to soups and other recipes and always add some spinach to the cottage cheese mixture to help boost the nutrition and no one can really tell since there is parsley!). Pour 1 cup of the sauce into the bottom of a 13 x 9 baking dish. Arrange 3 UNCOOKED noodles lengthwise over the sauce and cover with another cup of sauce. Spread half the cheese mixture over sauce. Repeat layers of lasagna, sauce, and cheese filling. Top with a layer of noodles and remaining sauce, then sprinkle with mozzarella and some parmesan and Italian seasoning (basil and oregano). Use a little cooking spray on a piece of foil and then cover the dish. Bake for 45 minutes, remove foil and bake another 10 minutes or until hot and bubbly. Let stand for 10 minutes before cutting.

*I like to make this and line my pan with foil and freeze it uncooked. Then you have it when you want it, defrost overnight and follow the baking directions.

** My 10 year old sister recently had this lasagna while visiting and proclaimed it was the best lasagna she ever had! (And my Mom is the best cook, so that is saying a lot!)