Posted by Tastefully Simple on September 24, 2013
Last night my husband was working late so dinner was up to me and the kids. Because fall is arriving here in Minnesota, we were looking for something a bit heartier .. and Tastefully Simple’s Mama Mia Lasagna Cups sounded amazing!
While I got things started, my kids decided to venture outside. Before I knew it, I was roped into rescuing a very sad-looking salamander trapped in one of our window wells. After a quick rescue and a good hand washing, we came inside and filled our own lasagna cups with our favorite toppings.
Clean-up was a breeze, and I had 18 minutes to spare while dinner was in the oven, so I was even able to sneak in a load of laundry. Then, voila! Dinner was served. We scarfed down our lasagna cups and breadsticks then headed back outside to enjoy the fresh air! They were as delicious as they are fun to make. We had a wonderful family-centered evening, and I secretly think my kids cleaned their plate because they got to have a hand in our meal.
– Mandi
Mama Mia Lasagna Cups
Ingredients
- 1 pound lean ground beef
- 1 (15 ounce) can tomato sauce
- 3 tablespoons Mama Mia Marinara Sauce Mix
- 24 wonton wrappers
- ¾ cup ricotta cheese
- 1½ cups shredded mozzarella cheese
- 6 tablespoons shredded Parmesan cheese
Directions
- Preheat oven to 375°F. In large skillet over medium-high heat, cook and crumble beef until no longer pink, about 5-6 minutes; drain off liquid. Stir in next 2 ingredients.
- Meanwhile, in lightly greased 1 (12-count) muffin pan, firmly press 2 separated wonton wrappers into each cup, off-setting corners to form a star shape.
- Divide meat mixture into cups, top with ricotta, mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses. Bake 18-20 minutes or until cups are lightly browned.
Makes 6 servings.
Serve with a garden salad.
Make Ahead & Freeze: Place beef in a quart freezer bag. Place next 2 ingredients in a quart freezer bag. Place both bags in a gallon freezer bag. Seal well, label and freeze. Thaw completely. Continue with step 1.
Tips and Hints
- I cut back on the ricotta cheese and used a teaspoon instead … we had too many other toppings we wanted to stick in our lasagna cups! I used my mini scoop to keep this simple.
- I used diced tomatoes instead of tomato sauce for a chunkier texture.
- I’m a veggie lover, so in addition to the suggested toppings, I grabbed a small eggplant, zucchini, green pepper and scallions from the garden and chopped them up into small pieces. I’d also try adding in toppings like black olives, spinach or mushrooms. Almost anything goes!
- My seven and nine-year-olds worked on this with me. I worked on the stove top and oven portions, and also started the cups by getting the wonton wrappers in the muffin tins. They were able to work on the rest and pick what ingredients they wanted in their cups!
- Almost every store carries fun, kid-friendly pizza toppings like Canadian bacon, mini-pepperoni and pre-cooked crumbled sausage. Use those to help your kids mix it up!
- This is also a recipe that you can prepare and freeze for a later date. See the directions in our recipes section.