Lasagna

Whenever we have a lazy weekend day, the Boy always wants to make something that has to cook all day. This is usually some kind of old-fashioned comfort food like roast chicken or ribs. This Saturday was just such a day, and the request from on high was for lasagna.

Even though I am in full summertime grill mode, lasagna is probably my favorite nostagic meal, so I relented. Plus the Boy was in paper-writing hell, so I needed something to entertain myself -- like battling the crowd at Wegmans in the rain!

I went with the recipe from our 60s era Better Homes and Gardens cookbook (which will one day be used to concoct some really crazy old school dishes like congealed salads).

Recipe

1 lb of ground beef (or sausage if you'd like)

1 medium onion, minced

3 garlic cloves, minced

3 tomatoes on the vine, chopped (I added these in just because)

1 can of tomato sauce

1 can of diced tomatoes

1 can of tomato paste (the little can -- 6 oz)

2 c. mozzarella

1 small container of ricotta (I used skim)

1/2 c. parmesan

2 eggs

basil

parsley

1 box lasagna noodles (I found whole wheat but it was hard)

Cook the noodles per the box's directions. Brown the beef with the onions and garlic, then drain. Add in next four ingredients -- all things tomato. Cover and let simmer on medium heat for as long as possible. This makes a really nice Bolognese, but the longer the better. Mix the ricotta with the egg, parmesan, basil, and parsley. Layer noodles, ricotta, mozzarella, meat sauce. Repeate 3 times or until you're out of something. Top with more mozzarella. Bake at 375 for 30 to 45 minutes, until cheese is browned.

As a kid, I loved nothing more than attempting to be mature by making myself Stouffer's lasagna, with a wine glass full of Diet Coke, and watching Days of Our Lives while home alone in the summer. So sitting down in front of the TV with this, my first homemade lasagna, and a glass of Diet Coke, was about as nostalgic as it gets. And it didn't even take the whole day (though attempting to make parmesan breadsticks from scratch pretty much did).