I've been on vacation this week! On Monday a few friends and I went to Taitung (East Coast of Taiwan) for three days. Knowing that it was going to be a long drive I made some cranberry chocolate chip scones. I knew that I wanted to make them, but after I had already started I realized I had no regular flour!!! Whoops!
No biggie, I just switched the flour to whole wheat. They turned out surprisingly good.
Onto another fun recipe that is ridiculously easy: yogurt. I have not been very happy with yogurt in Taiwan. Then a few days ago a colleague told me that she makes her own. She said it was really easy, so I tried it, and it is the FIRST time since I've moved here that I actually like yogurt. I could rattle off the recipe or just put in a link to a wikihow that tells you how to do it. Given the fact that I'm going to talk about two other recipes, the link will have to do.
How to Make Yogurt
The next recipe I made this week is actually related to the yogurt. Long story short, my best friend had a recipe book that's just cookies (Pillsbury's Best Cookie Cookbook). I highly recommend it. Pretty much everything I've made from that book has been delicious. A personal favorite and also a huge crowd pleaser is a recipe for Chocolate Chip Yogurt Cookies. It NEVER turned out right here in Taiwan because the yogurt was too thick, or not lowfat, or I dunno what the problem was. Now that I'd figured out how to make my own yogurt, I figured I'd try it again. For those of you who have access to nonfat plain yogurt, just use that. If not, just make your own yogurt!
Here goes the recipe:
Chocolate Chip Yogurt Cookies
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar (if you live in a country where the brown sugar is not great, make your own! Add molasses to white sugar until you get it the way you want it).
1/4 cup margarine or butter, softened
1/4 cup shortening
1/2 cup nonfat plain yogurt
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
1 3/4 cups all purpose-flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup miniature chocolate chips or carob chips (I use regular chocolate chips. Usually a little more than 1/2 a cup...yummier to me!)
Heat the oven to 375 F. In large bowl, combine sugar, brown sugar, margarine and shortening; beat until light and fluffy. Add yogurt and vanilla; blend well. Stir in flour, baking soda and salt; mix well. Stir in chocolate chips. Drop dough by rounded teaspoonfuls 2 inches apart onto ungreased cookie sheets.
Bake at 375 F for 8 to 12 minutes or until light golden brown. Cool 1 minute; remove from cookie sheets.
Yield: 3 dozen cookies.
Next up on the blog, black bottom cake! Birthday hubby's favorite! Coming soon...:)
Saturday, October 15, 2011
Wednesday, September 28, 2011
Mango Pork
Those two words "Mango Pork" are enough to bring a glow to hub's face. From what I understand, the recipe is one of my mother's inventions (please correct me if I'm wrong) and it is quite frankly one of the most delicious, scrumptious and other fancy adjectives ending in -ious, dishes I have EVER eaten.
It wasn't too difficult to put this together. Basically the recipe is a list of stuff that you mix together to create this wonderful dish.
I started off with two pieces of pork loin. I defrosted them then rubbed garlic, salt and pepper on them. Then I put them in a frying pan and cooked them until the meat browned. I cut it up into slices about 1 inch thick and they were still pretty raw in the middle (they're supposed to be). I threw them back into the frying pan with about half a cup of apple juice (any juice will do...mango, prune, etc) and double the amount of Thai sweet chili sauce. Then I threw in a handful of dried mango that I previously cut into thinner slices (about 5 millimeters thick). Stirring it occasionally I let it soak up the juices and chili sauce for about 20 minutes.
Result? A mega-hit recipe that I will FOR SURE repeat. Pictures included.
Thanks momma!
Oh, side note - Garlicky sweet potatoes and green beans with multigrain rice were side dishes, and bananas dipped in chocolate and cinnamon were dessert. MMmmmmhm!!!
It wasn't too difficult to put this together. Basically the recipe is a list of stuff that you mix together to create this wonderful dish.
I started off with two pieces of pork loin. I defrosted them then rubbed garlic, salt and pepper on them. Then I put them in a frying pan and cooked them until the meat browned. I cut it up into slices about 1 inch thick and they were still pretty raw in the middle (they're supposed to be). I threw them back into the frying pan with about half a cup of apple juice (any juice will do...mango, prune, etc) and double the amount of Thai sweet chili sauce. Then I threw in a handful of dried mango that I previously cut into thinner slices (about 5 millimeters thick). Stirring it occasionally I let it soak up the juices and chili sauce for about 20 minutes.
Result? A mega-hit recipe that I will FOR SURE repeat. Pictures included.
Thanks momma!
Oh, side note - Garlicky sweet potatoes and green beans with multigrain rice were side dishes, and bananas dipped in chocolate and cinnamon were dessert. MMmmmmhm!!!
Rubbin the salt, garlic and pepper on the pork!!!
They're ready to go in the frying pan!
Browning up to be sliced.
See how it's raw in the middle? This is a good thing ;).
Pouring the goodness onto the pork.
YUM!!!!
Someone is excited about putting in the mangoes!
This adds extra deliciousness to the meal.
Deliciously sizzling.
Pour the Mango Pork,
dish up the rice,
the delicious sweet potatoes and green beens (have I overused the word delicious yet?)
Annnnd....VOILA!!!! Delicious dinner (I wasn't done with the word just yet).
Chocolate Bananas...THE END.
Wednesday, September 7, 2011
Cook-n-bake-aholic
Since my last post I have been on a ROLL. Made gazpacho (which hubby said was a little too on the oniony side), tuna strata and just now chocolate chip cranberry scones. I'll include all three recipes but want to focus more on the last two. This is going to be short though, since I'm spent.
Tuna Strata and I go way back. When I was about 10 I stayed with a good friend's family apartment at a ski resort in Chile. I can't remember if it was lunch or dinner but Tuna Strata was served. I was beside myself and thought it was the most delicious meal that had passed my lips. I begged and pleaded for the recipe. Knowing me, I probably got it and then lost it. Point is, I don't think I had Tuna Strata again until today. It was a hit with the hubs!
You have to make it and then refrigerate it overnight, so I put it in the oven for dinner today before going to the gym. The recipe did say it would puff up like a soufflè. What it didn't mention was that it might overflow. Whoops, smoky kitchen!
Good thing it was still delicious.
After dinner I was a little restless and decided to go back to a recipe that made me a little nervous. For those of you who don't know me, I love to bake. I have met many people in my life who have inspired me to become a better baker. My mother and grandmother are at the tippy top of that list. Yet, certain friends of mine have incredible baking talents. One of them is my friend Andrea from Wisconsin. She makes the best scones I have ever tasted in my life. So when I moved back from Chile I tried making scones. They were a total fail. They were hard, tasteless, pretty sad.
I have not tried making scones since, and for some reason in my restlessness, the thought came to me and I decided to go for it. Chocolate Chip Cranberry. I just tasted them and they turned out great!!! So here's to you, Andrea (If only you could pass on your writing skills, now...)
So here they are, the three recipes in all their glory. The Gazpacho is from foodnetwork.com. Tuna Strata was sent to me by my mother, and the Chocolate Chip Cranberry scones from joyofbaking.com ENJOY!
Gazpacho
1 hothouse cucumber, halved and seeded, but not peeled
2 red bell peppers, cored and seeded
4 plum tomatoes
1 red onion
3 garlic cloves, minced
23 ounces tomato juice (3 cups)
1/4 cup white wine vinegar
1/4 cup good olive oil
1/2 tablespoon kosher salt
1 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
2 red bell peppers, cored and seeded
4 plum tomatoes
1 red onion
3 garlic cloves, minced
23 ounces tomato juice (3 cups)
1/4 cup white wine vinegar
1/4 cup good olive oil
1/2 tablespoon kosher salt
1 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
Directions:
Roughly chop the cucumbers, bell peppers, tomatoes, and red onions into 1-inch cubes. Put each vegetable separately into a food processor fitted with a steel blade and pulse until it is coarsely chopped. Do not overprocess!
After each vegetable is processed, combine them in a large bowl and add the garlic, tomato juice, vinegar, olive oil, salt, and pepper. Mix well and chill before serving. The longer gazpacho sits, the more the flavors develop.
Roughly chop the cucumbers, bell peppers, tomatoes, and red onions into 1-inch cubes. Put each vegetable separately into a food processor fitted with a steel blade and pulse until it is coarsely chopped. Do not overprocess!
After each vegetable is processed, combine them in a large bowl and add the garlic, tomato juice, vinegar, olive oil, salt, and pepper. Mix well and chill before serving. The longer gazpacho sits, the more the flavors develop.
Basic Strata Recipe
This recipe must be started the day before you are going to serve it.
16 slices white bread, (if you use thick slices of bread, you will only need two layers of bread, and in essence it’s like making a sandwich, then covering it with sauce. If you use the El Castaño, which is very thin, you’ll make more layers).
500 g. sliced or grated cheese, (can use cheddar, gauda, etc)
6 eggs
1 tsp. Dry mustard
2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
½ tsp. Salt
pepper to taste
3 cups milk
½ cup melted butter
1 cup crumbled potato chips
Cut crusts off the bread. (Here you can buy it crustless, the recipe uses 1 box of El Castaño pan de miga).
Place a layer of bread in bottom of slightly greased pyrex or rectangular casserole dish. Cover with part of the cheese, then place another layer of bread, more cheese, more bread, finishing with bread.
In a bowl, mix the eggs, mustard, w. sauce, milk, melted butter, salt and pepper, and pour over the bread. Cover with foil, refrigerate and let sit overnight.
Take out of refrigerator early in the day. Before baking, cover top with crumbled potato chips, and put in oven 1 hour, at 350° F. It will puff up like a soufflé.
VARIATIONS
Add sliced ham to the layers, or tuna fish, or small shrimps, etc. You can also add ¼ cup chopped onion and ¼ cup chopped green or red pepper to the sauce.
Chocolate Chip Cranberry Scones
2 cups (260 grams) all purpose flour
1/4 cup (50 grams) granulated white sugar
1 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (113 grams) (1 stick) unsalted butter, cold and cut into pieces
1/2 cup (90 grams) milk or semi sweet chocolate chips or chunks
1/2 cup (75 grams) dried cherries or cranberries
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2/3 - 3/4 cup (160 - 180 ml) buttermilk
Saturday, September 3, 2011
Slow Chili
Today's "adventure" is still in the making. I wanted to make something easy, hearty and healthy that would last a couple of meals. Given that it's Saturday, though, I didn't want to be a slave to the kitchen. The woman who's apartment we're living in (we'll call her K) left us her slow cooker. Also known as a crock pot. K was very nice to leave us this, but I didn't realize how great of her it was until I started using it!
So, as you can probably tell from the title, I made Beef and Bean Chili. The recipe is from the South Beach Diet Quick and Easy Cookbook. I've made it before and it's delicious, but I didn't want to have to wait for stuff to simmer, then boil, then put this in and that...bla bla bla. So I browned the meat and just shoved it all in the slow cooker. We'll see what the results are tomorrow!
Here is the recipe (trust me, it's SO GOOD!)
1 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
1 pound lean ground beef
2 1/2 tsp chili powder, divided
1 tsp ground cumin
1 small onion, thinly sliced
2 garlic cloves
1 (28 oz) can diced tomatoes
1 (15 oz) can kidney beans, rinsed and drained
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Heat oil in a large heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium-high heat. Add beef, 1 tsp of the chili powder, and cumin; sauté until browned, about 5 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer beef to a plate.
Add onion, garlic and remaining chili powder to the same saucepan; cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 3 minutes. Add tomatoes with juice and beans; cover and simmer 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Uncover, add cooked beef, and cook an additional 5 minutes, until liquid thickens slightly. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve hot.
Like I said, I kinda did my own thing. I browned the meat in a frying pan and then put it in the crock pot. Then I threw in all the other ingredients and set it to low. We'll see what we have in the morning. Something tells me it's gonna be mmmmmmmgoood!
Until the next adventure!
So, as you can probably tell from the title, I made Beef and Bean Chili. The recipe is from the South Beach Diet Quick and Easy Cookbook. I've made it before and it's delicious, but I didn't want to have to wait for stuff to simmer, then boil, then put this in and that...bla bla bla. So I browned the meat and just shoved it all in the slow cooker. We'll see what the results are tomorrow!
Here is the recipe (trust me, it's SO GOOD!)
1 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
1 pound lean ground beef
2 1/2 tsp chili powder, divided
1 tsp ground cumin
1 small onion, thinly sliced
2 garlic cloves
1 (28 oz) can diced tomatoes
1 (15 oz) can kidney beans, rinsed and drained
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Heat oil in a large heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium-high heat. Add beef, 1 tsp of the chili powder, and cumin; sauté until browned, about 5 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer beef to a plate.
Add onion, garlic and remaining chili powder to the same saucepan; cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 3 minutes. Add tomatoes with juice and beans; cover and simmer 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Uncover, add cooked beef, and cook an additional 5 minutes, until liquid thickens slightly. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve hot.
Like I said, I kinda did my own thing. I browned the meat in a frying pan and then put it in the crock pot. Then I threw in all the other ingredients and set it to low. We'll see what we have in the morning. Something tells me it's gonna be mmmmmmmgoood!
Until the next adventure!
Thursday, September 1, 2011
Lenteja pa las lentejas
28 years of my life have flown by and today was the first time I tackled making lentils. Sad.
My hubs has been begging me for lentils for weeks and today I gave in and went for it. I had most of the ingredients I needed, but to make the Chilean version (at least the one I grew up with) you need Spanish sausage (chorizo) or bacon. I had neither.
Here's the recipe as a reference. It's from "The Chilean Kitchen" cookbook:
1 1/2 cup lentils
4 cups water
Salt, to taste,
1 tbs lard or vegetable oil (I always use vegetable oil if I can avoid lard)
1 1/2 inch link chorizo or other Spanish-type spicy sausage, diced (sadness)
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
1/2 carrot, peeled and coarsely grated
1/2 serrano or jalapeño chile, finely minced (I ignored this)
2 cloves garlic finely minced
1 tsp sweet paprika
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp dried oregano
1/2 cup long grain rice (I used 1/4c)
1 tbsp finely minced fresh parsley (didn't have any)
2 hard-cooked eggs (optional), finely chopped (I chose not to)
Pick through the lentils, and remove any small stones or other foreign objects. Rinse the lentils, and place them in a heavy saucepan. Add the water, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat, and simmer covered until soft but still holding their shape, 15 to 25 minutes. (Cooking times vary according to size and age of the lentils.) Season with salt.
Meanwhile, heat the lard in a small skillet over medium heat. Add the sausage, onion and carrot, and cook 3 minutes. Add the garlic, chile, paprika, cumin and oregano; season with salt and cook 1 minute. Stir the onion mixture into the lentils with the rice, and simmer partly covered until the rice is tender and the lentils very soft, 15 to 20 minutes. The dish should be moist but not soupy.
Just before serving, correct the seasonings; the dish should be highly seasoned. Serve in earthenware bowls or deep plates, sprinkled with the parsley and hard-cooked egg.
Like I said, today was the first time I made lentils, ever, so I really had no clue what I was doing. I simmered the lentils for about 15 minutes but I probably should have simmered them longer because they aren't soft enough. Definitely season it more! I dunno if it was "Taiwan Lentils" or the fact that I didn't have the yummy sausage to go with them, but they tasted like a lot of nothing until I added a bunch more paprika and salt.
Not a complete fail. I'll try again soon. After a good Costco run with all the right ingredients, perhaps it will taste better.
Here's a photo! Over and out ;).
Last night after posting this and feeling quite frustrated at the results of my lentils, I put them in the slow cooker and left them all night. The result: perfect texture! Taste wasn't half bad either! Wooo!
My hubs has been begging me for lentils for weeks and today I gave in and went for it. I had most of the ingredients I needed, but to make the Chilean version (at least the one I grew up with) you need Spanish sausage (chorizo) or bacon. I had neither.
Here's the recipe as a reference. It's from "The Chilean Kitchen" cookbook:
1 1/2 cup lentils
4 cups water
Salt, to taste,
1 tbs lard or vegetable oil (I always use vegetable oil if I can avoid lard)
1 1/2 inch link chorizo or other Spanish-type spicy sausage, diced (sadness)
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
1/2 carrot, peeled and coarsely grated
1/2 serrano or jalapeño chile, finely minced (I ignored this)
2 cloves garlic finely minced
1 tsp sweet paprika
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp dried oregano
1/2 cup long grain rice (I used 1/4c)
1 tbsp finely minced fresh parsley (didn't have any)
2 hard-cooked eggs (optional), finely chopped (I chose not to)
Pick through the lentils, and remove any small stones or other foreign objects. Rinse the lentils, and place them in a heavy saucepan. Add the water, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat, and simmer covered until soft but still holding their shape, 15 to 25 minutes. (Cooking times vary according to size and age of the lentils.) Season with salt.
Meanwhile, heat the lard in a small skillet over medium heat. Add the sausage, onion and carrot, and cook 3 minutes. Add the garlic, chile, paprika, cumin and oregano; season with salt and cook 1 minute. Stir the onion mixture into the lentils with the rice, and simmer partly covered until the rice is tender and the lentils very soft, 15 to 20 minutes. The dish should be moist but not soupy.
Just before serving, correct the seasonings; the dish should be highly seasoned. Serve in earthenware bowls or deep plates, sprinkled with the parsley and hard-cooked egg.
Like I said, today was the first time I made lentils, ever, so I really had no clue what I was doing. I simmered the lentils for about 15 minutes but I probably should have simmered them longer because they aren't soft enough. Definitely season it more! I dunno if it was "Taiwan Lentils" or the fact that I didn't have the yummy sausage to go with them, but they tasted like a lot of nothing until I added a bunch more paprika and salt.
Not a complete fail. I'll try again soon. After a good Costco run with all the right ingredients, perhaps it will taste better.
Here's a photo! Over and out ;).
Last night after posting this and feeling quite frustrated at the results of my lentils, I put them in the slow cooker and left them all night. The result: perfect texture! Taste wasn't half bad either! Wooo!
Tuesday, August 30, 2011
Here goes nothing
So this blog used to be about my life in Taiwan...
However, after a few months of telling everyone on facebook what I was making for dinner, lunch, snack etc, a former classmate and friend suggested I start a blog recording recipes. You've probably all heard of that movie "Julia and Julia" with Meryll Streep and Amy Adams. I have no intention of working my way through a Julia Child cookbook. For starters, I don't have the time. Secondly, I live in Taiwan where getting the right ingredients for Julia Child's recipes is not as easy as you would think.
What you will find from time to time are my somewhat creative cooking outbursts (I swear my husband is much better at being spontaneous than I am), accompanied by delicious baking recipes that I will occasionally get right.
So let's back up a week. Last Monday after a hard day's work with my amazing second graders, I decided to make lasagna for dinner. Since ricotta is hard to come by in Taiwan I decided I'd try using tofu instead. My husband was not super excited by the idea (he does not like tofu, and I can't really blame him) yet everyone who had done it swore that he wouldn't be able to tell it was tofu. So I went for it. After about two hours the lasagna was perfectly prepped and baking in the oven, and I had about 30 minutes to sit down for the first time that day.
I'm not a huge bragger, but that lasagna was scrumptious. I packed some for my lunch the next day and went to bed. The next morning I woke up to find the lasagna right on the counter where I had left it the night before.
Whoops.
Needless to say I was furious at myself and did not win the battle against the tears stinging my eyes. You must be thinking, it's really not a big deal, but it was to me at the moment! I can laugh about it now.
After throwing it out, my husband and I decided another lasagna (refrigerated this time) was on the horizon. So this past Saturday he helped me make another one. Amazingly enough it was almost better than the first one! We added a TON of pasta sauce to it.
Here goes the recipe. It's from the Better Homes and Gardens cookbook which was loaned to me by a good friend, my adjustments are in italics.
Lasagna
Ingredients:
¾ pound Ground Beef, Ground Pork, Bulk Pork Sausage Or Bulk Italian Sausage (I used 1 pound of ground beef)
1 cup Chopped Onion
2 cloves Garlic Minced
1 7.5 ounce Can Tomatoes, Cut Up (as my friend suggested, I scratched all the tomato suggestions and used a can of garlic and cheese spaghetti sauce, plus a can of diced tomatoes)
1 8 ounce Can Tomato Sauce
1 6-ounce Can Tomato Paste
2 tsp Basil, Crushed
1 tsp Dried Oregano, Crushed
1 tsp Fennel Seed, Crushed , optional (didn't bother)
½ tsp Salt
½ tsp Pepper
5 ounces Lasagna Noodles , (6 noodles)
1 Egg, beaten
2 cups Ricotta Cheese Or Cream-Style Cottage Cheese, Drained, (I used one container tofu)
½ cup Grated Parmesan Or Romano Cheese
1 Tbsp Dried Parsley Flakes
1 8-ounce Package Sliced Mozzarella Cheese
Preheat oven to 375 F
For meat sauce, in a large saucepan cook meat, onion, and garlic till meat is brown and onion is tender. Drain fat. stir in undrained tomatoes; tomato sauce; tomato paste; basil; oregano; fennel, if desired; salt; and pepper. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Cover and simmer for 15 minutes; stir occasionally. Meanwhile, cook lasagna noodles according to package directions (I skipped this step). Drain.
For filling, combine egg, ricotta or cottage cheese, ¼ cup of the Parmesan or Romano cheese, and the parsley flakes.
Layer half of the cooked noodles in a 12x7/12x2-inch baking dish. Spread with half of the filling. Top with half of the meat sauce and half of the mozzarella cheese. Repeat layers. Sprinkle the remaining Parmesan cheese atop.
Bake in 375 oven for 30 to 35 minutes or till heated through. Let stand 10 minutes. Serves 8.
To make ahead: Prepare as above, except, after assembling cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate up to 24 hours. Remove plastic wrap and cover with foil. Bake in a 375 oven for 35 minutes. Uncover and bake about 20 minutes more or until heated through.
However, after a few months of telling everyone on facebook what I was making for dinner, lunch, snack etc, a former classmate and friend suggested I start a blog recording recipes. You've probably all heard of that movie "Julia and Julia" with Meryll Streep and Amy Adams. I have no intention of working my way through a Julia Child cookbook. For starters, I don't have the time. Secondly, I live in Taiwan where getting the right ingredients for Julia Child's recipes is not as easy as you would think.
What you will find from time to time are my somewhat creative cooking outbursts (I swear my husband is much better at being spontaneous than I am), accompanied by delicious baking recipes that I will occasionally get right.
So let's back up a week. Last Monday after a hard day's work with my amazing second graders, I decided to make lasagna for dinner. Since ricotta is hard to come by in Taiwan I decided I'd try using tofu instead. My husband was not super excited by the idea (he does not like tofu, and I can't really blame him) yet everyone who had done it swore that he wouldn't be able to tell it was tofu. So I went for it. After about two hours the lasagna was perfectly prepped and baking in the oven, and I had about 30 minutes to sit down for the first time that day.
I'm not a huge bragger, but that lasagna was scrumptious. I packed some for my lunch the next day and went to bed. The next morning I woke up to find the lasagna right on the counter where I had left it the night before.
Whoops.
Needless to say I was furious at myself and did not win the battle against the tears stinging my eyes. You must be thinking, it's really not a big deal, but it was to me at the moment! I can laugh about it now.
After throwing it out, my husband and I decided another lasagna (refrigerated this time) was on the horizon. So this past Saturday he helped me make another one. Amazingly enough it was almost better than the first one! We added a TON of pasta sauce to it.
Here goes the recipe. It's from the Better Homes and Gardens cookbook which was loaned to me by a good friend, my adjustments are in italics.
Lasagna
Ingredients:
¾ pound Ground Beef, Ground Pork, Bulk Pork Sausage Or Bulk Italian Sausage (I used 1 pound of ground beef)
1 cup Chopped Onion
2 cloves Garlic Minced
1 7.5 ounce Can Tomatoes, Cut Up (as my friend suggested, I scratched all the tomato suggestions and used a can of garlic and cheese spaghetti sauce, plus a can of diced tomatoes)
1 8 ounce Can Tomato Sauce
1 6-ounce Can Tomato Paste
2 tsp Basil, Crushed
1 tsp Dried Oregano, Crushed
1 tsp Fennel Seed, Crushed , optional (didn't bother)
½ tsp Salt
½ tsp Pepper
5 ounces Lasagna Noodles , (6 noodles)
1 Egg, beaten
2 cups Ricotta Cheese Or Cream-Style Cottage Cheese, Drained, (I used one container tofu)
½ cup Grated Parmesan Or Romano Cheese
1 Tbsp Dried Parsley Flakes
1 8-ounce Package Sliced Mozzarella Cheese
Preheat oven to 375 F
For meat sauce, in a large saucepan cook meat, onion, and garlic till meat is brown and onion is tender. Drain fat. stir in undrained tomatoes; tomato sauce; tomato paste; basil; oregano; fennel, if desired; salt; and pepper. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Cover and simmer for 15 minutes; stir occasionally. Meanwhile, cook lasagna noodles according to package directions (I skipped this step). Drain.
For filling, combine egg, ricotta or cottage cheese, ¼ cup of the Parmesan or Romano cheese, and the parsley flakes.
Layer half of the cooked noodles in a 12x7/12x2-inch baking dish. Spread with half of the filling. Top with half of the meat sauce and half of the mozzarella cheese. Repeat layers. Sprinkle the remaining Parmesan cheese atop.
Bake in 375 oven for 30 to 35 minutes or till heated through. Let stand 10 minutes. Serves 8.
To make ahead: Prepare as above, except, after assembling cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate up to 24 hours. Remove plastic wrap and cover with foil. Bake in a 375 oven for 35 minutes. Uncover and bake about 20 minutes more or until heated through.