Lasagna

For the longest time, when I made lasagna it ended up as a soupy mess, even though it tasted good.  I have finally found a go-to lasagna recipe that works for our family.  It's adapted from the Easy Lasagna III from allrecipes.com.

10 oz. lasagna noodles (I use 14 Creamette lasagna noodles)
1 1/2 pounds lean ground beef
3 cups cottage cheese
2 eggs
1 tsp. garlic powder
2 T. dried parsley
Salt and pepper to taste
26 oz. jar of spaghetti sauce
2 cups mozzarella cheese
Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil.  Add lasagna noodles and cook for 8-10 minutes or until al dente; drain.

In a skillet, brown ground beef.  Mix with spaghetti sauce.  In a separate bowl, using a fork, mix cottage cheese, eggs, garlic powder, parsley, salt and pepper.

In a 9 x 13 (I actually use my slightly bigger "lasagna pan") baking pan, layer noodles, ground beef mixture, cottage cheese mixture and 1 cup mozzarella cheese.  Two layers of each will fit.  Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.  Cover with tin foil and bake for 30 minutes.  Remove tin foil the last 8 minutes of baking time. (I usually bake it for closer to 45 minutes, until the cheese is fully melted and starting to brown on top.)

Chicken Cacciatore

I had some fresh mushrooms to used, so I decided to try chicken cacciatore. I based my recipe off this one from allrecipes.com.

2 cups all-purpose flour for coating (I did not coat the chicken in flour, just browned the chicken in oil)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 (4 pound) chicken, cut into pieces (I used chicken drumsticks)
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 green bell pepper, chopped (I used different colored peppers)
1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 cup white wine (I used apple juice)
2 cups fresh mushrooms, quartered
salt and pepper to taste

Combine the flour, salt and pepper in a plastic bag. Shake the chicken pieces in flour until coated. Heat the oil in a large skillet (one that has a cover/lid). Fry the chicken pieces until they are browned on both sides. Remove from skillet.

Add the onion, garlic and bell pepper to the skillet and saute until the onion is slightly browned.

Return the chicken to the skillet and add the tomatoes, oregano and wine. Cover and simmer for 30 minutes over medium low heat.
Add the mushrooms and salt and pepper to taste. Simmer for 10 more minutes.

Popover Pizza

An easy alternative to homemade pizza.

1 pound hamburger, browned and drained
Chopped onion, cooked with the hamburger

Add:
1/8 tsp. salt
6-10 oz. water
6 oz. tomato paste
8 oz. tomato sauce
1/2-1 T. ground oregano
1/2 T. sweet basil leaves
OR
20-30 ounces of your favorite spaghetti sauce

Pour into 9 x 13 pan. Cover with 8 oz. mozzarella cheese (or other cheese). Pour the following batter over cheese: Whip 2 eggs, 1 cup milk, 1 T. cooking oil. Stir in 1 cup flour, 1/4 tsp. salt. Sprinkle top of batter with 1/2 cup Parmesan or other grated cheese. Bake at 400 degrees for 30 minutes or until golden brown.

Eggplant Parmesan/Lasagna

I combined Eggplant Parmesan I and Eggplant Parmesan II from allrecipes.com to make my version. I breaded and baked the eggplant like recipe II, and used the rest of the ingredients like recipe I.

Ready to go in the oven.

1 eggplant, cut into 3/4 inch slices
Sprinkle both sides of the eggplant slices with salt. Place slices in a colander, and place a dish underneath the colander to capture liquid that will sweat out of the eggplant. Allow to sit for 30 minutes. Rinse eggplant in cold water until all the salt is removed.

1 egg, beaten
2 cups Italian seasoned bread crumbs
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Dip eggplant in egg and then bread crumbs. Place in single layer on baking sheet Bake in preheated over for 5-7 minutes per side, until crispy.

8 ounces ricotta cheese (I used cottage cheese)
6 ounces shredded mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 egg, beaten
Mix ricotta, mozzarella and 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese with the egg.

In a 9x13 inch baking dish, evenly spread 1 1/2 cups of spaghetti sauce. Arrange a single layer of eggplant slices on top of the sauce. Top the eggplant with 1/2 of the cheese mixture. Repeat layering process until all the eggplant and cheese mixture is used. Pour remaining sauce on top of layers, and sprinkle with remaining Parmesan cheese. Bake 30 to 45 minutes until sauce is bubbly.