My Mom's Lasagna

My mom's lasagna recipe has been a staple in our family for as long as I can remember. She makes it for family gatherings, birthday parties, holidays, or just when we have a crowd for dinner.

Sometimes when she's planning the menu, she says she feels bad because people only ever get to eat lasagna at her house. But I always say- people love it! They would be disappointed if they didn't get it!

She got the recipe when she was first married and in the next few years, she tweaked it, so it's the recipe that we know and love today! We recently talked about her lasagna recipe and how it's not very "true Italian." So if you're looking for authentic Italian- this is not the recipe for you. If you're looking for meaty, cheesy, delicious goodness- you better try it!

We had an office potluck, so I thought it was the perfect occasion for my mom's lasagna!

MJ’s Lasagna

Ingredients:
1 lb. Jimmy Dean regular sausage (not sage)
1 lb. ground sirloin
1 clove minded garlic
1 tbsp. crushed basil
1 tsp. salt
28 oz. can crushed tomatoes
6 oz. can tomato paste
10 oz. pckg creamy cottage cheese (lg. carton)
½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 eggs, beaten
½ tsp. salt
½ tsp. pepper
1 lb. mozzarella cheese sliced thin

Directions:
Brown meat slowly, spoon off excess fat. Add next 5 ingredients (garlic, basil, salt crushed tomatoes, and tomato paste) and simmer, uncovered 30 minutes. Stir sauce occasionally.

Cook noodles in large amount of salted boiling water. Drain and rinse.

Combine remaining ingredients (cottage cheese, Parmesan, eggs, salt and pepper), except for mozzarella. Place ½ noodles in greased 9x13 dish. Spread ½ cottage cheese mixture. Add ½ mozzarella cheese, then ½ the meat sauce. Repeat layers.

Bake at 375 degrees for 30 minutes, let stand 10 minutes before cutting into squares (filling will thicken).

You can assemble early and refrigerate or freeze. Add 30 minutes to baking time if refrigerated, longer if frozen.

Karla- enjoying the lasagna at the work potluck

The above recipe is copied exactly from my mom and she has definitely perfected it. I hate to mention it, but I make one slight little change in the interest of time.

I use the noodles that you don't have to boil- they go straight from package into lasagna pan. My mom said that she tried it one time and hers didn't really cook and it ruined an entire pan of lasagna. I do hold my breath just a little bit every time I use them!

I have no idea if this is true or not, but I think what makes the difference is that you have to put a small little layer of the meat sauce (sometimes I use a little bit from a jar of marinara sauce) on the bottom. And then, put the noodles down. It's not really a "layer" of the meat sauce, just some liquid to cook the noodles. Then, I assemble exactly as the recipe says!

If you have a small family, you can make this in two 8x8 pans and put one into the freezer for later.

Garlic bread and my mom's Caesar salad (that's a recipe for another day) go perfectly with this lasagna!

Birthday Dinner

On Monday night, we grilled some chicken, which we had for dinner. Rather than have the same, grilled chicken again on Tuesday, I decided to look for a recipe that would use the chicken. I stumbled across RR's recipe for Mexican Lasagna. I made quite a few changes, because I just used the ingredients that I already had in my pantry.

I thought it was a good dinner and you could always assemble the lasagna the day before you're eating it and keep it in the fridge until dinner time. But we love Mexican food and we love all these ingredients- corn, onion, black beans, cheese, etc.!

It was also Ivy's first birthday yesterday!!! Can you believe it?!?! I can barely believe that she's ONE! She had the fabulous canine cuisine of porterhouse steak and she absolutely loved it. She literally licked the bowl clean. She also got 2 new toys. Happy Birthday, Ivy!!!

Mexican Lasagna

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 pounds ground chicken breast, available in the packaged meats case
2 tablespoons chili powder
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1/2 red onion, chopped
1 (15-ounce) can black beans, drained
1 cup medium heat taco sauce or 1 (14-oz) can stewed or fire roasted tomatoes
1 cup frozen corn kernels
Salt
8 (8 inch) spinach flour tortillas, available on dairy aisle of market
2 1/2 cups shredded Cheddar or shredded pepper jack2 scallions, finely chopped

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

Preheat a large skillet over medium high heat. Add 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil - twice around the pan. Add chicken and season with chili powder, cumin, and red onion. Brown the meat, 5 minutes. Add taco sauce or stewed or fire roasted tomatoes. Add black beans and corn. Heat the mixture through, 2 to 3 minutes then season with salt, to your taste.

Coat a shallow baking dish with remaining extra-virgin olive oil, about 1 tablespoon oil. Cut the tortillas in half or quarters to make them easy to layer with. Build lasagna in layers of meat and beans, then tortillas, then cheese. Repeat: meat, tortilla, cheese again. Bake lasagna 12 to 15 minutes until cheese is brown and bubbly. Top with the scallions and serve.

E’s Notes:

• I did not use ground chicken breast. I diced up our grilled chicken tenders.
• I sautéed the onions and then added can of black beans, a can of petite diced tomatoes and some frozen corn.
• I seasoned the mixture with chili powder, cumin, chipotle pepper, garlic powder, salt and black pepper. [Taste the mixture to see if it needs more seasoning.]
• Then, I added the chicken and layered the lasagna- I used four cheese Mexican blend.

Ivy is ONE!

Ivy's gourmet dinner.

Once we put the bowl down, she did not look up!

She licked the bowl clean!