Saturday, February 24, 2007

Lasagna

I have tried many kinds of lasagna, but made this one by accident, for I did not have any ricotta cheese; and found out after thirty years of marriage that my husband did not like ricotta- and he is in the dairy/food industry. I like to experiment with all kinds of recipes and change them to my liking. Besides there are aren't any good Italian restaurants here in Florida: Oh, they call themselves Italian Restaurants, but their food is too bland for my taste. So here is my version of Italian Lasagna.

2 Tablespoons Olive oil
2 large onions diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 green pepper diced
2 Teaspoons Italian spices
2 bags of spinach
2 Teaspoons dried basil and oregano
2 large cans of diced tomatoes
1 large can tomato sauce

  1. Heat oil over medium heat (if you have an electric stove, use 5 level), meanwhile diced onion and green pepper, and mince the garlic, and put in the hot oil and saute until soft; add spices; add the spinach one bag at a time until it is cooked down. Add the diced tomatoes and sauce, and reduce the heat to low (2 level on an electric stove) and let it simmer for at least 30 minutes- but if you have time, the longer that it simmers, the better the flavor.
now for the meat, but if you want vegetarian, you may skip this step.
1 pound of lean ground meat
1 package of Jimmy Dean Italian Sausage, but you can use whatever you would like

  1. heat until brown all the way through and set aside.
Here is the cheese mixture.

4 eggs
2 cups Italian cheese Mixture shredded
2 cups grated Parmesan cheese
2 cups sour cream (16 ounce carton)
sprinkle of Italian spices (1Teaspoon)
salt and pepper

  1. mix all together.
Now you are ready to assemble the lasagna. For this recipe, I used the no cook noodles.

  1. spray pan with cooking spray.
  2. layer about several ladles of the tomato sauce on the bottom.
  3. Arrange the noodles on top of sauce.
  4. spread cheese mixture on top of noodles.
  5. repeat the procedure until all the noodles are gone or depending on how large your pan is , you may just get two layers. Cover with foil to keep it moist.
  6. bake in a 350 degree oven for 30 -45 minutes.
  7. Add mozzarella cheese and put back in oven until melted.
  8. let it cool for about 5 - 10 minutes before cutting it.
It is really good with a green salad and garlic bread.




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