lasagna – Fun Foodie Family

Meaty Lasagna with Whole Wheat Noodles

Whole Wheat Noodles? Why the heck would anyone want to eat those things? Well, turns out they are not that bad. Dare I say that you can’t really even tell the difference. Seriously. My dad said it was the best lasagna he has ever had. EVER.

It doesn’t really even matter what kind of noodles you use. It is all about this meat sauce and cheese. My husband ate two helpings and raved about it. The next time you are craving lasagna, you should totally make this. Trust me.

Meaty Lasagna with Whole Wheat Noodles

Ingredients

1 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
3/4 pound ground sirloin
3/4 pound ground Italian pork
1 tablespoon Italian Seasoning
1 teaspoon fennel seeds
3 tablespoons tomato paste
2 tablespoons Worcestershire Sauce
2 tablespoons sugar
1 28 oz. can of crushed tomatoes
1 14.5 oz. can diced tomatoes
1/4 cup red wine
1 cup beef stock
2 CUPS or more of shredded Italian cheese (I used a large bag from Publix on sale)
1 log mozzarella
salt and pepper to taste

Directions

Salt and pepper your meat. Brown all your meat about half way. Then add in the onions and garlic. Continue to brown.
Add in your Italian seasoning and stir well. Add in your tomato paste and cook for a few minutes.
Add in your wine. Reduce a bit, then add in your Worcestershire sauce, sugar, and beef stock. Mix well.
Then add all your tomatoes. Mix well and simmer for at least 30 more minutes (the longer the better).
Meanwhile, Cook your noodles so they are still under done, about 4 minutes less than the box says.
Cool your noodles just a tad so you don’t burn your fingers.
Spray a large casserole dish. Add a layer of sauce to the bottom. Then start layering your ingredients…pasta, sauce, shredded cheese, about 3 layers. On top, I added the mozzarella slices. Cook at 350 for about 45 minutes.
Serve with some crusty bread!

Just enough for leftovers!

EASY Yummy Veggie Lasagna

Pasta, Side dishes...veggies, potatoes, grains, Vegetarian

Here is another vegetarian meal brought to you by my farmer’s market veggies. I made a huge pan, knowing full well that I am the only one eating it. Whatever is leftover in a few days will go straight to the freezer for future consumption.

This lasagna was super easy to make. Store bought sauce, pre-shredded cheese, no boil pasta, and lots of sliced veggies. I threw this together in less than 10 minutes, baked for about 45 minutes until the cheese on top was bubbling and starting to turn brown. The end product was super cheesy yet still light and full of summer flavors! You can mix and match your sauce and veggies and even add in ground meat if you want to make it non-vegetarian. Or serve it as a veggie side pasta to some chicken parm etc.

EASY Yummy Veggie Lasagna

Ingredients
jarred sauce- I used a mixture of alfredo and vodka sauce. I find that for lasagna 1 container of thick sauce is never enough, so I experimented with 1 regular sized Vodka Sauce and 1 small jar of light mushroom alfredo sauce. Perfect amount! I love making different homemade pasta sauces, but I love the convenience and ease of a jarred sauce. I try to keep a couple in my pantry for quick dinners.

1 small bunch of kale, chopped- just the leaves- the ribs and stems are too fibrous to chew-
1 large or 2 small summer squash, sliced
2-3 summer tomatoes- I used one large yellow and 1 small red
1 package of no cook lasagna
1 pound of shredded mozzarella

Directions

Preheat oven to 350
Spray large oven safe casserole dish
put a bit of sauce spread on the bottom
add kale, then some cheese, then pasta, add sauce
add squash, then some cheese,then pasta, add sauce
add tomatoes, then some cheese, then pasta, add sauce

Bake for 45 min-1 hour until cheese is bubbly and brown. That combo of the mushroom alfredo and vodka sauce is unbelievable. It is rich and creamy, yet somehow still manages to feel light and delicate. It pairs perfectly with the veggies, which just kind of melt into the pasta and sauce. This is an awesome recipe to use some pretty amazing farmer’s market ingredients. I hope you give it a try!

Baked Lasagna with Bolognese Sauce

Date Night, Pasta, Pizzas, Flatbreads, Toasts

Hey guys! Gymnastics tonight, so I made an easy semi-homemade baked lasagna with a pork and beef Bolognese Sauce. So easy and delicious. Here is the simple recipe. Happy eating!

Baked Lasagna with Bolognese Sauce

Ingredients

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 pound ground beef
1/2 pound ground pork
Your favorite jar of plain marinara
red wine- a couple of glugs
a handful of fresh herbs- I used basil, oregano, parsley, thyme, and marjoram
lasagna noodles
cheese… see below

Directions
Preheat oven to 350.
Using a large saucepan, heat oil, saute’ onion and garlic until onion becomes translucent, about 4 minutes. Add your meat and lightly brown while occasionally stirring. Mix in your jar of marinara, wine, and fresh herbs. Simmer over medium heat. Let cook for 15-20 minutes.

While your sauce cooks, boil a large pot of salted water and cook your lasagna noodles. Spray a oven safe casserole dish. Once pasta is drained and cooled, place alternating layers of your Bolognese Sauce, noodles, and mozzarella cheese. My husband hates ricotta, so I just used all mozzarella. BUT if this was just for me or cooking for a party, which it is sometimes, I would make a combo cheese mixture of mozzarella, ricotta, and Parmesan. About 3/4 cup of each, more if you deem necessary. Bake for 40-50 minutes, until your cheese brown and bubbly on the top.

Stove Top Lasagna and Bruschetta

Date Night, Girls' Night Out/In, One pot meal, Pasta, Pizzas, Flatbreads, Toasts

Last weekend, I was watching The Kitchen, a show that comes on the Food Network. It is kinda like The Chew, but only comes on Saturdays. Sunny Anderson is one of the TV chef personalities, and she was making this stove top lasagna. It looked so easy and delicious, I thought I would make it the next time lasagna was on the menu. I made this kind of from what I remember, so it is not exactly the same as hers. Here is the link to her original recipe. http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/sunny-anderson/sunnys-pan-sagna-one-pan-plan-lasagna.html
Here is how I made it…

Ingredients
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 chopped onion
2 tablespoons Italian seasoning and fresh herbs- next time I will add more
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 pound ground beef
One 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes
2 tablespoons of tomato paste
2 tablespoons of Worcestershire sauce
1 container of mushrooms
1 to 2 cups beef stock
8 par-cooked lasagna sheets, broken into shards- I also added the end of a box of penne.
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1 cup Parmesan cheese

Directions
You need a large pan with a lid that is also oven safe. I used a circular dutch oven. Add the olive oil on medium-high heat. When the oil begins to swirl around in the pan a bit, add onions, mushrooms, Italian seasoning, a little salt and a few grinds of pepper. Cook until the vegetables are tender and the onions become translucent, about 8 minutes. Add the tomato paste and garlic. Stir for a couple of minutes.

Add the beef to the pan. Cook while breaking up with a wooden spoon until cooked through and browned, about 10 minutes. Add the tomatoes and stir. Add the stock to cover the contents by almost an inch. Bring the pan to a boil then add the broken lasagna sheets. Make sure you cover the pasta with the liquid. Cover the pot, lower the heat to a simmer and cook until the lasagna noodles are al dente, about 8-10 minutes. I uncovered it and stirred it around every few minutes to prevent it from sticking to the bottom.

Once it is done, stir in the Parmesan cheese. The spread the mozzarella all over the top. Turn the oven on low broil. Put the pot in the oven and keep the door a jar a bit. Keep an eye on it and take it out when the cheese is melty and brown. YUM!

Of course I didn’t forget about the Bruchetta! Make this before you put your lasagna in the oven for a nice appetizer to munch on while you sip some wine and wait for dinner to be ready. Lots of different ways to make this- what kind of bread are you going to use; are you going to toast it first or toast the ingredients on it; what kind of toppings are you going to add etc.

I made mine pretty in a pretty basic way- Cut open some bread, minced some garlic and put it on the bread first, then add slices of a tomato, mozzarella, and top with some thinly sliced basil leaves. Put in the oven on low broil until cheese is melted. Perfect with a glass of Malbec!

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