Tuesday, June 9, 2009

Lasagna

Don't ask why, but I wanted to make and eat lasagna. It's a comfort thing I guess. I don't really have a set recipe to make lasagna and this time well suffice it to say I REALLY did wing it.

Have you ever CRAVED something and "thought" you had all of the ingredients, only to find you kinda had the ingredients but you were too far gone and you decided to plow through and hope for the best? Now you know about this adventure I am about to share with you.

This lasagna turned out really good. This time improvising worked.

Start off by boiling 12 lasagna noodles in salted water for about 10 minutes. Remove the noodles and lay them out flat on waxed paper. Lightly coat the cooked noodles with olive oil so they will not stick together.


Off to a good start with the vegetables. Chop 1/2 medium onion, rough chop 2 cloves of garlic, chop 2 carrots and 2 stalks of celery. Just for fun and because I had fresh basil, add in 2 tablespoons of chopped fresh basil.


Saute the vegetables in 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil for about 5 minutes.




Ok this where things went off the beaten path. Brown 1 lb. of lean ground beef and 1 lb. of Italian sausage. I used 1 lb. of regular pork sausage because that is what I had. Brown meat until it is no longer pink. Drain fat from pan and discard.


Stir in two 16 ounce cans of tomato sauce and one 14 ounce can of diced tomatoes. Season with salt and black pepper. Remove pan from burner and allow to cool slightly.


I didn't have enough ricotta cheese and substituted sour cream. This added an amazing dimension to the flavor of this lasagna! In a medium bowl, mix together one 15 ounce container of ricotta cheese, one 16 ounce container of sour cream, 2 beaten eggs, 2 tablespoons of chopped flat leaf parsley, 1 tablespoon of dried oregano and 1/2 cup of grated Parmesan cheese.


Now, we are ready to assemble! Coat the bottom of a 9x13 baking dish with the meat/sauce mixture.



Place 4 noodles length-wise, over lapping slightly, then place a noodle at each end.


Spread half of what is left of the meat mixture over the noodles.


Spread 1/2 of the ricotta/sour cream mixture over the meat.

Sprinkle about 1/2 cup of mozzarella cheese over the ricotta mixture. Repeat with another layer of noodles, meat, etc. Top with 1-1/2 cups of mozzarella cheese and 1/4 cup of grated Parmesan cheese.



Bake at 350 degrees for one hour.



Allow to cool for 30 minutes so the lasagna will set and stay together once you cut it to serve.



46 comments:

Jenn@slim-shoppin said...

I am famous for starting to make things and I have 1/2 the ingredients. Sometimes it works, and sometimes, not!

Your lasagna looks amazing!

Thanks for posting the recipe!

Debbie said...

I also get in the position of starting a recipe and then have something or other missing. I panic at that point since I don't lilke to improvise!!!! Your lasagna looks great Katherine and I'm glad your improvising worked so well!!!!

gigi said...

I do that often, you know, start a recipe thinking I have all the ingrediennts and don't!! Mine doesn't always turn out as nicely as this did. Now I have a craving for some of that lasagna. Ooo yummy!

MsTypo said...

This looks amazing!! I've totally been jonzing pasta today too! YUM!

buffalodick said...

I once was featured in the food section of the local press with a lasagna made from chicken and Canadian bacon! In a city wide contest I placed third with a Mexican version of Lasagna... The only ingredient I am adamant on is the one you didn't use- Ricotta! This proves we can all learn good things by inprovising our recipes!
Yours looked delicious!

Cathy said...

This would be perfect for breakfast right now! Exactly what I am craving ;) I haven't made lasagna for quite some time....my secret ingredient - fennel

Jersey Girl Cooks said...

This is definitely one of my favorite meals.

Mary Bergfeld said...

What quick thinking on your part! I'm glad all your substitutions worked. The lasagna looks great.

Reeni said...

Lasagna is one of my all-time favorites!! How clever you are to add sour cream. I bet it added to its gooey deliciousness!

Marguerite said...

Looks sinfully delicious, Katherine!
I love lasagna and will definitely give this original recipe a try.

April said...

YUM! It looks delicious!

Lucy..♥ said...

Certainly have been there, and most times it all works out, especially w/cooking.

I haven't made a lasagna in a while, and boy could I go for a serving right now! It's looks so good!

La Bella Cooks said...

This turned out beautifully for not having all you need! I've never tried lasagna with sour cream but it sounds like it would give an interesting flavor to the dish. Love that cheesy top!

Dewi said...

What a perfect lasagna Katherine! Looks so mouth watering.

Heather S-G said...

Pure comfort...great job at improvising!! It sounds wonderful. I would love a slice right about now!

tavolini said...

Very interesting! One of my weird quirks is that I don't like ricotta. I wonder how well it would hold up if ricotta was omitted completely? I do like sour cream ;)

Heather @ Simple Wives said...

Oh....that looks devine!

Marjie said...

I have never made lasagna. It looks too much like work to me. And I always start recipes which need things I don't have. It's much more interesting that way, don't you think?

Greg C said...

I am an expert when it comes to eating lasagna. I make a pretty mean one myself.

I will have more photos next week. My son took my camera with him.

Mary | Deep South Dish said...

That looks SO delicious. I learned my lesson and I always check now before I start, but I'm the same way - if I have a taste for something, I have to make it ... even if I have to improvise with the ingredients or run to the store for what I'm missing!! Doesn't matter the "season" either - if I crave it, I crave it!!

Katy ~ said...

Lasagna is good food! Yours looks very good indeed.

NKP said...

Great subs, I love the sour cream idea - delish!

Donna-FFW said...

I think yor substitutions worked wonderfully. It certainly looks delicious!I agree lasagne is a comfort food!

Christo Gonzales said...

this looks so good - I could eat lasagna every week!

theUngourmet said...

I love Lasagna! Great idea adding in the Sour Cream.

Anonymous said...

Never met a lasagna I didn't like. This sounds wonderful! I often use Italian sausage in my meat sauce, but I will definitely have to try the sour cream trick!

Anonymous said...

I am so craving lasagna right now.

Lucky me, I think I have the ingredients...or I'll come up with something, thank you for the inspiration!

AND, lucky me it is a rainy cold day here! Perfect for a meal like this!

Thank you for posting this recipe!

lisaiscooking said...

The sour cream sounds like a great addition! I have to try that next time.

Lisa said...

Oh, I do that all of the time. My husband is great about offering to run to the grocery but it is a great talent to be able to make things work with what you have.

The lasagna looks great! I really like lasagna and I don't make it often enough.

The Blonde Duck said...

Now you've got me craving lasagna!

Claudia said...

I'm really liking the idea of the sour cream... yes. While I make fun of my husband for starting a home project and then needing to go to the hardware store - I don't know - at least ten times, I am guilty of cooking something without all the ingredients. Now, if I ran out of lasagne noodles... But seriously - this looks delicious and cravings are mysterious but wonderful things.

Sweta (My Indian Dietitian) said...

I've never made lasagna before,but we absolutely love it. This looks great!!!

Elizabeth said...

I haven't eaten lasagna in ages - your pictures and recipe just kick started a serious craving!

Debbie said...

I like the idea of the sour cream. I am absolutely going to try that.

Selba said...

I love Lasagna! Yummm... with sour cream, that's a great idea :)

Jennifer said...

I know just what you mean nad honestly, I am not so great at improvising. I must have it all planned out. My hubby is the opposite and I love it!

Bunny said...

Just look at the top of the lasagna, Fantastic. I always cook on a wing and a prayer!! LOL!!

pam said...

I always get about halfway through a recipe and realize that I'm missing a key ingredient.

Now, I'm craving lasagna!

The JR said...

Yes, been there and done that. Unfortunately a lot of times I just make it worse by winging it.

Your lasagna looks pretty good. Glad it turned out okay.

Ramona

Maria said...

Lasagna is the best comfort food if you ask me! YUM!

teresa said...

I think some of the best dishes I've made have come from improvising! This looks fantastic!

José Carrilho (Go Detail) said...

Hi Katherine,

I'll say that lasagna is not among my favourite dishes, but there's one type of lasagna that I quite appreciate : spinach lasagna.
Once in a while I have it near my job and it seems that the lady adds parmesan cheese into the stuffing, but I'm not sure.

Best regards,

José

Chris said...

I'll forward this one to my great wife, she makes the lasagna in our family:)

Melbourne jobs said...

i love Lasagna sooo mucuh!

online learning said...

Your lasagna is really awesome :)

Hornsfan said...

Yummy - the lasagna looks tasty!