Lasagna

I wanted to try a recipe where you don't pre-cook the noodles.  Barilla has a flat lasagna noodle that you don't have to pre-boil.  The only thing I found was that it doesn't layer as nicely as cooked noodles because it is hard.  If you are trying to lay the noodles in layers and want to break one of the noodles in half for a good fit it doesn't work like it does when its pre-boiled.  


I cooked 2 lbs of Italian sausage for this recipe and used half for the lasagna and put half in the refrigerator to use tonight in homemade egg rolls.  While my lasagna was cooking I also cooked all my vegetables for egg rolls and mixed with the meat so when i got home from work tonight dinner was fast and easy.  I served the egg rolls with fresh zucchini and strawberries to lighten the fried egg rolls.  


Everyone here liked the lasagna and we had plenty for the next day for lunch and for Uncle Michael for two meals.  Served it with salad and garlic bread.    


1 (9oz) box of Barilla no-boil noodles
2 eggs
1 (15oz) container of ricotta cheese
4 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
1 lb ground beef or sausage, browned (or a combination)
Mushrooms
Onions
Spinach 
Spaghetti or Pasta sauce (~2 jars worth) (I used some of my homemade marinara sauce)


Preheat oven to 375. 


In a bowl beat eggs, add ricotta cheese and two cups of the mozzarella cheese and the parmesan cheese.  Set aside.    


Brown the meat.  Before the meat was finished cooking, I added onions, rough chopped mushrooms and then fresh spinach.  


Lightly spray a 13x9 pan.  Spread about 1 cup (or about 1/2 jar) of the spaghetti sauce in the bottom of the pan.  Layer the uncooked noodles on top (~4), then 1/3 of the ricotta cheese mixture, half the browned meat, 1 cup mozzarella cheese and about 1 cup of sauce. 


Next layer about 4 uncooked noodles, 1/3 of the ricotta cheese mixture and about 1 cup of sauce.  Do the same again if you have a higher pan, if you have a 2 inch high pan you may only have room for 3 layers.  For the top layer, 4 uncooked lasagna noodles, remaining sauce and remaining 1 cup of mozzarella.

Bake covered with foil for 50-60 minutes and then uncover and bake until all the cheese is melted on top about 5 more minutes.  I would say to bake covered less and uncovered longer.  I prefer mine a little crispy and brown on top.  Let stand 15 minutes before serving.  


Note: The lasagna will hold up better if you switch the direction of the noodles for every layer.  Example: if you do the bottom layer of noodles horizontally, do the next layer of noodles vertically.  

Battle of the Lasagnas

For this week's challenge, I made lasagna with boudin (boo-dan).  For those of you who don't know what boudin is - rice, pork meat, green onions, bell peppers, onions, red pepper, black pepper and salt all stuffed in a casing like a sausage.  It's really good grilled, but I removed it from the casing and cooked it with my ground beef and pork.  I made a pink sauce instead of the traditional and typical red sauce.  For sides I made Caesar salad (homemade dressing) and breadsticks (I won't re-post recipe since I have already posted it).  For dessert I did a very vague version of Tiramisu - in ice cream form.  I made a homemade caramel sweet cream ice cream with just a hint of coffee and cocoa.

All of the lasagnas look awesome!

RECIPES

lasagna
2 cans whole tomatoes - drained, juice reserved
olive oil
minced garlic
red pepper flakes
Tony C's
SMSS
2-3 cups chopped spinach (I used frozen)
1/2 cup cream or 1/2 & 1/2
2 links Boudin
1 pound ground beef
1 pound ground pork
lasagna noodles
provolone/mozzarella cheese mix
skim Ricotta cheese
2 eggs

Add 1/8 cup olive oil in a stock pot, heat until shiny.  Add your garlic - cook down, but do not burn!!  Add your tomatoes and spices, break down tomatoes with a masher (I hate big chunks) and let simmer for about 20 minutes.  Add reserved tomato juice and continue to simmer.  After your sauce cooks down, add spinach and - if too thick - add 1/2 cup water.

Once my sauce was cooked, I added 1/2 cup cream and then blended it to make for a smoother sauce - this also helps with the liquid you sometimes see in lasagna - the tomatoes don't juice as much if they're broken down!  Meanwhile, in a mixing bowl add one container of Ricotta cheese, 1 cup of provolone/mozzarella mix and 2 eggs - combine until smooth.  Mix ground beef, pork and boudin in a pan - cook until no longer pink.

I used no-boil noodles because I really hate doing dishes...  To assemble the lasagna, spread thin layer of sauce on the bottom of pan, layer four noodles vertically.  Add a layer of your cheese mix, a layer of sauce and meat mix, noodles and repeat.  Bake at 375 degrees - covered for 40 minutes, uncovered for 10 minutes.  Let cool!!  If you don't let cool, the lasagna does not stay together.  I really liked this because it held together really well, which may be because of the rice in the boudin.

Caesar salad dressing
2 oz. grated parmesan
4 oz. plain yogurt (I used non-fat)
1 egg yolk
1 teaspoon Worcestershire's
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon minced garlic
S&P

This actually turned out really well...  I used butter leaf lettuce, green apples, Almond Accents and avocado in my salad and then tossed it all together with my dressing.

caramel sweet cream ice cream
I used my Kitchenaid ice cream maker attachment, which I am in love with and want to use every day.

ice cream base
2 large eggs
3/4 cup sugar
2 cups heavy whipping cream
1 cup milk

Whisk eggs in a mixing bowl until light and fluffy - about 1-2 minutes.  Whisk in the sugar - just a little at a time - until completely blended.  Pour in cream and milk - whisk to blend.  Place base in refrigerator.

I actually made homemade caramel (see a previous post for slow-cooker caramel) and used it in my ice cream.  Make sure to have it be completely cooled before adding it to your base!!

Once the caramel was cooled, I added it to the base - swirled is a more appropriate word.  I then added a little K-cup of coffee (2-3 tablespoons) and 1 tablespoon of cocoa powder into the mixture.  Once mixed, I grabbed my freeze bowl out of the freezer and hooked it up to my mixer.  Make sure the mixer is started before adding ice cream mix.  I let it run for 25 minutes and voila...

Battle of the....

Some new rules for the battles.  We decided against choosing ingredients, so we will be picking a "genre" of food instead.  There will be one main dish that everyone has to cook their own version of, but for the rest of the meal (sides, dessert, etc.) it is free choice.  However, the entire meal has to stay within the theme.

Since there is a good chance everyone will be cooking on the weekend, we decided that all posts must be up by Monday.

This week we are doing lasagna - so, obviously the theme is Italian.

Let the March Hunger Games begin!!

Chicken Pot Pie

I made chicken pot pie last night and I couldn't take a picture before it was gone!  No joke.  I've made this 4-5 times, and every time it is different.  But I think last night's was the best yet.  Evidence in the sliver left for me in the pan.  Eat or be eaten.

RECIPE

2 chicken breasts - thawed!
3 potatoes - peeled and chopped
1/2 bag frozen carrots and peas (you can use fresh but frozen is better - the peas don't mush as fast and turn everything green)
flour
chicken broth
2 pie crusts
S&P
Tony C's
SMSS

Season chicken, heat small amount of oil in a pan and brown chicken breasts.  While browning, pour about 2-3 cups of chicken broth into a saucepan (that has a lid), and bring to a boil.  Once chicken has a little color, drop the chicken into the boiling broth and cover with a lid.  Remove from heat and let sit for ~10 minutes - this will poach the chicken (cook while keeping it moist/juicy).  Make sure to keep oil hot to cook your potatoes in!

While chicken is being poached, start cooking your potatoes (in same pan/oil as chicken was cooked - no extra dishes).  You can boil them instead - but frying them keeps them solid and not mushy.  Do not add extra oil, as this will be the pan you make your gravy in as well.

You want them to be 90% cooked.  Season them with some S&P, Tony C's and SMSS.

Remove potatoes from pan, I let mine sit on a paper towel and plate to drain.  By now, the chicken should be cooked, remove and chop into bite size pieces or bigger - depending on how you like it (DAD).  Get your peas and carrots ready...

In same pan, make a gravy for your pot pie.  Using a whisk, add flour and chicken stock (that the chicken was poached in).  You don't want a runny gravy for this.  Bit by bit, keep adding flour and stock.  You may want to add some water to dilute the broth a little bit.  Make sure to S&P this as well.  Once gravy is to your preferred thickness, add in the potatoes, chicken, peas and carrots.  Remove from heat and mix well.  You do not want too little gravy or everything will be dry.
 

Roll out your pie crust and place in pie pan.  Scoop your pot pie mixture into the pie shell - do not overflow or it will overflow in the oven.  If you have too much gravy, just make sure to regulate it when pouring into the shell.

Place your other pie crust on top, pinch sides closed.  I cut four little slices in the middle of the top crust to let air in.  I also put my pie pan on a cookie sheet in case anything runs over.  If you pinch your sides well, nothing should.  Cook at 375 degrees for 30 minutes or until crust is golden.  

**Optional - brush crust with melted butter about 5 minutes before it's done cooking**  

Pineapple Bacon Poppers

Okay, since Emmy FINALLY conceded victory to us on the doughnuts, I have to give it to her for the bacon/pineapple challenge.  Especially since I was dreading this a bit as I really only like bacon in breakfast burritos...

Because of that, we've changed up the challenge format- new guidelines to come!

I made a pineapple jalepeno popper for my challenge, and they actually turned out quite nice :)

Ingredients

 I only made 3 poppers and just eyeballed the ingredients I used, so I don't have any exact measurements.

Ingredients:

3 jalepenos
1 fresh pineapple (can definately use canned here, especially for such a small amount)
Pineapple cream cheese
Pepperjack cheese
Turkey bacon
BBQ Sauce of your choice (I used Kraft Spicy Honey)

Cut your jalepenos in half and scrape out the seeds and pith to make nice little boats for your stuffing.  I cut my pineapple in small chunks, but again, canned would probably work best.

Jalepeno boats

Mix together some of the cream cheese with shredded pepperjack to your taste.  I like spicy, so I added more pepperjack- especially to compliment the sweetness of the pineapple cream cheese.

Put a dollop of your cheese mixture in each jalepeno.  Top with pieces of pineapple and a slice of bacon.

Where's the bacon?

Bacon, bacon, bacon!

Cook for 25 minutes in a 350 oven until the bacon has crisped up nicely.  With about 10 minutes left, paint some BBQ sauce on top for some added flavor.

 Done!

Happy eating :)  xoxo b

Breadsticks

These taste almost like Olive Garden's... thanks, Pinterest.  The only problem I had was forgetting about them once on the cookie sheet and letting them rise too long, they kind of lost their shape and expanded... oops.

RECIPE


1 1/2 cups warm water
1 package active-dry yeast
4 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons unsalted butter - melted
2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon salt

In a large bowl, dissolve the sugar and yeast in the water - let sit for 10 minutes.  It should be frothy.  Add flour and salt to mixture, then the melted butter.  Using your Kitchenaid (or with a spoon by hand), mix until fully combined.  Knead dough for 2-3 minutes (you can use your dough hook for this) - just until smooth, do not over knead.

Grease a cookie sheet.  Pull off pieces of dough and roll into strips (shape of breadsticks).  Place on cookie sheet, cover and let sit for 45 minutes to one hour.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees, cook breadsticks for 6-7 minutes.  Meanwhile, combine 1 stick butter, 2 teaspoons garlic powder, 1 teaspoon salt (I also added Tony C's) in the microwave until melted, about 30 seconds.  Brush the breadsticks with half of the mixture and then continue to bake for 5-8 more minutes.  Remove breadsticks and brush with remaining butter mix.

Teriyaki Burgers stuffed with Bacon and Pineapple

Ok, I concede defeat to Becky's doughnuts.  Whatever.  So for this challenge I decided to make homemade teriyaki burgers stuffed with thick-cut bacon and grilled pineapple (which was then chopped) topped with avocado, lettuce, pepperjack cheese and my homemade ranch.  Oh, and did I mention homemade hamburger buns?  And that I served this with homemade potato wedges - accompanied by above mentioned made from scratch ranch dressing?  I know, I know... I shouldn't have.  I really shouldn't have.  But I did.

RECIPES

buns
3/4 cup lukewarm water
2 tablespoons butter (softened)
2 eggs
3 1/2 cups flour
1/4 cup sugar
1 1/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon yeast

Ingredients for the buns

activate the yeast for 30 seconds in the warm water.  add all other ingredients into your mixer (using the dough hook) and knead for 5 minutes.  cover and let rise for 1 hour - or until doubled.

kneading

don't open until Christmas!

Place the dough onto the counter and shape into a log, cut into slices - place onto a greased cookie sheet, cover and let rise for 1 hour, or until very puffy.  Lightly brush with beaten egg (optional).  Place into 375 degree over for 12-15 minutes.

Hot Cross Buns

ranch

1 cup mayonaise

1/2 cup sour cream

1/3 cup buttermilk (more or less depending on preferred thickness)

Tony C's

Santa Maria Style Seasoning (SMSS from now on, I don't want to keep writing it out)

S&P

Dash (or two) of hot sauce

Dash of Worcestershire's

before mixing, after mixing... use a whisk to mix!

fries

4-5 potatoes

buttermilk

flour to coat

oil - 350 degrees

cut potatoes into strips - or use a fry cutter as used below... place in bowl and coat with buttermilk, let sit for 5-10 minutes.  coat with flour (using a ziploc bag with flour is the easiest).  place into oil and cook until done!  Sprinkle with Tony C's!

fry cutter, life is easy.

soaking in buttermilk

deep fryer, again - life is easy

YUM

hamburger patties
2-3 pounds ground beef (should make about 12 patties once mixed with everything)
6-8 strips thick cut bacon
1/2 can pineapple
Tony C's
2-3 tablespoons Worcestershire's
5 tablespoons Teriyaki sauce, not glaze
1 cup bread crumbs
S&P
SMSS

In a large bowl, mix the ground beef, sauces, seasonings and bread crumbs.  Cut the bacon into pieces and fry until cooked.  Drain grease, add to beef mixture.  Grill the pineapple and chop up roughly, add to mix.  Using your hands, mix together until everything is evenly dispersed throughout.

 Shape patties - make sure to make a little bigger as they shrink once cooked.  Grill and eat!!

 

Different variations... every mouth fed was very happy, and so full they were sick.  No joke.

NOM NOM NOM