Dad’s Lasagna

I was going to wait ’til next week to post this one, but there are allot of folks searching for non-thanksgiving type recipes today, it seems. So, if you live somewhere in the world where it’s not Thanksgiving, or if you’re looking for something non traditional for your feasting pleasure tomorrow, you can’t go wrong with lasagna. And this recipe makes a whole lot for feeding a crowd, and it’s easy, too.

• 2 jars/cans of your favorite spaghetti sauce (my dad uses Hunt’s brand – plain, I prefer Classico Traditional Sweet Basil)
• 1 lb ground beef
• 1 lb mild Italian Sausage
• 2 large containers of ricotta cheese (30 oz.)
• chopped fresh basil, or dried – I used dried last time and just sprinkled it in until it looked right.
• 2 eggs
• 1-2 cloves of garlic chopped or put through a garlic press
• about a handful of grated Parmesan cheese
• Lasagna noodles
• 2-3 cups shredded mozzarella

Brown the meat, drain, and mix in the sauce. In a separate bowl mix the ricotta cheese, basil, garlic, eggs, and Parmesan. Cook the noodles according to package instructions. Now you’ll need either one large aluminum pan (16×13, I think) or two 9×12 baking pans, sprayed or lightly oiled. Layer noodles, meat sauce, ricotta mixture, and shredded mozzarella. You’ll get about 2 layers/pan. Top it all off with some additional shredded Parmesan, then bake at 350 degrees F until the cheese is brown and crusty on top (a light golden brown) about 30 minutes to an hour.

My dad actually did make lasagna one Thanksgiving that I know of. I sure didn’t hear anyone complain. His lasagna is always a hit whenever he makes it.

To those in the U.S., have a happy Thanksgiving and enjoy your family and friends. For that matter, anyone, anywhere in the world  can certainly count their blessings this weekend and find someone you love, give them a hug, and tell them you love them. Have a wonderful weekend!

Holiday Pie

Well folks, Thanksgiving is less than one week away. What are your plans? Traveling? Staying home? Having folks over?

We have decided to stay put and have some folks over. We have two couples (no kids) confirmed and several other families that have not committed, one coming later for dessert. I have a turkey on order at Sun Harvest (organic, raised in spacious indoor/outdoor cages, they assure me). I’m thinking if everyone coming brings one or two items, we should have plenty of food.

So, I’ve planned only the turkey and a pie on my part. I had thought I’d make a pumpkin pie, but what was I thinking? My husband requests his favorite holiday pie every year – for Thanksgiving and Christmas. I usually wind up making several of these each year during the holiday season for various occasions. What pie am I talking about?

Cranberry-Apple Holiday Pie

• 3 cups peeled and sliced cooking apples
• 1 3/4 cups fresh cranberries
• 1/4 cup orange juice
• 2/3 cup sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tablespoon ground arrowroot, or 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• 2 tablespoons orange juice
• 1 9-inch pie shell
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 3 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon butter or coconut oil
• 1/4 cup chopped pecans

Combine the first five ingredients in a 2 quart casserole, cover. Microwave at HIGH for 6 to 8 minutes or until cranberry skins pop, stirring every 2 minutes.

Combine arrowroot and 2 tablespoons orange juice, mixing well; gradually stir into cranberry mixture, mixing well. Microwave, uncovered, at HIGH for one minute or until thickened and bubbly. Pour into pastry shell, and set aside.

Combine flour, brown sugar, 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, ans salt; cut in butter with a pastry blender until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add pecans, stirring well. Sprinkle topping over filling. Bake at 350 degrees in oven 10-15 minutes or until butter is melted. Let cool completely. Makes one pie.

If you’re not keen on using the microwave, the filling could be made in a saucepan on the stove. Same procedure, until cranberries pop, etc., just a little longer. I may try making my own pie crust since I didn’t find any at Sun Harvest. Anyone out there have an easy and simple recipe for pie crust?

Whatever you’re doing, whoever you’re visiting, have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Getting Back on Track

I recently had the opportunity to attend a health fair for military spouses offering a basic health assessment. They took two blood samples (finger prick), weight, blood pressure, and BMI (Body Mass Index). Needless to say I took advantage of this opportunity and was rather pleased with the results.

Turns out I’m not doing so bad as I’ve imagined. The BMI results only suggested I lose about 10 pounds. That’s certainly doable. My cholesterol, glucose level, and blood pressure were all within normal ranges. My good cholesterol was lower than it should be, however. The main recommendation for that was aerobic exercise – 30 minutes/day, 5 days/week. That and Omega 3. The adviser recommended fish oil.

So, overall, I’m pretty healthy – no red flags. But my body has been giving me lots of little annoying symptoms lately. I’ve already written about the hives. In addition there has been painful gas and bloating and some of the worst pms symptoms I’ve had to date (at least that I can recall). So, I’m getting back on track, starting with the diet.

I finally took the trek across town to check out the local health food store. It’s not bad – better than I imagined. It’s a little smaller, but still has much of what I was able to find at Whole Foods in VA. The prices are also better than I expected. So, I’ll be heading over there once every couple of weeks, I think, for poultry and some other grocery products I can’t get at Costco or the Commissary.

I was not able to find a local source for grass-fed meat. But I found a great ranch in NE Texas that has good shipping rates. Grass fed poultry is out of sight, no matter where you purchase it. So, I’m compromising there and getting the organic poultry raised in “spacious indoor/outdoor cages” (from the butcher at the local health food store). I placed my first order for beef from the TX ranch last week. Check EatWild.com to find out what’s available in your state.

Oh, there is also a local co-op that I can order from once a month. My next step in the food department is to actually plan a few week’s worth of menus to help me stay in budget. Can’t hurt in the organization department, either. I suppose I should get back to exercising, too. I love Pilates. But, since I’m not managing to fit that into my day right now, I need to find a more practical alternative, like walking. The dog can probably use some exercise, too.

SIDE NOTE: If you’re wondering “Why grass-fed beef?” check out the Power Steer article. There are also some informative articles on EatWild.com, linked above. Grass fed beef is higher in beneficial Omega-3 fatty acids, which is good for raising that good cholesterol, which will in turn help lower the bad cholesterol (and lower in the bad Omega 6). That’s just off the top of my head, from memory. So do check it out.

My New Favorite Cookies

I found these cookies over at Kate in the Kitchen. It was funny, I had just gotten an email that a meeting I was to attend would be having a cheesecake theme, then hopped on over to Kate’s blog and there she had posted about cheesecake cookies. Well, that settled that! I’m not much of a baker, but I can make cookies. Let me just say I did not come home with a single cookie.

Chewy Cheesecake Cookies (NOT a low fat recipe!)

• 1 stick of butter at room temperature
• 3 oz. softened cream cheese
• 1 cup white sugar
• 1 cup all purpose flour

Blend together the butter and cream cheese. Gradually add the sugar until light and fluffy. Stir in the flour until incorporated – don’t over-mix. Scoop by tablespoon onto ungreased baking sheets and bake at 375 until slightly browned around the edges, about 10-12 minutes. Allow them to cool for several minutes before removing them from the sheets.

That’s the basic recipe. You can hop on over to Kate’s post for suggestions to jazz it up. Yum! One batch made about 1 1/2 dozen. I also want to mention that I used baking stones from Pampered Chef and it took the cookies about 17 minutes to get done.