Simply Lasagna

 Love, love, love this recipe!! It is so easy and is always a hit. This is a great dish to prepare if you need to feed a crowd. I made this for my husband's 30th birthday dinner for all of his family.

You will need: one pound of lean ground beef or turkey, one egg, a 24 oz. jar of spaghetti sauce (of your choice- I only have this because it was on sale), lasagna noodles, 15 oz. ricotta cheese (I used part skim), 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, parsley (1/4 cup fresh or 2 Tbsp. dried), and 3 cups shredded mozzarella cheese.

Place the ricotta cheese into a mixing bowl.

 Add half of the shredded mozzarella cheese and all of the Parmesan cheese. 

 Add the parsley and one beaten egg.

Mix all of that well.

 Brown the lean ground beef in a large pan.

 Add the jar of spaghetti sauce to the cooked meat.

 Fill the jar halfway with water. Cover the jar with the lid and shake it well to get all of the sauce out of the jar.

 Pour the water from the sauce jar into the pan. This extra water is what will help cook the lasagna noodles while it is in the oven.

 Spread 1 cup meat sauce onto bottom of 13x9-inch baking dish.

 Top with 3-4 lasagna noodles. I broke one noodle up so that the noodles went all the way across my baking dish.

 Top the noodles with 1/3 of the ricotta cheese mixture...

...and and 1 cup meat sauce.

  Repeat layers twice. Top with remaining noodles, meat sauce and cheese mixture.

 

 Add the remaining shredded mozzarella cheese to the top.

  Cut a piece of foil that will cover the baking dish. The foil will keep all of the moisture in the dish and cook the noodles while the lasagna is in the oven. Spray one side of the foil with cooking spray. Cover the dish with the foil, sprayed side down. This is so that the foil does not stick to the cheese on top.

 Bake for 45 minutes and then remove the foil.

 Bake for another 15 minutes. Let stand 15 minutes before cutting to serve.

 

Simply Lasagna

Preheat oven to 350°

Servings: 12

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour

- 1 lb. lean ground beef or turkey

- one egg

- 24 oz. jar of spaghetti sauce 

- lasagna noodles

-15 oz. ricotta cheese (I used part skim)

- 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese

-parsley (1/4 cup fresh or 2 Tbsp. dried)

- 3 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

Preheat oven to 350°F. Brown meat in large skillet on medium-high heat. Meanwhile, mix half of the mozzarella cheese, ricotta cheese, Parmesan cheese, parsley and egg until well blended; set aside. Drain meat and return to skillet. Stir in spaghetti sauce. Fill the jar halfway with water. Cover with lid and shake well. Add to meat mixture and stir until well blended. Spread 1 cup of meat sauce onto bottom of 13x9-inch baking dish. Top with layers of 3-4 lasagna noodles, 1/3 of the ricotta cheese mixture and 1/3of the meat sauce. Repeat layers twice. Top with remaining noodles, meat sauce and cheese mixture. Add the remaining mozzarella cheese on top. Cover with foil sprayed with cooking spray. Bake 1 hour or until heated through, removing foil after 45 min. Let stand 15 min. before cutting to serve.

Variation:

Substitute 1 pkg. (10 oz.) frozen chopped spinach for the browned ground beef or add to the regular recipe. Thaw spinach, squeeze out water. Prepare as directed, covering each ricotta layer with 1/3 of the spinach.

 

 

Salmon Croquettes

This recipe is one that belongs to my grandmother. My grandparents  have always been amazing cooks. My mom prepared these a lot while we were growing up, and they were one of my favorites! I wasn't a big fish fan when I was younger, but I always loved the salmon croquettes.

 To make this recipe, you will need the following: 15.5 oz.can salmon, saltine crackers, 1 egg, mustard, salt & pepper, and cooking oil (I use canola oil)

 Place about half a sleeve of saltines into a ziploc bag and seal. Crush your crackers using a hard flat surface. I used my Pampered Chef meat tenderizer (flat side, not spiked). You could use a rolling pin also.

 Pour the crushed saltines in a mixing bowl.

 

Open your can of salmon. I remove the bones and a majority of the skin, although you don't have to.

 Add the salmon to the crushed crackers.

 Add one beaten egg.

 Squeeze in 1 teaspoon of mustard. I just estimated it.

 Now take off your rings and get your hands dirty. Mix the ingredients up with your hands.

 Form the mixture into about five patties, depending on the size you make them.

Cover the bottom of your pan with cooking oil. Heat your oil over medium heat. Make sure that the oil is HOT before you put in your patties, or else they will just soak up the oil. I always test my oil by sprinkling just a touch of water. BE CAREFUL!! If it begins to pop, the oil is ready.

 Sprinkle salt and pepper over your patties and add them to the pan.

 Flip the patties over when the bottom has gotten crispy and brown. Continue cooking until they are a golden brown color.

 Place the finished patties on a plate with a paper towel to soak up any extra oil.

Mmmmm!

Salmon Croquettes

-15.5 oz can salmon

-1 cup saltines, crushed

-1 egg, well beaten

-1 tsp. prepared mustard

-salt & pepper to taste

-cooking oil (I use canola oil)

Mix together well the salmon, crackers, egg, and mustard. Season to taste. Shape the mixture into patties and fry in hot oil until golden brown on both sides. 

Chili Mac

This is a recipe that I got from the Weight Watchers site. I have changed it a little bit to make it my own and it is a dish that I prepare pretty regularly at home. It is one of my husband's favorites.

 You will need 1 lb. ground turkey (or lean ground beef), an onion, a can of Rotel tomatoes, 1 1/4 cup canned tomato sauce, 15 oz. can kidney beans, 2 tsp. chili powder, 1 tsp. cumin, and 1 cup of dry macaroni.

In a large skillet (I love my cast iron!), cook the ground turkey and onion until the meat is browned. I cut my onion into large pieces so that they could be easily spotted and pulled out. If you have a picky eater, this is a good way to get the flavor in the dish and not have to serve onion on their plate. Then drain the fat and return the meat and onion mixture to the pan.

Pour in the undrained Rotel tomatoes.

Add the tomato sauce.

Rinse the kidney beans...

 

...and add them to the pan.

 

Add 2 teaspoons of chili powder.

Then add 1 teaspoon of cumin.

Stir it all up and bring it to a boil.

Stir in 1 cup of uncooked macaroni (I used whole wheat). Return the mixture to a boil. After you have brought it to a boil, reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer about 15 minutes.

The macaroni will be tender when it is done.

I like to serve my Chili Mac with different toppings, such as hot sauce, salsa, sour cream, green chilies, crushed tortilla chips and shredded cheese. You can put whatever you want on yours.

A side note: While trying to decide which hot sauce I wanted on my chili, I realized that we have a lot of hot sauce! There are about three other bottles in the cabinet that I didn't pull down. We really like spicy food!

Chili Mac

-1 pound ground turkey or lean ground beef

-1 medium onion

-1 can of Rotel tomatoes

-1 1/4 cup canned tomato sauce

-15 oz. can kidney beans

-2 tsp. chili powder

-1 tsp. cumin

-1 cup dry macaroni

In a large skillet, cook turkey and onion until meat is browned, about 10 minutes. Drain off fat. Stir in Rotel tomatoes, tomato sauce, rinsed kidney beans, chili powder, and cumin. Bring to a boil. Stir in uncooked macaroni. Return to a boil, reduce heat, cover, and simmer until macaroni is tender, about 15 minutes. Serve with the toppings of your choice.