Recipe Friday

(image)

I don't feel like I get a ton of magazines, but there are a ton of magazines laying around my house.  Usually, when I'm reading one, I rip out choice articles or recipes that catch my eye.  Then, instead of deep sixing the mag, it ends up on the coffee table or in the gaping maw of the magazine basket next to the fireplace.  Eventually, I'll go through those mags that have made the cut. I'll do a quick flip through to see if I've missed anything before I really and truly throw it away.

During one of my last purges, I came across an old copy of WonderTime magazine.  Do they even print this anymore?  SN: The better question is, am I getting charged for this 'cause I haven't seen a new issue in a while.

A quick Google search and come to find out, it's not in publication anymore.  That's a shame.  I used to love this magazine! It was like Real Simple and Parents had a baby and voila! WonderTime.  You can still check out some offerings online, but nothing beats the weight and heft of a well designed magazine.

Like most mags, they offered some recipes that were family friendly.  In one issue, there was a contest called "Beat This", where participants submitted what they considered to be their best recipe for a certain dish.  Other readers were encouraged to beat it, basically prove that they had a better recipe than the one featured.  I never did submit anything, but I guess in the back of my mind, I was going to see how good this woman's lasagna really was -- hence the saving of a now defunct magazine.

I went to the grocery yesterday for some odds and ends, and wouldn't you know it, the ingredients for the lasagna ended up in my cart.  I must be crazy because Craig is now doing Paleo and I'm pretty sure you can't pick lasagna off a tree, dig it out of the ground, or spear with with a bow and arrow as it leaps across a grassy knoll.  The girls? I predict that Morgan will give it a courtesy bite and Coever will opt out entirely in favor of salami and crackers.  Thankfully, my dad is in town. He's like Mikey from the Life cereal commercials.

I think it's going to be pretty tasty.  I made it last night and am going to cook up it tonight for supper.  I'll let you know how it turns out!

I ripped my copy of the recipe out of the issue of WonderTime, but you can find it here.
Buono appetito!

Serves 6 to 8

Ingredients:
1 pound ground beef or ground turkey (or cooked chicken, Italian sausage, seafood, andouille, etc.)
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspoon dried oregano
26 to 28 ounces (about 3 cups) pasta sauce
Salt and pepper
r 2 tablespoons red wine (optional)
1 cup chicken stock
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
2 tablespoons white wine (optional)
12 ounces (3 cups) freshly grated mozzarella
6 to 8 no-boil lasagna noodles
2 cups cooked, well-drained broccoli, spinach, peas, or other vegetables (optional)
1 cup (about 4 ounces) freshly grated Parmesan

Heat oven to 400. Grease a 9-by-13-inch pan. Thoroughly cook the ground beef, garlic, and herbs in a large skillet, stirring frequently and breaking up the meat. Stir in pasta sauce and bring to a simmer for about 2 minutes. Season to taste and add the red wine, if using. Set aside.

In a medium saucepan over medium heat, bring chicken stock to a boil. Add cream cheese, turn heat to low, and whisk until smooth, about 6 minutes. Season to taste and add the white wine, if using.

Spoon half the meat sauce into the pan as evenly as possible. Sprinkle 1 cup grated mozzarella over the meat mixture. Top with 3 or 4 lasagna noodles. If using vegetables, toss them evenly over the noodles.

Pour the cream-cheese sauce over the noodles and cover with another cup of grated mozzarella. Arrange 3 or 4 lasagna noodles over the cheese, then spoon remaining meat mixture over noodles as evenly as possible. Top with the rest of the mozzarella and the grated Parmesan. Bake until brown and bubbling, 35 to 45 minutes. (You'll need the longer cooking time if you have made and chilled the lasagna in advance.) Let cool for 10 to 15 minutes or it will be too gloppy to cut well. That would drive you crazy this late in the game.