I knew I was going to make lasagna. It was that kind of day. I grabbed Brian before he headed out to move snow with the tractor - and handed him a big block of mozza along with the hand shredder. He made fast work of that project, happy to be excused from kitchen duties so he could play outside.
I turned up my favourite oldies radio station, tied on my white apron, and began the process of peeling, cutting, chopping, and cooking all those wonderful ingredients that come together to make a tasty, satisfying meal on a winter's day.
Making lasagna is a good excuse to use up bits and bites of this and that in the fridge. I stacked up various cheeses that were bordering on drying out and added them to the grated mozza. A small container of sour cream went into one of the layers.
I had to cook the ground beef in two rounds as I had too much to cook at once. I transferred the cooked meat to a large bowl, while I sauteed onions, garlic, celery, green pepper and mushrooms. While this was cooking down, I tossed in a large bag of curly spinach. Then came the canned tomatoes and a jar of spaghetti sauce. I let this simmer for a bit, then gradually added back all the cooked beef. It was a huge potful!
Then the easy part - layering the meat sauce with the cheese and pasta, (I used the oven ready kind, no fussing with this pasta), adding lots of parmesan with each layer. I made enough for one large 9x13 pan, and a 9x9 pan that I'll give to my son, Christian when he comes over tonight to help Brian with barn chores. I know he'll love it - who doesn't love lasagna?
Once the pans were in the oven, the cleanup begins. Mom once said to me "Barbara, you're a good cook, but you use too many dishes". At the time, I took it as a backhanded compliment, but as I think back, she was right! (Funny how mothers often are.)
So, supper is ready, kitchen is cleaned up, and the "oldies" are over for another Sunday. I'm going to get bundled up and go outside for a while. There's a bunny trail that runs from our pine trees to our deck, and over to the bird feeders that I want to check out. If I'm lucky, maybe I'll spot one of the little fellas. They always put a smile on my face.
