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Off to Portugal!

A few years ago I wrote WinePassport:Portugal. It was a great project, and I learned a lot about Portuguese wines, but there was no budget for a trip to Portugal. Ever since then I’ve been very eager to visit. I was in Portugal once, 20 years ago and n…

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Friday Cooking

Yesterday I had a little more time to spend making dinner so I decided to try a Vegetable Lasagna from Giada and Everyday Italian.  I decided to use the option of making it in a 13×9 baking dish as offered in the cookbook.  It was very good and not difficult,  I just needed a little time.

Individual Vegetable Lasagnas

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 medium Spanish onion, finely chopped
1 medium carrot, finely chopped
1 medium zucchini, finely chopped
1 medium summer squash, finely chopped
8 asparagus spears, cut into 1/4-inch slices
1 pound fresh plain lasagna sheets
2 cups tomato sauce
1 1/2 cups canned white beans, rinsed and drained
2 (10-ounce) packages frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
3 cups shredded mozzarella
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, halved
Salt and freshly ground pepper

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

In a saute pan over medium heat, add extra-virgin olive oil. When almost smoking, add the onion and cook until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the carrot and cook for 3 minutes. Add the zucchini and squash cook for 5 minutes. Add asparagus and cook for 2 minutes. Remove from heat when all vegetables are completely cooked but still have a good crunch. Allow to cool.

Using a 6-inch round cookie cutter, cut circles out of the lasagna sheets. You will need 18 circles. Coat the bottom of 6 (6-inch) gratin dishes with a teaspoon of tomato sauce in each. Place a circle of pasta on the bottom of each ramekin. Rinse the beans with water and season with salt and pepper. Divide the beans between each ramekin. Next, divide the spinach between the ramekins. Place a second layer of pasta on top and gently press down. Divide the sauteed vegetables among the ramekins and top with a tablespoon of tomato sauce in each. Place the third layer of pasta in each ramekin and coat with a tablespoon of tomato sauce. Sprinkle ramekins with the mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses, and top each with 1/2 tablespoon of butter. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and place gratin dishes on top. Bake in oven for 20 minutes or until brown and bubbling.

I did not make tomato sauce, I used a Muir Glen Tomato Basil sauce but I did make fresh pasta and rolled it into sheets for lasagna noodles.  I love the pasta attachment for my KitchenAid stand mixer.  I used more zucchini and yellow squash and eliminated the asparagus since my husband isn’t fond of them. 

Today we went to Jazzercise, then home for a quick and easy breakfast.  I packed some equipment for a class I did this afternoon and made some delicious banana chocolate chip bar cookies.  My husband brought home bananas that he didn’t eat this week at work and casually mentioned that they were ripe and great for baking.  What a helper!

After relaxing and reading with a cup of tea and a bar, I got ready to go cook. Today was a fun day, as usual!  I was cooking with Paige who just turned 10 and 7 of her girlfriends at Paige’s house.  Paige invited them to cook with her, she chose the menu, they cooked and then had a special dining room dinner with candles.  Today we made:

• Chicken in Puff Pastry
• Shredded Zucchini
• Strawberry Fondue

I managed to take some pictures as they worked.  They loved the food they cooked and did a great job.

I finished cleaning the kitchen as they had dinner.  As I was leaving the plans for the rest of the party included the opening of gifts and then decorating and painting aprons that Paige’s mom purchased for favors.  And there was going to be music, a Miley Cyrus CD. 

Once home I was so happy to see a clean kitchen courtesy of my husband.  We heated some lasagna and I think it was better today.  The rest went to the freezer for another day.  Perfect. 

Now I am going to finish my book and probably hold the cat.  A great day!

Read More | Posted 13 hours, 15 minutes ago