Lasagna

Baby Sluder made an appearance this week - and I wanted to make a meal for the family - so they could spend less time cooking and more time marveling at how little he is and how perfect he is and watching him every second. Isn't that what new parents are supposed to do?

Lasagne seemed to be the thing to make - so here is what I did.

Tomato Sauce
I roasted roma and plum tomatoes in my toaster oven on low for about 2 hours. Once they were done, they became the base of the sauce. I think I used somewhere in the neighborhood of 3-4 pounds of tomatoes. I roasted them in the oven at 200F for 3-4 hours, then cooked them down a bit more on the stove top, adding basil, oregano and some italian seasoning. (I have also made tomato paste out of this mixture by cooking it down till there was no visible liquid, then pureed it and put it up) To this, I added oven roasted garlic, onions, fresh mushrooms, a can of black olives and let it simmer for about 3 hours. I added seasoning to taste - and it is delicious.

Lasagne
1 package fresh lasagne noodles (next time I'll try making them from a recipe I found)
1 thinly sliced zucchini
1 thinly sliced yellow squash
BEEF
1 pound ground beef, sauted with onions and olive oil, then 2 cups tomato sauce stirred in
CHEESE MIX
1 1/2 pounds Ricotta cheese
3 eggs
1 cup shredded parmesan cheese
parsley

I layered the pan starting with a little bit of sauce, then noodles, then meat, then sliced
squashes, a layer of noodles, a layer of the cheese mix, a layer of noodles, repeat. On top I had a layer of noodles, some sauce and shredded mozzerella.

I baked the dish for 30 minutes at 350F.