Lasagne for the masses

So, I think I have a slight tendency to over cook...... even when for a big group. Huh. This past weekend, I made 3 (rather large) lasange (plural for lasagna) for a dinner for ~100 people. Problem was, I wasn't the only one cooking - so there was a lot left.... oh well, it went to good homes.

The first step in the lasanga process, used by both Special Guest Susan and myself, is making meatballs, so I'll address that first.

Mom's Meatballs
Well, in this case, I made about 10lbs worth of meat (while my parents visited, mom rolled out all the balls - she was a saint), but I'll give you the scale-able version, this way you can cook for 2 people or as I seem to like to do, 200.

PER 1LB GROUND CHUCK (you want ground chuck for the fat. less fatty meat makes for dry meatballs. yuck)
2 eggs
1/2 cup seasoned breadcrumbs
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
1/2 cup chopped onion

Preheat the oven to 350F, mix well, form into balls and bake 25-30 min. (These can be made ahead)

Lasagna
You can make your own pasta sauce (I like to, I'm picky) or use store bought, which can work in a pinch - just make sure to season it.

Crush meatballs and mix generously with sauce, you want a really wet meat mixture

PER 1LB RICOTTA CHEESE
3 eggs
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
1/2 cup mozzarella
2 t granulated garlic
(here is where you can be creative - maybe add some drained frozen spinach, or mushrooms, etc)

Preheat the oven to 350F.

Generously coat the bottom of your pan with sauce, then layer (no boil) noodles, meat, noodles, cheese, and so on until you fill your pan. Add a last layer of noodles on top, coat generously with sauce, sprinkle with shredded mozzarella.

Bake at 350F for an hour on the middle rack. Move to top rack for an additional 10 minutes to brown cheese.

Enjoy.

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.