National LASAGNA Day

By Chef Diane

Its days like today that make me feel like Garfield!  I love Lasagna! Even though I have only made it once; I eat it almost every week, thanks to Stoffers.   When I made it, I made the sauce from scratch.  Had to boil the noodles, cook the meat separately, and then layer everything together.  Maybe that's why I never attempted it again.  These days you can use already made spaghetti sauce, the noodles don't have to be boiled, and a lot of time is saved.

I love lasagna, in fact, during my first rehearsal dinner for my wedding, that is what was served.  My mother always fixes what the birthday person requests for their birthday dinner, and one year I asked for lasagna, it was the best I ever had.  Stoffers is good, but can't compare to homemade.  Below is a recipe I found for you on allrecipes.com and it has a 5 star rating.  If you have a better, or favorite recipe, please share it with us on the comment section below.

Original recipe makes 12 servings

Ingredients:

• 1-pound sweet Italian sausage
• 3/4 pound lean ground beef
• 1/2 cup minced onion
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• 1 (28 ounce) can crushed tomatoes
• 2 (6 ounce) cans tomato paste
• 2 (6.5 ounce) cans canned tomato sauce
• 1/2 cup water
• 2 tablespoons white sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons dried basil leaves
• 1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds
• 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
• 1 tablespoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 4 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
• 12 lasagna noodles
• 16 ounces ricotta cheese
• 1 egg
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 pound mozzarella cheese, sliced
• 3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:

In a Dutch oven, cook sausage, ground beef, onion, and garlic over medium heat until well browned. Stir in crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, tomato sauce, and water. Season with sugar, basil, fennel seeds, Italian seasoning, 1 tablespoon salt, pepper, and 2 tablespoons parsley. Simmer, covered, for about 1 1/2 hours, stirring occasionally.

Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook lasagna noodles in boiling water for 8 to 10 minutes. Drain noodles, and rinse with cold water. In a mixing bowl, combine ricotta cheese with egg, remaining parsley, and 1/2 teaspoon salt.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).

To assemble, spread 1 1/2 cups of meat sauce in the bottom of a 9x13 inch-baking dish. Arrange 6 noodles lengthwise over meat sauce. Spread with one half of the ricotta cheese mixture. Top with a third of mozzarella cheese slices. Spoon 1 1/2 cups meat sauce over mozzarella, and sprinkle with 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese. Repeat layers, and top with remaining mozzarella and Parmesan cheese. Cover with foil: to prevent sticking, either spray foil with cooking spray, or make sure the foil does not touch the cheese.

Bake in preheated oven for 25 minutes. Remove foil, and bake an additional 25 minutes. Cool for 15 minutes before serving.

[Photos from Google]

Italian Ice Cream

Today is National Spumoni Day.  Spumoni is a molded Italian ice cream made with layers of different colors and flavors, usually containing candied fruits and nuts. Typically it is of three flavors, with a fruit/nut layer between them. The ice cream layers are often mixed with whipped cream. Chocolate and pistachio are the typical flavors of the ice cream layers, and the fruit/nut layer often contains cherry bits—causing the traditional red/pink, brown, and green color combination. It is popular in places with large Italian immigrant populations such as the United States and Argentina.

Each layer of spumoni ice cream includes much more than flavored ice cream. The chocolate layer, for example, may include chocolate shavings or chunks. In fact, sometimes to chocolate layer has crushed hazelnuts inside. Not only does the hazelnut add a lovely flavor to the chocolate, but it also compliments the pistachio layer. The pistachio layer, of course, almost always includes crushed pistachio nuts. Finally, the fruit layer of spumoni is usually made with candied fruit. Sometimes spumoni is made with strawberry or even raspberry flavored ice cream. However, cherry is the most traditional fruit component to the dessert.

A close relative to Spumoni is Neapolitan ice cream, and some believe the banana split is also related...possibly a cousin.  They both contain chocolate and strawberry, while the split also contains the whipped cream and nuts.

I have to admit that I personally have never had Spumoni.  You know how thorough I like to be in my reporting to you, however in the area I live, I have never seen it.  After researching this treat however, I’m going to make a point of looking for it the next time I go out of town.  It sounds delicious!  If you are fortunate to live in an area where you have access to this wonderful treat, today is the perfect occasion to to enjoy some.