So...whats for dinner?

Lee- lucky that you have a yard house near by the place is great we don't have any chains in our small coastal town the other business won't allow them in.



Michell- I hope you were able to go back to sleep I hate how the steroids effect me I have to take a sleeping pill to sleep. Had to laugh at the locomoco it dh favorite dish he loves spam (yuk) ha we are staying at the Sheraton waikii on Oahu sister lives near by in Hawaii Kai.

I woke up early to only because our heater went out again And I'm freezing dh called the hater man he should be out soon. Brrr

OK, this is a casually (wandering) written recipe at best, Debbie. I'm just throwing together what I did, since you could probably enjoy a nice hot lasagna this week after being without heat this AM! Here, it is so cold that even with the heat working there is a chill in the indoor air!



Lasagna with Sausage and Broccoli Rabe (with red sauce)



4 links of sausage ( I used turkey Italian, but any of your favorite will do)cut into small rounds....while cooking since it is easier to do then.You could also just use ground sausage if you prefer.

1 medium onion, chopped

1 bunch of broccoli rabe, washed and cut roughly into 1 inch pieces

2 minced cloves garlic



Cook the sausage until almost done, and add the onion for the last ten minutes or so until it is translucent.

Remove that mixture from pan and add the cut up broccoli rabe to pan with a bit of water and cook until wilted (I add a bit of sugar to it, while cooking). Add two cloves of minced garlic to the rabe as it finishes sauteeing.



While that's cooking, mix the ingredients below in a bowl:



1 cup ricotta cheese

1 egg

1 Tablespoon honey

1/4 cup parmesan cheese



Have ready....

- this ricotta mixture

- a separate cup or more of mozzarella cheese

- more parmesan cheese to sprinkle on top (1/4 cup?)



Also have ready....these combined liquids:

1 can diced tomatoes (undrained 15 oz should be fine for one lasagna)

1/2 small can of tomato paste and enough water to make it liquid enough for the uncooked lasagna noodles to absorb it. Probably would be fine for it to be thicker if you use cooked lasagna noodles. I find that the dry ones are so easy, but use a thinner sauce!

1 Tablespoon oregano

1 Tablespoon sweet basil (diced fresh basil would be even nicer)

- salt and pepper to taste

- I also add crushed red pepper for some extra bite



Assemble the lasagna by putting some sauce on bottom of lasagna casserole, then the noodles, then the ricotta cheese mixture, then more noodles, then the mix of sausage/onions/b. rabe with some mozzarella and a bit if sauce over that, then repeat with noodles, etc., as the depth of your casserole will allow ending with noodles topped with sauce and mozzarella and some parmesan. I usually cover it with foil until the last 15 minutes of baking, so the parm doesn't burn. Bake covered at 375 degrees for 30 -35 minutes or however long it seems to need to have the noodles cooked and the whole thing plumped up. Then uncover to let the top cheese brown nicely for the last 15 minutes. I let it rest on the counter about five minutes before cutting into it.



I hope is clear. I am awful at reconstructing recipes I concoct. This one was important to me because I really wanted to make a broccoli rabe lasagna with red sauce instead of bechamel sauce which I kept finding on the web. If you decide to make it, enjoy!

Disappointing dental apptment today.  The crowns for the two implants didn't work.  So I'm still chewing on the left side only.  Back to the lab with the crowns and I go back to the dentist next week.  He didn't curse, but I think he wanted to! 

Dinner tonight is Meyer Lemon Chicken from the latest Cooking Light.  I should say "modified" because I didn't follow the recipe exactly.  I happen to have Meyer lemons because one neighbor has a tree.  I planted my own tree this winter but it may take a couple or three years to start producing.  There are tiny potatoes in the dish.  I'll also make a coleslaw for a sidedish.

Michelle, lol at your response about the chicken.  I wasn't asking about gender.  There are baking hens (older birds) and fryers (young birds).  The recipe called for an older bird which makes a better broth but the meat is tougher.  A big fryer is usually about 3 lbs. 

I had a college friend who was always going to hook me up with some "great guy" he had just met. After a couple of weeks it would be "He's not good enough for you."  That last time a month went by and I asked what happened to the guy and he said he's been working overtime.  A couple of weeks later he shows up at my door when I get home late from a dinner party and slide show, with Dick in tow.  Nineteen days later we were engaged and five months later - 8/6/66 - we got married.  On our first date he introduced me to my first taste of Chinese food.  We hadn't even been seated when he took me into the kitchen, introduced me to the owners and asked what was for dinner---said fine and that was what we ate!  It was nothing from the menu but I loved it.  I already suspected I was in love with him.

Sweet stories.....



So annoyed that I just lost my whole walk down memory lane about meeting my DH. We met through a mutual classmate from his grad school. We both lived in Beantown and I went to this friend's birthday party one Friday evening. His girlfriend was a total control freak and a great cook, and she would not let anyone start eating her meal until the last two guests appeared (one being my future DH!). She made her bf call my future DH to find out why he was yet to arrive and learned that he had been busy sailing on the Charles with another classmate who had come in from out of town, and that they would be over soon (he had totally forgotten about or blown off this party....fortunately not one of his lasting character traits!). So he arrived with his pork chop sideburns and great sense of humor and we connected right away. I was heading to the beach with friends early the next AM so declined his invite to go out after the party, but he called two days later and we were inseparable, marrying fourteen months later in a rather counter- culture wedding in Harvard Square. That was all 40 years ago. Meeting on a Hawaiian beach has a bit more allure to it, but this worked nicely for us. Sadly, the gal holding the party for her BF (my dh's classmate) was jilted in a Dear Joan "letter!" a few months later....after dating the guy for seven years. I still feel appreciative to her that she didn't let anyone eat until my future DH arrived.



I do hope the lasagne works for whoever tries it....I am so inexact! And yo have to really enjoy the bitterness of the broccoli rabe.

Nancy - I agree that there are no small chickens. And ShakeNBake just doesn't cover a whole chicken anymore. And yet - those deli chickens are not behemoths. I once encountered some execs from I think it was Tyson years ago and asked the same question. The answer it was pretty much as cheap to raise a 3-4 pounder as a 2 1/2 pounder. Now my math is a little fuzzy, what about the cost of that extra feed?? I didn't get to cook your crescent roll breakfast for Christmas. Hoping to do it this weekend.

DH and I were introduced by my downstairs neighbor who worked with him. Had just broken up with BF from college and was distraught. The night I was designated to meet him he sat in the corner at a party with almost nary a word. Turns out he was sick. We had seen each other in passing as I used to walk my chihuahua when he double dated the roommate of the now wife downstairs. That was 38 years ago. 37th anniversary in March.

Michelle - I only ever cooked one hen in my life and it was tough! What I would like to cook is a capon. I hear they are tasty but then again don't think they're real popular in Texas.

Susan - Glad to hear you are on the mend. Miss you.  Miss Apple too.

Along the side of a dirt road...

#1 At a college party

#2 His son was dating my daughter and they fixed us up! :O

Chinese delivery for dinner last night.  Yum!

Susan, hope you are feeling better each day. Give a holler if you need something...I am grossly under scheduled and without any viruses (so far:)...so totally able to help you out.

We went snorkeling at Hanauma Bay when we were on Oahu. I wish I had had a noodle at that point because I'm kind of a scaredy cat in the water and it was king of rough that day. What a beautiful bay...



We like snorkeling at Tunnels Beach because of all the sea turtles. If you're ever there go to the point (Haena Point). They were there every single day of our vacation - 8 to 12 of them. Supposedly monk seals on the point as well but we never saw any.



As an aside, my Italian husband loves broccoli rabe. I'm going to have to copy down that recipe or take a screenshot when I get home.

So cool to hear all of the stories of how everyone met their significant others! Thanks Debbie for starting such an interesting side topic!!



Eric,I just knew from your first post on the topic that there was a really interesting story behind it and was not disappointed...lol!



I met DH at work. We started working for the same company exactly 1 week apart along with several others... Since we were all the new people we tended to do alot of stuff together as a big group...



We were friends (and dating other people) for a couple of years but found ourselves both single at the same time... He asked me out to dinner for my birthday... I called him to save me from a 'bowling date' with a group of friends...lol... and the rest is history...



Despite all advice that you don't date people you work with for obvious reasons, it worked out just fine.. Worked for the same company (although not in the same department the whole time) for 20+ years... Been together for 27 years and married for 25...

Laurie, hope you have a great weekend! 

Dinner tonight featured a delicious ribeye, cooked following Alton Brown's instructions.  DH seared the steak in an iron skillet and then finished it in a 500 degree oven.  I cooked small carrots with a butter brown sugar glaze and made a cabbage and yellow bell pepper slaw. 

Susan, hugs to you and Apple.  Hope to hear from both of you soon. 

College bowl games...  Gigantic yawn.

Hello everyone! I am missing Apple and Susan also. Hugs to both of you. Hope you're feeling better.



Laurie, have a wonderful time! I am sure you will. You are able to turn anything into fun. Hey Eric, ibet you'd kill your daughter if she did that. LOL



I love the stories as well. I met my DH at a frat party. I had just turned 19. He's told me he always felt When I Saw Her Standing There was our song because he was looking across the room for someone to dance with and saw me. Even though that song is about someone who is 17. The funny thing is I was extremely drunk. I was there with two friends who decided I needed to go home, so they walked home with me, then left and went back to the party. My dorm was only down the street from the frat house. I was really mad. They weren't exactly sober themselves. So I took myself back to the party and met DH almost immediately after getting back. I guess it was just meant to be. We got married just after I turned 22 and I will be 50 in a few days so I guess it has worked out okay.



We went out tonight to celebrate my big bday to Sullivan's, a steak house. It was very good. I had fillet mignon; he had swordfish, and we shared. They gave me a fee piece of cheese cake for my bday which isn't really until Tuesday. It's a good thing I don't turn 50 every day. LOL



It's really interesting how different everyone's story is. I wonder how many of the stories will be we met on line in our kid's generation.

Oh and Kay Happy up coming Birthday!

Also hope Apple and susan are OK!

kay g - happy 50th!  It is a milestone, for sure!  When I turned 50 my oldest had just left for college, my youngest was a senior in high school, and we moved from Virginia to Florida!  DH, DD and I celebrated my birthday at the most well known steakhouse in Tampa - and we all ordered steak.  I was leaving the next day to fly from FL to California to see my best friend.  The first sign of trouble was DH not feeling well very early and having to stop part way to the airport.  I got sick at the airport, but still made the flight, but was sick all the way across the country - not good!  DD got sick last.  This restaurant ages their beef seriously - apparently my family can't take quite that much aging!!!

Hugs to apple and susan!