My Favorite Lasagna

Okay so I am kind of a picky eater. Especially when it comes to Lasagna. This is because I grew up with a Mom that made the BEST Lasagna ever! She really does. I have tasted many Lasagna's and nothing compares to this one. It tastes healthier or fresher than most, at least I think I think so. My Grandpa Neal always wants my Mom to make this for him. A friend of mine said the other day that it was his favorite thing to eat. THIS Lasagna was his favorite thing to eat! And it is definitely up there on my list of favorites. The best part is...it is super easy to make! Give it a try... I know you will love it!

Here are the ingredients. Sorry it is kind of hard to see. Okay so they are 1 lb of Hamburger (pictured in the tin foil), Lasagna Noodles, an Egg, Cottage Cheese, Mozzarella Cheese, Tomato Paste, Stewed Tomatoes, and Thick and Zesty McCormick's Spaghetti Sauce Mix.

I forgot to take a picture of me frying the hamburger, but first cook the 1 lb of Hamburger on the stove. When it is good and brown remove it from heat and dump out the grease (sometimes I use a paper towel to just wipe it out). Now you get started on this next step! For this step you will need 1 can of Stewed Tomatoes, 1 can of Tomato Paste, 1 packet of McCormick's Spaghetti Sauce Mix, water, and a blender.

Open the cans and put in the paste, and stewed tomatoes. After dumping out the Tomato Paste fill the can 1 1/2 times with water. Add this to the blender. Add the Spaghetti Sauce packet and blend away! It should just take 30 seconds or less.


Then pour this into the pan with hamburger in it! And let it sit until you are done with the next step!

For the next part of this Lasagna you will need the Cottage Cheese, 2 cups of shredded Mozzarella, and an Egg.

Put all 3 into a medium sized bowl and mix it up with a fork.
Now you are ready to create the Lasagna. You need a 9x13 pan. Spray it with grease before you start adding the ingredients.

Pour 1/3 of the hamburger/tomato mixture into the bottom of the pan. Spread it around until it is even.

Now you add a layer of UNCOOKED Lasagna noodles. Most people are shocked when they find out that I do not pre-cook the Lasagna noodles but you don't have to for this recipe. It's part of the reason this recipe is so easy! Like the picture shows...I use 3 full noodles and then I break off a little bit of the 4th noodle to get it to fit into the pan.

Now spread 1/2 of the cottage cheese mixture onto the noodles. And repeat! Do another layer of meat (use 1/2 of remaining mixture), then noodles, then cheese (use the rest of mixture).

And then you pour the remaining third of the meat/tomato mixture into the pan!

And then you top with about 1 cup of Mozzarella Cheese! Yum! Cover it with Tin Foil, put it in the oven at 350 degrees and bake it for about 50 minutes. After 50 minutes remove the Tin Foil and Bake it for another 10 minutes. So the total cooking time should equal 1 hour. (The Tin Foil part is very important because otherwise the top will cook too much!)

Doesn't it look good? It tastes great! I like to serve it with a green salad and French bread! It is delicious! Enjoy!

My Favorite Lasagna

Ingredients:

6 oz. can Tomato Paste
14.5 oz. can Stewed Tomatoes
1 lb. of Hamburger

1 packet of McCormick Spaghetti Sauce Mix (pictured below for easy reference)

16 oz container Cottage Cheese
3 cups of Mozzarella Cheese (grated)
1 box Lasagna Noodles
1 Egg
Tin Foil

Preparation Instructions:

Fry the hamburger on the stove. When brown turn off heat and set aside. (You can pour the grease out of the pan if you want to, I usually do.) Mix the tomato paste, stewed tomatoes, and the spaghetti sauce packet together in a blender. Add 1 1/2 tomato paste cans of water. Blend together. Pour over hamburger meat and mix together in frying pan. Set aside. Mix 2 cups of grated mozzarella cheese, the egg, and the cottage cheese together with a fork. Set aside. Grease a 9x13 pan. Pour 1/3 of hamburger mixture into pan. Put 1 layer of UNCOOKED lasagna noodles on top of hamburger mixture. Put 1/2 of cheese mixture on top of lasagna noodles. Repeat each of these steps once. Put remaining 1/3 of hamburger mixture on top of the last layer of cheese. Put 1 cup of remaining mozzarella cheese on top of hamburger mixture. Cover with tin foil. Cook it in the oven for 50 minutes at 350 degrees. After 50 minutes, remove tin foil and cook for another 10 minutes. Enjoy!

Scotcheroos!

Scotcheroos! I used to always call them Peanut Butter Rice Krispies until I started hearing people refer to them as Scotcheroos. So I decided to call them that too! Either way they are SO good. My friends always want me to make them when they come and visit. And I love them too. I try not to make them unless lots of people will be around to help me eat them! This is a good treat to make if you need something easy and fast. Enjoy!

Here are the ingredients: Peanut Butter, Rice Krispies, Karo Syrup, Sugar, Butter, Semi-sweet Chocolate Chips, and Butterscotch Chips.

Put 1 cube of butter, 1 cup of sugar, and 1 cup of Karo Syrup in a pot. Stir until butter is melted.

It should look something like this....

Now bring these ingredients to a boil. Only let it boil for about 45 seconds. This is important! If it boils for longer they will turn out hard and you will be sorry. After 45 seconds remove pot from heat.

Add 1 cup of Peanut Butter and stir it in good. Then let the mixture cool for a few minutes.

Next add 5 cups of Rice Krispies. I like to add them one or two at a time because it makes them easier to stir in!

When you are done it will look something like this! I always have a little taste before putting them in the pan, because I can't help myself!

Put the mixture in an un-greased 9x13 pan and leave it there for a few minutes while making the topping.

Melt 1/2 a package of Semi-sweet chips with 1/2 a bag of Butterscotch chips. (It's about 1 cup each.) You can do this in the microwave or on the stove. Either way it just takes about 2 minutes.
Then frost the Rice Krispies with this delicious topping! After frosting them you can either let the topping harden on its own or you can stick the pan in the fridge and it will harden faster. I usually put them in the fridge because I can't wait!

And here is the finished product! Yum! I love them. This is probably the treat I make the most. Enjoy!

Scotcheroos!

Ingredients:

1 cube Butter

1 cup Sugar

1 cup Karo Syrup

1 cup Peanut Butter

5 cups Rice Krispies

1/2 package (or 1 cup) Butterscotch Chips

1/2 package (or 1 cup) Semi-sweet Chocolate Chips

Preparation Instructions:

Heat Sugar, Butter, and Karo Syrup on stove. Bring to a boil for 45 seconds and then remove from heat. Add 1 cup of Peanut Butter. Stir. Let cool. Add 5 cups of Rice Krispies. Put in 9x13 pan. Melt Chocolate and Butterscotch Chips and put on top of Rice Krispies in the pan. Enjoy!

Pistachio Pudding Dessert

Pistachio Pudding Dessert. This is a family favorite! I never had even heard of Pistachio Pudding until this dessert and it is delicious! Trust me on this one. I made it for a BBQ a couple weeks ago and everyone loved it. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do! I am sure you will if you give it a try!

Here are the ingredients: milk, vanilla ice cream, whipped topping, butter, ritz crackers, instant pistachio pudding, and butterfingers.

First, crush the Ritz Crackers in a large bag until you have 2 cups of crushed crackers.
Put the cube of butter into a medium-sized bowl and melt it in the microwave.


Add the 2 cups of Ritz Crackers and mix it around with a fork.

Then press the cracker and butter mixture into the bottom of a 9 X 13 pan. Set this aside while you work on the second layer.

For the second layer of this dessert you need to mix 1 quart of Vanilla Ice Cream, 2 small packages of Instant Pistachio Pudding, and 1 cup of Milk. I just put all 3 into a medium bowl and mix it up with a mixer.

It should look like this when you are done with it.

Spread this layer on top of the cracker layer.

For the third layer you just spread an 8 oz container of Cool Whip on top of the Pistachio Pudding layer.

Then crush 2 regular-sized Butterfingers and sprinkle them on top of the Cool Whip layer. It looks SO good! You are going to want to eat it, but instead you need to cover it with tin foil and put it into the freezer for a couple of hours. (If you want the dessert to be more like pudding you can put it into the fridge for a couple of hours. I like it better frozen but do whatever YOU like!)

Here is a piece cut out of the pan. It is so good and it is easy! I know you will love it! Enjoy!

Pistachio Pudding Dessert

Ingredients:

2 cups crushed Ritz Crackers
1 cube melted Butter
1 quart Vanilla Ice Cream
2 small packages Instant Pistachio Pudding
1 cup Milk
1 8 oz container Cool Whip
2 Butterfinger Bars

Preparation Instructions:

Mix Ritz Crackers with 1 cube of melted butter. Press into bottom of a 9x13 pan. Mix Vanilla Ice Cream, Pistachio Pudding, and Milk with a mixer. Pour onto the cracker mixture. Spread Cool Whip over the Pistachio Pudding Mixture. Crush Butterfingers and sprinkle them over the Cool Whip. Refrigerate or Freeze for a couple of hours before serving. Enjoy!

Mexican Combo

This is an easy fix for dinner. I am pretty sure it is fairly healthy too and it tastes great! I know you will enjoy it.

Here are the ingredients: Kidney Beans, Cheddar Cheese, Chili Powder, Fritos, Onion, Green Pepper, Olives, and Hamburger.

Slice the olives. Then set aside. You won't need these until a little later on...

Chop up the Green Pepper. You can choose how big or small you want the chunks. I like them pretty small.

Chop up an Onion. Again, you choose the size but I like them small too.

Put 1 lb. of Hamburger, an Onion, and a Green Pepper in a large skillet. Turn on heat and stir until the meat is brown.

When you are done it should look something like this. And it is already making your kitchen smell good!

Now mix 1 1/2 cups of hot water with 2 Tablespoons of Chili Powder. The end result should be lookin like this! Pour it into the skillet that contains the hamburger mixture and let it simmer for 10 minutes.

I looked up simmering online and it said that to simmer is to cook something on low and cover it by slanting a lid onto the skillet (this allows the steam to escape which is supposed to be good!)


After 10 minutes add 2 cans of Kidney Beans. (Drain both cans before putting the beans in.)

Then add the pre-sliced Olives.

Next add 2-3 cups of shredded cheddar cheese. Stir and let mixture simmer for another 10 minutes.

The finished product should look something like this! It looks greasy but it is really just the chili powder and water mixture...so don't be alarmed!

Put some in a bowl and add a handful of fritos and more cheese (if you like cheese). Now it is ready to eat! It tastes fresh and good. Enjoy!

Mexican Combo

Ingredients:

1 lb Hamburger
1 medium Onion
1 medium Green Pepper
2 Tablespoons Chili Powder
1 1/2 cups Hot Water
2 cups Cheddar Cheese
2 cans Kidney Beans
1 can Olives
1 bag Corn Chips (Fritos)

Preperation Instructions:

Brown meat, onion, and green pepper. Mix chili powder and water and pour over meat mixture. Let this simmer for 10 minutes. Add kidney beans, olives, and cheese. Simmer for another 10 minutes. Put in individual serving bowls and top with corn chips. (Or you can mix the whole bag of corn chips in with the dish and then serve it.)