Three recipes in one: meat sauce, lasagna, and garlic bread sticks

Tweet

I have quite a treat for you this week, not one, not two, but three amazing recipes.  What could be better than comforting lasagna smothered in homemade meat sauce, with warm garlic bread sticks.  This meal took a bit of time to make, but my efforts were well worth it.

Meat sauce ingredients:

• 3/4 pound sweet Italian sausage (I bought links, and used three of them)
• 1 pound of ground turkey
• 1 small onion, minced or pureed (can use 1 tablespoon onion powder if you don't have an onion)
• 1 teaspoon of jarred garlic
• 1 28 ounce can of petite diced tomatoes 
• 2 6 ounce cans of tomato paste
• 1/2 cup water
• 2 tablespoons 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
• 1 tablespoon dried parsley

Steps:

Since I bought link sausage, I had to remove the sausage from the casing.  First I cut the sausage lengthwise.

Then I pulled off the casing.  It all came off in one piece.

I put the sausage into a medium sized bowl.  Add the turkey, minced onion, and garlic.

Mix these ingredients well with your hands.

Heat a small amount of olive oil over medium heat in a deep skillet.

When the oil is hot, add the meat mixture to the skillet, and brown.

After the meat is brown, transfer to a large soup pot. Add the diced tomatoes, tomato paste, tomato sauce, water, sugar, basil leaves, fennel seeds, Italian seasoning, salt, black pepper, and parsley to the pot. Stir.

Over low heat, cover and simmer, stirring occasionally for 1 1/2 hours.

Ingredients for lasagna:

• 1 pound lasagna noodles (about 16 noodles)
• 16 ounces of ricotta cheese
• 1 egg
• 1 tablespoon dried parsley
•  1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 pound fresh mozzarella cheese, sliced
• 3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Steps:

Pre-heat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil.

Carefully add the lasagna noodles.

Cook for 10 minutes.

While the pasta is cooking, mix the ricotta cheese, egg, parsley, and salt.  Set aside.

Drain the pasta, and rinse with cold water.

In a 9X13 baking dish, cover the bottom with meat sauce.

Place cooked lasagna noodles in a single layer over the meat sauce.

Spoon out half of the ricotta cheese mixture onto the layer of noodles.

Spread the mixture as evenly as you can on the noodles.

Sprinkle a third of the Parmesan cheese over the ricotta mixture.

Place a third of the mozzarella over the other cheeses.

Repeat these layers.

Top with remaining meat sauce, mozzarella, Parmesan cheeses.

Cover baking dish with a layer of foil that has been sprayed with cooking spray (so that the cheese doesn't stick).

Bake the covered lasagna for 25 minutes.  Remove the foil and bake for an additional 20 minutes.

Cool for 10 minutes before serving.

Ingredients for bread sticks:

• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 package rapid rise yeast
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 3/4 teaspoon Italian seasoning
• 2 tablespoons jarred garlic
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, softened
• 1/4 cup hot water
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1/8 cup unsalted butter, melted
• sea salt for topping (optional)

Steps:

In a stand mixer, mix together flour, yeast, sugar, Italian seasoning, salt, garlic, Parmesan cheese, and 1 tablespoon softened butter.

While ingredients are mixing, combing water, milk, and egg.

While the mixer is still on, slowly pour the milk mixture into the bowl.

Mix until a ball has formed.  Add a small amount of flour if dough is still sticky.

Knead the dough (either by hand or by using the kneading hook attachment on your stand mixer) until a smooth ball is formed.

Remove the ball from the bowl, and coat the bowl in a small amount of olive oil.

Return the ball of dough into the oiled bowl.

Cover the bowl with a warm, damp towel, and allow to rise for 1 hour.

Grease a cookie sheet using a small amount of olive oil.

Pinch off a 2 1/2" sized ball from the dough.

Roll the dough out into a 10" rope.

Fold the dough in half, and twist into a 4" bread stick.

Place each twisted bread stick onto the greased cookie sheet 1 1/2" apart.

Cover tray of bread sticks with a warm, damp towel, and allow to rise for 30 minutes.

Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees F.

Brush the tops of unbaked bread sticks with melted butter, and top with a small sprinkling of sea salt.

Bake for 20 minutes, or until tops are golden brown.

Enjoy these bread sticks with your delicious lasagna (or any Italian meal).  Serve your meal with a fresh salad.

~ Chef Megs

From Scratch: Hot & Fresh Kolaches

Tweet

Nothing makes waking up better than a fresh, hot kolache.  However, these sausage rolls aren't only intended for mornings.  Kolaches can be enjoyed any time of the day!  I made these on a Friday evening so that breakfast would be all ready to go on Saturday morning.  Well these beauties looked and smelled so wonderful, they ended up becoming Friday night dinner as well as Saturday's breakfast.

This recipe makes 25-30 kolaches.

Ingredients:

• 2 packages (1/2 ounce) yeast
• 1/4 cup lukewarm water
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 2 cups plus 1 tablespoon milk
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 2 tablespoons salt
• 3 eggs
• 6 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 packages Eckrich breakfast sausage, any variety (I used one package of original and one package of cheese)

Steps:

Proof the yeast by dissolving the yeast plus 1 tablespoon sugar into the water until mixture is foamy.  This will take about 15 minutes.

Scald the milk.  To do this, pour 2 cups of milk into a small sauce pan and heat over low heat until milk is steaming, and small bubbles appear around the edges.  This process should take about 20 to 30 minutes.  Do not allow the milk to come to a boil.

Once the milk has scalded, add the softened butter and the 1/4 cut sugar to the milk.  Stir the mixture, and let it cool.

In stand mixer (or a large bowl) add the yeast mixture, the milk mixture, 2 slightly beaten eggs, and the salt.  Mix until smooth.

Add flour 1/2 cup at a time.  Once I had added 5 cups of flour, I had to mix in the remaining 1 1/4 cup by hand.

Knead the dough until it forms a smooth round ball.

Cover the bowl with a warm, damp towel, and allow to rise for 1 hour, or until dough has doubled in size.

While the dough is rising, cook the sausages in a pan with a tablespoon of water over medium-low heat for six to eight minutes.

Once dough has risen, split into thirds.

Roll dough out into a 1/4" sheet.

Use a pizza cutter to cut the sheet into approximately 3X3" squares.

Place one cooked sausage diagonally in the middle of each square.

Roll one side of the dough across the sausage, and crimp dough.

Wrap the other side of the dough around the sausage.  Trim off the excess dough, and crimp together to create a seam.

Fold each end of the dough upwards, and crimp dough together.

Make sure that your kolache is completely sealed.  Use fingers to smooth dough out.

Place completed kolaches on a well greased cookie sheet.

Cover the cookie sheet with a warm, damp towel, and let rise for 40 minutes.

Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees F.

Uncover sausage rolls and brush the tops of the rolls with a mixture of 1 beaten egg, and 1 tablespoon milk.

Bake kolaches for 15 minutes, or until golden brown.

Transfer from cookie sheet to cooling rack or plate.

Allow to cool for 10 minutes, and enjoy!

Store the remaining kolaches in an air tight container in the refrigerator.  Left-over kolaches are delicious as is, or if you prefer them warm, pop them in the microwave for 30 seconds.

~ Chef Megs

Carrot Cake : A Sweet Way To Eat Your Veggies

Tweet

Maybe it's not the best way to eat your vegetables, but it's certainly the most delicious!  This cake is great to take to gatherings, because it is not difficult to make, and it is sure to please. It's especially a great cake to make at Easter.

Ingredients for the cake:

• 4 eggs
• 1 1/4 cups canola oil
• 2 cups granulated white sugar
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
• 3 cups of grated carrots
• 1 cup chopped pecans

Ingredients for the frosting:

• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
• 8 ounces cream cheese, softened
• 4 cups powdered sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Steps:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Generously grease a 9X13 cake pan and set it aside.

Grate the carrots using a grater.  I bought a big bag of baby carrots.  I used the side that is used to grate cheese.

This is what the carrots should look like when they have been grated:

In a stand mixer (or a large bowl if you don't have a stand mixer) beat together the eggs, oil, sugar, and vanilla.

After they are blended together well, add the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg.

Beat this mixture until smooth.

Add the grated carrots and chopped pecans, and mix until incorporated.

Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan.

Bake for 35 minuets, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.

Allow cake to cool in the pan for 15 minutes, then flip it onto a serving dish.  I used a large cookie sheet.

After the cake has been flipped, let it cool completely.

While the cake is cooling, prepare the frosting.

In a stand mixer combine the butter and the cream cheese.

When they are well blended, add the powdered sugar 1/2 a cup at a time.

Let each addition of powdered sugar be completely incorporated before adding the next addition.

Add the vanilla extract.

I taste tested this frosting, and it is so whipped and yummy!  All I can say is, I love being the chef!

Frost the cooled cake using a large spatula.

When I had finished frosting the cake, I sprinkled some large granules of clear cake decorating sugar on the top.

I used a damp paper towel to clean up the edges of my serving platter.  This made my cake look more presentable.

Carrot cake with loads of delicious cream cheese frosting is by far one of my favorites.  Make this cake for your next get together, I promise neither you nor your guests will be disappointed!

Enjoy!