Meat Lasagna

There are days when you just need comfort food, and for me, lasagna is one of them. This lasagna is so delicious and very easy to make, and really doesn't take very long to assemble at all. Lets be honest, it's not the sort of meal that you make one evening after work, but it's perfect for those rainy day weekends we've been getting lately.

In our house we love a meat lasagna, so when I came across this recipe, I knew it would be perfect. It has been a huge hit every time that I make it, since it's got the perfect amount of meat, sauce and cheese. You have to try it - YUM!

Meat Lasagna

Serves 6 good-sized portions

Adapted from For the Love of Cooking

1/2 yellow onion, diced

1 pound of extra lean ground beef
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp dried basil
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1 pinch of red pepper flakes (or more to taste)
Salt and pepper to taste
6 cloves garlic, minced
1 500g container cottage cheese (I used 2 %)
2 large eggs
1 tbsp fresh basil, chopped
1/2 cup of parmesan cheese
9 lasagna noodles, cooked per instructions
2 cups mozzarella cheese, shredded (use the good stuff, it tastes better)
4 cups of marinara sauce (homemade or store bought)

Cook over medium heat the onions until they start to soften. Add the ground beef and cook through. Add the garlic powder, dried basil, dried oregano, red pepper flakes and salt & pepper to taste. Once the meat is brown and the onion is tender, add the garlic and cook for approximately 30 to 60 seconds, stirring frequently. Remove from heat, drain any grease, and set aside.

In a large bowl, mix together cottage cheese, eggs, 1/4 cup of parmesan cheese, basil, as well as salt & pepper to taste. Combine until mixed thoroughly.

Meanwhile, cook the lasagna noodles per instructions then drain.

Once everything is ready to go, layer a 9 x 13 inch baking pan with just enough sauce to cover the bottom of the pan. Lay three lasagna noodles in the pan. Spread half of the cottage cheese mixture on the noodles, then spoon half of the ground beef mixture on top. Sprinkle with a bit of mozzarella and spoon some sauce over the cheese; repeat layering. Finish with a layer of noodles and remaining sauce, and sprinkle with mozzarella cheese and remaining 1/4 cup of parmesan cheese.

Cover with tinfoil, and bake covered in a preheated oven at 375 degrees for 30 minutes. Uncover and bake for an additional 15 minutes. When you remove it from the oven, let rest for 5 to 10 minutes before serving. Enjoy!

Meat Sauce with Garlic and Oregano

This pasta meat sauce is officially my favourite sauce to go on pasta! Around here, we are definitely a family that prefers the typical meaty red sauce on our pasta (except for the occasional indulgence of fettucine alfredo at a restaurant!)... and I have to say that up until about a month ago, I thought my go-to pasta sauce was one of the best ones I've had. That is, until I had this one. Oh my goodness did I ever love it! I was visiting my sister and her husband this summer, and she made this for us all one night for dinner. My sister is so amazing, and always makes such delicious meals... so inspiring! I think she gets her talent from the two fantastic cooks in our family: her husband is a talented and well known chef in their community, and our dad (who did all the cooking growing up) is also an excellent cook. Well, they've taught her well. This recipe is her recipe that her and her husband have come up with, and so I've tried to recreate it with her help! Her best words of advice on this is to season it to your taste... want more garlic? Add more... more oregano? ditto.

We served ours for dinner with freshly made garlic bread. Mmmm... I can smell the garlic now!

Meat Sauce with Garlic and Oregano

Serves 4

Source: Lauren!

1 1/2 Tbsp olive oil

1 pound ground beef

1 medium onion, diced

4 cloves garlic, minced

2 Tbsp fresh oregano, chopped

3/4 of a 796mL can diced tomatoes, undrained

1/2 of a 6oz can tomato paste

1 Tbsp sugar

salt & pepper to taste

Linguine or other pasta of your choice, cooked

1. Bring a pot of water to boil and cook pasta according to directions.

2. Meanwhile, heat 1 Tbsp of olive oil in pan, and cook onions until almost tender (about 5 minutes). Add garlic, and cook for another 60 seconds.

3. Add ground beef to the onion and garlic mixture, and brown meat until it is thoroughly cooked.

4. Once meat is cooked, add the tomato paste, and stir it into the meat mixture, cooking it for about 60 seconds. Then, add diced tomatoes, oregano, sugar, salt and pepper to the meat mixture, and simmer until the sauce becomes thick and most of the juices from the diced tomatoes are reduced - at least 20 minutes.

5. Once sauce is ready, stir in another small handful of fresh oregano, remove from heat and drizzle about 1/2 Tbsp of olive oil into the sauce and stir. Drain the pasta (don't rinse it!); Toss with meat sauce and serve!

Beef Chili

Do you ever have one of those days where you're just not thinking clearly? Well, did I ever have that day last week... It was probably 30 degrees (celsius) outside, and that was the day I decided to make homemade beef chili. You see, not only did I decide to make the chili, but it was also the same day I made the blueberry crumb bars. Ridiculous. The chili itself was incredible, but my goodness, was the house ever hot! Not that I'm complaining about the nice weather, but lets be honest, this could have been saved for a cooler day now that we're getting more of them. Oh well, I have to say it was worth it. The chili was probably one of the best beef chili's I've ever had. The chili had the perfect amount of spice and heat, and was the perfect ratio of beef, beans, veggies and sauce. We served it with homemade cheddar baking powder biscuits, and admittedly had it again the next day for dinner too. Same dinner day two doesn't happen very often around here, and so that's saying a lot about this chili. I hope you enjoy it as much as we did!

Beef Chili

Adapted from For the love of cooking

Serves: 8 or more

2 pounds ground beef

1 tsp olive oil

1 medium onion, diced

1 stalk celery, diced

1/2 bell pepper, diced

1/2 jalapeno, diced

6 cloves garlic, minced

2 tsp cumin powder

3 Tbsp chili powder

1 tsp black pepper

2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp oregano

1 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp sugar

1 796mL can diced tomatoes

1 398mL can tomato sauce (I used the no-salt added)

1 7oz can diced green chilies, undrained

3 14oz cans kidney beans, undrained

1 Tbsp white vinegar

1 bay leaf

1) Heat olive oil and cook onions, celery, bell pepper, and jalapeno until just tender (about 4 minutes). Add garlic, and cook another minute or so.

2) Add ground beef to vegetable mixture and cook until mostly browned (note - only do this if you have the time to let the chili simmer on the stove for awhile, otherwise ensure that the ground beef is thoroughly cooked).

3) Add all the spices, stir and cook for a few seconds.

4) Add the diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, green chilies and beans. Stir in vinegar and the bay leaf. Bring to a boil, then lower to a simmer, cooking on low heat for at least a couple of hours (Cook it all day if you can - I let it simmer for about 2 hours or so).

5) Remember to remove the bay leaf when you're ready to serve. Enjoy!