Lasagna

I have slight obsession with cheese; this comes with the territory of being half Dutch. I could eat blocks of it on its own but my favorite way of enjoying cheese is when it is melted over top something. To me, lasagna is the perfect way of enjoying this tasty dairy product (besides nibbling on cubes of it when no one is looking).

Lasagne are wide, flat shaped pasta noodles. The word lasagna is used to describe a singular noodle or in English the entire dish. It is believed to be one of the oldest pasta dishes, as the first modern recipe was created in the Middle Ages in the Italian city of Naples. The name is derived from the Latin word lasanum meaning container.

I like to make my lasagna using tomato sauce and ground beef. A cream sauce and chicken could be substituted for these ingredients though. This dish could be made vegetarian friendly by opting any meat out of your sauce. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

• 500 g of lean ground beef
• 1 pack of frozen chopped spinach
• 1 can of Huns Thick and Rich Sauce
• Between 9 and 12 lasagna noodles depending on how large your pan is
• 500 g of cottage cheese
• 1 pack of shredded cheese mix

1. Take your package of frozen spinach out of the freezer about 2 hours before preparing lasagna and allow it thaw at room temperature. If you do not have this amount of time place the package under running cold water for about 20 minutes. Once spinach is thawed, squeeze out all of the extra water and place aside.

2. Fill a large pot with water until it is 3/4 full and place on high heat. Once the water is boiling, add pasta. Let pasta cook for about 15 minutes or until desired softness.

3. Place ground beef into pan and cook on medium high heat until almost cooked through. The ground beef has enough fat so it does not require any oil to be added while it cooks. Drain off any excess fat before adding tomato sauce and spinach to mixture. Once combined cook for another 5 minutes on medium high heat.

4. Place 3 or 4 noodles at the bottom of your pan and place 1/3 of your sauce over top. Roughly half your container of cottage cheese will be placed over this layer of sauce. You will want to repeat this step one more time.

5. Instead of placing cottage cheese over top of your third layer of noodles and sauce, use shredded cheese. I like to use an Italian blend found at your local grocery store but you can substitute this for mozzarella or a white cheddar. Make sure your pasta noodles are completely covered or else it will dry out in the oven while you back your lasagna.

6. Place your lasagna in an oven preheated to 350 degree F. Bake for about 15 to 20 minutes or until cheese is completely melted. Remove from oven and let sit for 5 minutes before cutting. Enjoy alone or alongside a salad.