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Happy Valentine's Day from the kitchen!
Today is a day to celebrate with your favorite people. I asked my spouse what his idea of a Valentine's meal was and he said, "Anything you make." I decided on an Italian dinner since Italian food is my all time favorite. After spending some time in Italy a few years ago, I've grown to love Italian food more than ever. The smells of Italian cheeses, pizzas, dinners and wines are forever etched in my mind.
For today, I've made fresh-made lasagna, Parmesan garlic bread, salad and fresh fruit. I also made the ricotta to use in the lasagna. When I make lasagna, I make my own pasta but today you can use boxed pasta. Just follow the directions for cooking. Valentine's Day reminds me of my childhood when my dad would give my mom a card and flowers. Good memories. Shower someone today with a card, a coffee or a hug.
Fresh ricotta
8 cups whole milk
1/2-1 tsp salt
1/4 cup white vinegar
Heat milk in a saucepan at medium heat till bubbles form around the edges but not boiling. Add salt and stir. Remove from the stove and pour the vinegar into the milk and gently stir. Let sit for 10-15 minutes till the curds and whey separate. Carefully pour over a cheesecloth lined colander. Let all the liquid drain out and there you've got ricotta (curds). I save the liquid (whey) to add to my bread I bake.
Lasagna (9×13)
One box lasagna noodles
2 quarts of your favorite sauce
1 TBSP pesto added to sauce
1.5 lbs fresh hamburger (I use beef/pork/veal browned)
2 cups fresh ricotta
2 eggs
1 tsp garlic powder
1 TBSP dried oregano
1 TBSP dried parsley
4 cups grated mozzarella cheese
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Cook noodles following box directions.
Brown the hamburger, drain and add to sauce.
Mix the ricotta, eggs and herbs together. Add in half a cup of the Parmesan. Ladle some sauce in the bottom of the sprayed pan. Layer the noodles, ricotta mixture, meat sauce then some mozzarella. Continue with layers till all ingredients are used. Top with some fresh grated Parmesan. Cover with foil and bake at 375 for 50 minutes. Remove foil and bake for an additional 10 minutes. Allow to sit for 10-15 minutes before
serving.
Happy cooking and eat well my friends.
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Bev Kauffman, of Lewistown, operated a catering business in Juniata County for nearly 20 years. She has authored the cookbook, "Preserving the Past: In the Kitchen with Bev Kauffman" in 2013 and is currently working on a
second cookbook.