A Saturday Night Meal

Greg is out of town...again. He's on his around-the-world recruiting and conference attending extravaganza. Currently he is in London and will continue on to Seattle, then San Francisco. In all, he'll be gone nearly three and a half weeks.

What's a newly proposed to girl suppose to do when the love of her life leaves the country for nearly a month? Cook, I say!

Like any good lasagna, the following recipe takes a bit of time but is well worth it in the end. I was striving for a balance between a meal that felt satisfying and substantial yet was low-fat and healthy. I think this is a pretty good mix.

The Great Compromise…

Amazingly Simple Sausage-Veggie Lasagna

Sauce

1/2 T Grapeseed oil

1/2 medium yellow onion sauté until translucent

Add…

1 can whole tomatoes, crush with…hand-held crusher

big splash balsamic vinegar

salt

garlic powder

dried basil

1/2 C water

cook on low for 30 minutes

Sautéed Meat

coat pan with non-stick spray.

Cook until no longer pink…

extra lean ground pork; enough for a thin layer on top of the veggies

all spices to taste...

dried onions

dried oregano

garlic powder

red pepper flakes

salt

Veggies

Peel then slice very thinly…

eggplant

carrots

zucchini

sauté…

red bell pepper

mushroom; I prefer a delicate variety like Chanterelles or oyster

Layer in pan coated with non-stick spray

thin layer of sauce

2-3 sheets no-cook lasagna noodles

eggplant

zucchini

pepper-mushroom mixture

meat

carrots

sauce

mozzarella and Parmesan cheese to taste

cook at 350 covered for 1 hour; pour excess moisture (from cooking veggies) out of pan; finish cooking uncovered an additional 30 minutes. Let sit ten minutes before diving-in.