Lasagna Recipe

When I was growing up, I never really had a good dish of lasagna. Well I did but on rare occasions and when I did, it was a delicious treat. I've always wanted to learn how to make them but it all seemed too complicated for a younger 'I don't really care for cooking' me. While I was dating hubby, I discovered an unknown passion for cooking and to my mothers delight, she shared her secrets and recipes with me to cook for hubby, who fell in love with our local dishes. I think hubs was more excited about the food than the fact that he would be marrying a wife who was soon to be addicted to cooking!

So after the wedding, before I was leaving to Sydney to be with hubs, mom took me out to shop and she came upon recipe books half price! Score, mom! So she bought me 3 The Australian Women's Weekly recipe books and to my giddy delight, there was a recipe for lasagna! Can't wait to try that!

So I left (cue the tears) and went off to start a new chapter in my life. Took me a while to gather up some courage to try and cook this dish. As I was fresh of the block, hubs was there with me the whole way, guiding me. It turned out pretty good and I started cooking it with more confidence, cooking it for friends and family. One friend, who I affectionately call my 'son', was skeptical when I cooked for him and his 2 precious daughters this dish for dinner. He had bad experiences with lasagna. It was either pub or frozen lasagna. Well I changed his mind alright! He had 4 servings!

This recipe has been tweaked a little according to the mince that you are using. I use beef mince so some ingredients is halved. I will put in the original recipe with notes of my tweaked recipe alongside the ingredients stated. I also used the white sauce recipe in the my Cheesy Potato Bake Recipe.


Main ingredients :

• 1 tbs oilve oil
• 1 med brown onion, chopped coarsely
• 3 stalks celery, trimmed, chopped coarsely
• 4 cloves garlic, crushed
• 2 tsp ground cinnamon ( pork and veal mince ), 1 tsp ground cinnamon ( beef mince )
• 800g pork and veal mince ( I prefer to use beef mince )
• 1 tbs plain flour
• 2 tbs red wine vinegar
• 2 tsp brown sugar ( pork and veal mince ), 1 tsp brown sugar ( beef mince )
• 700ml bottled tomato pasta sauce/passata
• 400g can diced tomatoes
• 1/4 cup finely chopped fresh sage

White sauce ingredients :

• 40g butter
• 2 tbs plain flour, extra
• 2 1/2 cups ( 625ml ) hot milk
• 1 1/2 cups ( 120g ) finely grated Parmesan cheese
• 2 1/2 cups ( 250g ) coarsely grated mozzarella cheese

Extra ingredients :

• 250g fresh lasagne sheets
• 12 fresh sage leaves ( I find this optional. There's no difference in the taste if you decide to not put it in. The chopped sage is enough for me )

1. Heat oil in large saucepan; cook onion and celery, stirring; until soft. Add garlic and cinnamon; cook, stirring, until fragrant.
2. Add mince; cook, stirring, until meat changes color. Add flour; cook, stirring, 1 minute. Stir in vinegar, sugar, pasta sauce and undrained tomatoes; bring to boil. Reduce heat; simmer, stirring occasionally, about 15 minutes or until sauce thickens. Stir in chopped sage.
3. Preheat oven to 180C/160C fan-forced. ( I do this before I start cooking to make sure the oven is nice and hot! )
4. Meanwhile, melt butter in medium saucepan. ( Don't burn it like I did the first time I made this! ) Add extra flour; cook, stirring, until mixture thickens and bubbles. ( To be safe, do this on low heat first ) Gradually stir in milk; stir until mixture boils and thickens. ( Increase heat to medium while stirring mixture ) Remove sauce from heat; stir in one-third of the Parmesan. ( Sauce should be creamy and thick. If your sauce is still water-like, before stirring in Parmesan, put back on heat and keep stirring until thick )
5. Spread quarter of the meat sauce into shallow 20cm x 31 cm oven proof dish. Cover with one-third of the trimmed lasagne sheets, then one-third of the remaining meat sauce, half the white sauce and half the mozzarella. Make two more layers with the remaining lasagna and meat sauce; top with remaining white sauce then sprinkle with combined remaining cheeses. Sprinkle with sage leaves. ( If you decide to add this ) Cook, uncovered, in oven, about 50 minutes ( Keep checking on it because usually by 30 minutes, its ready ) or until browned lightly. Stand 15 minutes ( Or in the case of my home, 2 minutes. Boys usually have their hungry hands cutting it up by the time I take it out! )

Tips :

• The great thing about lasagne is you can either make both sauces a day ahead, then assemble the lasagne when you're ready, or completely finish the lasagne a day ahead, put it in the refrigerator and reheat it in the oven ( 180C/160C fan-forced ), covered, for a bout 30 minutes. or, if you like, freeze the finished lasagne, as a whole, or in serving-sized portions. The whole lasagne will take about 24 hours to thaw in the refrigerator. Individual portions can be thawed in a microwave oven - follow the manufacturers directions.
• Pizza cheese ( 375g ) is a good substitute for the Parmesan and mozzarella in this recipe.

So there it is. I hope you, the fresh of the block cooks out there, find the courage to cook this dish like I did. Practice makes perfect! Took me a while to perfect this dish and the white sauce. Especially the white sauce! So do try this dish and if you have any more tips or if you cooked it with an extra ingredient, let me know. Would love to try it! Also let me know if you need any advice on this dish. More than happy to help out a fellow lasagne lover!

xoxo

Perfect nails without going to the salon.

Yesterday I decided that today I want to channel my inner Dorothy. Well more of the reason that I bought a nail polish called Ruby Shoes by N.Y.C Color.

You wanna take a guess how much this awesome bottle costs? Just 2 dollars!!!! What a find! Right about now, you might be thinking, "Well it could be 2 dollars but how am I going to get that perfect salon nails? I still have to fork out 40 dollars or more to do my nails."

Well don't fret my dearies! The ever sneaky, cheaty Mrs. Williamson is here to save the day! And money ;)

When I was younger, my brother use to date this girl who knew every cheat and secret in putting on flawless makeup, skincare, hair styling and how to put on nail polish without stepping out of the house. She was a genius! And she taught me everything which I am forever grateful. I kept the secrets for a long time and no one ever seem to know how I never spent money but always somehow put on makeup, did my hair and nails like I just stepped out of the salon 5 minutes ago. Well today, I have decided to share the secret. Before you start screaming and jumping in joy, I'm just going to share just the nail secret for now. Yes I know, it may seem a little mean but I assure you, I will be sharing a lot more in the future!

So here are the things you will need :

• nail file
• base coat or a buffer
• top coat
• nail polish of your choice

That's it! Unbelievable isn't it?

So for the base and top coat, I like to use Sally Hansen Double Duty because instead of buying 2 separate bottles, this hot momma acts as a top and base coat all in one bottle. Perfect!

The base coat is great before you put on the nail polish. This is so that the nail polish will have a nice smooth finish when you put it on. Another alternative is to buff the ridges ( those bumpy things you sometimes get on your nails ). I prefer the base coat. Here is a website I found that will tell you all about how to file and buff your nails. Make sure that you wash your hands after filing and buffering, otherwise your going to get nail dust under the nail polish. I usually do this a day before applying nail polish.

Now to make this work, it is vital that you do this a few hours before you hit the sack. When you are ready, apply base coat ( if you decide to use this ) on dry, bare nails and let dry. Once dry, apply nail polish. Now here's the secret, While applying, don't try to be a perfectionist, trying to not get the nail polish on your skin. Just apply it all over! With this method, you will get your nail polish on the sides of your nails. Apply 2 coats and let dry. At this point, your fingers are going to look like a train wreck on nails but don't worry, it may look horrid now but I promise you, the outcome will be fabulous!

Once nails is dry, snooze away. Next day, while taking a shower, pick the nail polish on your wet skin and watch the magic as the nail polish comes off! Now you can gaze at your perfect nails! After your shower, once dry, apply top coat and let dry. Voila! Perfect nails without even stepping out of your house!

I hope this helps women out there who are on a budget and want to have a polished, perfect nails without breaking your budget. Do let me know if you've tried this method and have helped or if you have any tips and tricks. Would love to try them!

xoxo

The big 3-0!

July 16th 2011 - the day I turned 30. To be honest, I thought I would have rolled around, cried and screamed "Why God? Whyyyy?!?!?!?!" But instead, I faced the day with a smile and a kiss from hubs and Moe. Turning 30 ain't so bad. I wonder why most women make such a big deal about turning the so called "big 3-0". Hubs took me out for a nice Spanish dinner and drinks after. He organized a get together with friends a week later. It was just another birthday.

Throughout my life, I have been through the good, the great, the bad and the worse.I've worked hard, quit because I didn't want to work, got fired because I didn't work, lazed around because I had no job, struggled to get money, starved because I had no money, pigged out when I had money, went through bad relationships, had great relationships, had my heart broken, broken a few hearts, screwed up a friendship, mended a friendship, learned who were my true friends, learned who was my true enemy, gained weight, lost weight, moved out of parents house, moved back in to parents house, lost my father, grandma and aunt, and most important of them all, I married my one true love.

From all this experience ( and lots more ) I have learned that even though I don't have much to show for now, I have found stability, love, courage and more in my friends, family and hubs. Turning 30 and looking back, I don't regret anything I've done, and I sure as hell am not going to slump around, whinging about turning 30. I've had a great life and I'm going to continue having a one. So I'm still baffled as to why women still complain. Well whatever the reason may be, I reckon that everyone should just be celebrating each birthday, no matter at what age, knowing that with each year that has passed, they have achieved something and have had special memories to cherish. We should be celebrating! Not contemplating or regretting.

Can I hear a "Woot Woot!"?

xoxo