On a cold, yucky day when it’s snowing, or the rain is chucking it down like no-one’s business, I like comfort food.  Roast, stew, lasagne, cabbage rolls, shepherd’s pie…all the old standbys.
Looking at the contents of my freezer, today seems like a day that calls for a quick meal with ground beef. It would have been even quicker if I had some frozen pasta sauce on hand. Â Oh, well…
Easy lasagne
- Â 1.5 pound (675g) lean ground beef
- 2 cloves garlic (minced, crushed or grated)
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 1 bell pepper, seeds removed and diced
- 1 -6 ounce tin tomato paste
- 1 -20 ounce tin diced or crushed tomatoes
- 1 teaspoon each salt, pepper, oregano, basil
- 1 package lasagne noodles (oven ready are best if you are lazy like myself)
- 1 -12 ounce carton cottage cheese
- 8 ounces grated mozzarella
- grated parmesan to taste
Brown the beef and onion over medium heat in a large pan to which a couple of teaspoons of oil have been added. After a couple of minutes, add the pepper and garlic. Â Cook for a couple of minutes, then drain off any fat, and add the tomatoes. Cover and simmer for about 15-20 minutes. While it cooks, heat the oven to 350F, and cook the pasta if not using oven ready lasagne.
Using a 9 x 13 baking dish, layer meat sauce, noodles, cottage cheese. Then repeat, using meat sauce, noodles and grated cheese. Then add more meat sauce and sprinkle cheese on top. You can add grated parmesan to the final layer. Bake at 350F for 20-30 minutes. Let sit for about 5 minutes or so before serving. Nice with garlic bread and a Caesar salad.