stuffed pasta shells with ricotta cheese

mood: perspicacious
listening to: high on fire :: snakes for the divine/frost hammer

i have to admit that i've lost some motivation to cook lately, mostly due to the fact that nothing i've seen or thought of has been intriguing enough for me to try my hand at and therefore, the long delay. a friend made this dish a while back and it was so good, i decided that i would try my hand at it. this might be the first time where i didn't go overboard with injecting all kinds of spices and extra ingredients into something that doesn't need a whole lot to give it some flair.

Ingredients: 16 oz., jumbo pasta shells 32 oz., ricotta cheese 2 eggs, beaten 2 garlic cloves, minced 12 oz., shredded mozzarella cheese

dried basil dried oregano dried parsley 8 oz., shredded parmesan cheese 26 oz., spaghetti sauce

Preparation:
- in large pot, add 12 cups of water, olive oil and bring to a bowl on med-high heat
- in a large mixing bowl, combine ricotta and mozzarella cheeses, eggs, garlic, 1 tbsp of parsley, basil and oregano and stir evenly
- add shells to large pot and cook till shells become malleable
- remove shells, drain and place shells in cold water
- stuff cheese mixture into shells and set aside
- in separate pot, combine spaghetti sauce and 3 tbsps of parsley, oregano and basil on medium-heat
- preheat oven to 350°
- grease a casserole pan and put light layer of spaghetti sauce on bottom
- spread shells close together and facing up
- sprinkle parmesan cheese and remaining sauce on top
- place in oven for 35-45 minutes or until cheese is bubbly
- serve with garlic bread, a nice pinot noir and a salad for a full meal

eggplant parmesan

mood: feisty
listening to: greymachine :: wolf at the door/sweatshop

tis the season for me to be a slacker... and a slacker is what i've been. i've actually made a few dishes here and there, but they haven't quite been up to snuff and therefore, the long delay between posts. finally, i feel somewhat comfortable in posting this as it took a few iterations for me to get it right, but it's at a place that i feel like i can share this. jenn hoyt, here's a veggie dish finally!

Ingredients: 2 eggplants, peeled and sliced italian breadcrumbs 2 eggs 1 tbsp white horseradish balsamic vinegar 4 garlic cloves, minced salt yellow pepper, sliced green pepper, sliced 4 green onions, sliced	ginger black peppercorn fennel seed canola oil dried basil dried oregano 2 cans, plain spaghetti sauce mozzarella cheese parmesan cheese cheddar cheese

Preparation:
- preheat oven to 350°
- peel and slice eggplant; dip eggplant slices in egg and into italian breadcrumbs
- bake slices for 5-10 minutes or until light brown
- in a sauce pan, heat canola oil
- add garlic, ginger, fennel and peppercorns
- stir in green onion and yellow and green peppers
- add in white horseradish, balsamic vinegar and salt to taste
- stir in spaghetti sauce, basil and oregano
- heat mixture until slightly bubbling
- grease a casserole pan and put layer of spaghetti mixture on bottom of pan
- place layer of baked eggplant slices on top
- coat with mixture of parmesan, mozzarella and cheddar cheese
- repeat spaghetti sauce, eggplant and cheese until all ingredients are used
- cover with foil and heat in oven for 40-45 minutes

serve with a nice salad and bread and you're good to go

tasty beef lasagna

mood: tempestuous
listening to: meat beat manifesto :: hellfire/less
slacker, slacker, slacker... can you blame me? the weather is always gorgeous, so of course i'm outside enjoying myself. with the fall approaching, it was time to get back to some basics and what better way to bring in the colder weather with hearty lasagna. i'm biased, but this is the best thing that i've made to date. this is one my all-time favorites and so i've had to some time to practice and perfect this, but my roommate just confirmed my bias by stating, "it's good and really hearty!"

Ingredients: 1.25 lb lean ground beef 4 garlic cloves, minced ginger, minced fennel ground coriander salt red pepper, sliced green pepper, sliced 1/2 yellow onion, sliced italian parsley balsamic vinegar	louisiana hot sauce chili powder oregano basil 2 15 oz. cans of tomato sauce no-boil lasagna noodles 2 eggs (or egg substitute) 1 15 oz. can of ricotta cheese 9 oz. shredded cheddar cheese 6 oz. shredded parmesan cheese

Preparation:
- preheat oven to 350°
- in a pan, brown and drain ground beef
- add in garlic, ginger, parsley, onion, peppers, oregano, basil and fennel on medium-high heat
- stir in tomato sauce, salt, ground cardamom, balsamic vinegar, tapatio and chili powder; reduce heat to medium-low
- in a separate bowl, mix ricotta cheese, 2 eggs and 1/3 cup parmesan cheese
- grease a 9x17 pan and put a thin layer of meat mixture to coat bottom
- layer lasagna shells on top
- pour thin layer of ricotta cheese mixture
- cover with 1/2 of cheddar cheese and 1/2 of remaining parmesan cheese
- repeat meat, lasagna shells, ricotta and cheeses
- add oregano and basil on top
- cover with foil and place in oven for 35 mins or until desired readiness.