I hope you’re ready. I’m about to post a recipe….or as close to a recipe as I can do! I cook like this: a little of this, a lot of that, hmmm…that looks good, oh a bit more of this. The other night I actually did measure what I was throwing into the pot. Why? I’m not sure, but you get to benefit!
I was craving lasagna but was short of time and ingredients. So I wung it. Is that even a word? Who cares! This is what I did:
Ingredients:
- 1.5 pounds ground beef
- 1 onion, chopped
- 1-2 cloves garlic
- a couple shakes of oregano and basil (I didn’t say I was exact!)
- 1 teaspoon of salt (do whatever tastes best to you)
- 1 1/2 cups frozen swiss chard or spinach, squeezed dry and chopped fairly fine
- 1 pint crushed tomatoes (these are pints because they were home canned)
- 1 pint tomato sauce (I use this as it is for spaghetti sauce, so if you’re substituting something store bought, use spaghetti sauce or marinara)
- 4 cups bow tie pasta (this was measured dry)
- 2-3 cups water (I didn’t actually measure this)
- 1 cup of mozzarella (another approximation)
Directions:
- In a dutch oven, brown the beef with the onion and garlic. Drain any excess fat.
- Add the remaining ingredients EXCEPT the mozzarella. Bring it to a nice simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, until the noodles are cooked to your liking.
- If it’s looking a bit too dry as the noodles are cooking, add a bit of water. Don’t stress about adding too much water. The extra can be easily boiled off until the sauce is the thickness you prefer.
- Turn the burner off when most of the liquid has been absorbed by the noodles and/or boiled away and when the noodles are completely cooked to perfection.
- Stir in the mozzarella, and you’re done! Sprinkle some extra cheese on top of each serving if you like extra cheesiness.
I wish I had taken a picture of this meal. I didn’t plan on blogging about it, but after one bite, I knew I couldn’t just keep it to myself. It was delicious. It was beautiful. And best of all, it was EASY!
Made in Montana 
Yum! It sounds great!!! I wing it a lot too… I don’t keep a very good pantry/freezer/fridge inventory because I have a hard time controlling what everyone else in the house grabs out of there, so I’m often short on ingredients!
Sounds like a yummy recipe that I’ll have to try!
MMM… That was so good and great leftovers. I am glad you wrote it down!
Love you.
Micah
Yummy! I’ve never tried making lasagna with spinach or chard. I just might have to try it one day soon.
Sounds delicious. Love to have spinach in about anything I eat. I love it in egg omelets. Exactly, what is a dutch over? I assume it is a type of pan. Did you cook it in the oven or on top of the stove? Sounds so good….Edie
A dutch oven is smaller than a stock pot and bigger than a skillet. You really could use any pot you might have around that would hold a decent amount of food. I know the term ‘dutch oven’ is misleading, but I cooked it all on the stove!
Yummy!! Going to add this to our menu!
This sounds so good, and so much easier than traditional lasagna!