Lasagna - cook those noodles first!

The last time I cooked lasagna, I used the noodles that you don't have to pre-cook. Whatever! There is no such thing! All those noodles need to be pre-cooked. In my experience, the noodles just don't cook properly if they aren't pre-cooked. Nothing worst than spending $25 on ingredients and spending 2 hours creating the dish and then bite into crunchy noodles. No sir! That is why I hadn't made a lasagna in years.

So, as you probably already guessed, I am not usually a lasagna fan. Not a fan of making it and not necessarily a fan of eating it. Oooooh though, this recipe made me change my mind. Lasagna, yummy, ooey gooey, lasagna. I made the most delicious lasagna over the Christmas holiday. It was so delicious. I found the recipe online but, changed it up a bit to make it mine. I'm glad I did because it couldn't taste any better!

I start out by making my own tomato sauce. Its really not hard and it is so yummy. I wing it and just have a semi-recipe in my head. First, I sauteed about 1/2 an onion and 5 cloves of chopped garlic in olive oil. I use a couple large cans of crushed tomatoes and thrown in tomato paste or sauce too if I have it. I add salt, a bit of cracked black pepper, garlic powder, oregano, basil and thyme. I let it cook for at least 30 minutes - simmering it for a few hours only makes it yummier. If you have the time, do it. After its cooked, I run it through the blender. My boys despise chunks. You really can use any sauce you like for this recipe.

I bought a large container of ricotta and added a bunch of chopped fresh basil. I bought one of the packages from the store, you know, the ones in the produce area. It was beautiful. All that white delicious cheese with flecks of green. Ummmmmm, yum!

Next I chopped up a jar and 1/2 of marinated artichoke hearts. I cut the hearts into small chunks and left out any pieces that are were too tough.

Then, I cooked those darn noodles! In the bottom of the pan, spread some sauce and then a layer of noodles, next the ricotta cheese mixture, artichokes, sauce, mozzarella cheese, repeat. When you finish you should have a layer of mozzarella on top.

 Bake it at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes covered in tin foil and then uncover and bake an additional 15 minutes. Enjoy!!!

Shopping list:
Ricotta Cheese
Shredded Mozzarella
Fresh Basil
Lasagna noodles
Tomato sauce - or make your own
Marinated Artichoke Hearts