Wednesday, May 28, 2014

Three Cheese Vegetarian Lasagna

Photo: Brian Woodcock
INGREDIENTS:
  • 1 cup part-skim ricotta cheese
  • 1/4 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley, divided
  • 1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano
  • 1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
  • 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 6 ounces shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese, divided (about 1 1/2 cups) 
  • 1 ounce fresh Parmesan cheese, grated and divided (about 1/4 cup) 
  • 1 egg, lightly beaten 
  • 1/4 cup torn fresh basil
  • 1/8 teaspoon ground red pepper
  • 4 garlic cloves, minced 
  • 1 (24-ounce) jar lower-sodium pasta sauce 
  • 9 cooked lasagna noodles
  • Cooking spray

DIRECTIONS:
  1. Preheat oven to 375°.

  2. Combine ricotta, 2 tablespoons parsley, oregano, thyme, salt, black pepper, 1 cup mozzarella, 1 tablespoon Parmesan cheese, and egg in a small bowl. Combine basil, red pepper, garlic, and pasta sauce in a medium bowl.

  3. Spread 1/2 cup pasta sauce mixture in bottom of a small glass or ceramic baking dish coated with cooking spray. Arrange 3 noodles over pasta sauce mixture; top with about 2/3 cup ricotta mixture and 3/4 cup pasta sauce mixture. Repeat layers twice, ending with 1/2 cup pasta sauce mixture. Top evenly with the remaining 1/2 cup mozzarella and remaining 3 tablespoons Parmesan cheese. Bake at 375° for 20 minutes or until bubbling and cheese begins to brown.


NUTRITION INFO:
  • Calories: 339

  • Fat: 11.8g

  • Saturated fat: 6g

  • Monounsaturated fat: 3g

  • Polyunsaturated fat: 0.5g

  • Protein: 20.2g

  • Carbohydrate: 39.2g

  • Fiber: 2.6g

  • Cholesterol: 66mg

  • Iron: 2mg

  • Sodium: 564mg

  • Calcium: 424mg

Tuesday, May 27, 2014

Succulent Arrangements


This year we decided to plant mostly succulents in our outdoor landscaping pots. They are very easy to care for, require very little maintenance and come in a large variety of shapes, sizes and colors. In addition we have Wandering Jews in our hanging baskets on the covered porch. And on the fence row and in a couple of other pots we have our begonias, which also are low maintenance, very pretty and explode over the summer months.

Wandering Jew

Sunday, May 11, 2014

Vacation Rocks!



This is the view from our campsite at our first stop of our camping vacation at Nashville Shores in Hermitage, Tennessee.  This campground overlooks Percy Priest Lake and the view and weather is perfect, especially for May!  More to come later on our trip - it's been an interesting one already!