Skillet Supper

Well ..we are finally getting some COLD weather..and rain is on the way. We even had frost and freeze warnings last night. It actually got to 28 degrees. That's cold for here. And I love it...

When Julie and I went to New England our last night was in Portland, Maine... and we hit the lottery of food world. We had supper at Fore Street.And it ended up being a night we will never forget...that's for sure. It was so good...we cried.....were we tired? Sad to go home? No..the food was that good. Cry - worthy. It was late October and as we walked in we were greeted with a big long farm table with just a few pumpkins and gourds on it.Simple. Maine-Style. Perfect. We ate dinner there that night and we were served in cast iron skillets. Old ones...from the antique shops in Vermont and New Hampshire and Maine.After our supper we went back to our room at The Pomegranite Inn...yeah..you read that right... The Pomegranite Inn .How cute is that? And talked till 3 in the morning about the food..the restaurant...and one long and very beloved trip to New England.

Since it is so cold here tonight I decided to make lasagna in a cast iron skillet a la Fore Street...

I just did my own version...really simple.

Farmhouse Skillet Lasagna

Saute some shallots till soft
Add in some chicken italian sausage and brown
Add 1 large can organic whole tomatoes
Add some red wine...a splash or two
Salt
About 3 scoops of tomato paste

Simmer about an hour

Add some chopped fresh basil....I still have it in the garden..maybe not for long

Boil some lasagna noodles

Layer sauce, pasta and grated cheese in cast iron skillet

I just used mozarella...nothing fancy


Bake at 350 degrees for about an hour till hot and bubbly

Red Plaid Recipe Box ...Recipe 1.

We're getting close to Halloween and it got me to thinking about Holiday Cooking. So I got out my mom's red plaid recipe box. I think I have mentioned it before. It's one of those"if the house was on fire what would you grab" kinda things. I treasure it. So as I was going through the box...I am thinking...all these recipes look so good..and what I really liked about them was that each recipe seemed to have a history behind it and told a story. Who's recipe was it? Where did it come from? A relative? A neighbor? An old friend? I love old recipe boxes . Each one so different...each one someone's own private treasure box.

Alot of the recipes were from Bessie. The lady that introduced me to "The Treasury Of Great recipes" by Mary and Vincent Price. My other "house is burning" grab. Bessie came every afternoon when my little brother was a baby and got supper started. Alot of the recipes are from relatives too. Since we are getting into the Holidays and winter, I thought it would be fun to work my way through the box and share the recipes with you...my friends.

The other day I wanted to make a lasagna. Not one of those all day make your own pasta affairs... I just wanted something simple and easy. So I tried the recipe for spaghetti sauce from the recipe file of Enide Allison. What a way to start. I don't know Enide.I have never heard of her. Ever. She must have been a real person..her recipe card has her name engraved right next to the little pot bellied stove.She must have taken her cooking pretty seriously to have her name engraved on the card.

So I made the the spaghetti sauce. And it was good. I just layered it with lasagna pasta and cheese. That was it. Simple.


from the recipe file of --- Enide Allison

1 onion, diced
1 large can whole peeled tomatoes (I'm on a San Marzano kick)
1 teaspoon oregano
Chopped italian flat leaf parsely (I used about 1/2 cup)
Salt and pepper

Saute the onion in olive oil till soft
Add tomatoes
Add oregano and parsley
Salt and pepper to taste. (to be perfectly honest, I just add salt, it's just a personal thing I have going on)
Simmer for about 40 to 50 minutes

Layer in a casserole dish lasagna and cheese with the sauce

Baker 350 degrees for 50 to 60 minutes till bubbly and hot

A Yearning

Sometimes I just get a yearning to close the garden gate, put out the "Nobody's Home" sign, tie on my apron, put on Carly Simon "I Only Have Eyes For You",and make pasta.... it's the best.

I think I already told you that I come from an italian farm family. So there was always pasta making going on at our house.

Aunt Rose's Lasagna
Pasta:

1 cup flour
1 egg
Salt

For each cup of flour, add 1 egg and pinch of salt. Knead well and roll through a pasta machine into the thinest setting.

Lasagna

Meat Sauce:
1 1/2 pounds ground beef
1 pound italian sausage broken into pieces
1 onion, diced
1 carrot, diced
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 clove garlic, minced
1 small can tomato paste
1 cup red wine
1 large can San Marzano tomatoes or Muir Glen organic
Basil
Italian parsely
Salt and pepper

Brown onion and carrot in oil. Add sausage and stir 2 to 3 minutes. Add ground beef and cook till browned. Add garlic, wine and tomato paste. Measure 1 empty can of tomato paste with water and add to the meat. Stir. Add tomatoes and season. Bring to a simmer and cook slowly 2 to 3 hours, stirring occasionally.

Filling:

Mix together 1/2 pond ricotta
1 pound mozarella,grated
1 egg
Minced fresh italian flat leaf parsley

Bechamel Sauce:

5 tablespoon butter
4 1/2 tablespoons unbleached flour
4 1/2 cups milk
1/4 cup heavy cream
Salt and pepper

In a saucepan over medium heat melt the butter. Add the flour. Stir and cook 3 to 4 minutes. Add the milk gradually and stir with a whisk till smooth. Simmer about 7 to 8 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper


Fill a large pot with water and bring to a boil. Add a tablespoon or so of salt.
When boiling add lasgana noodles. Cook for about 30 seconds, drain and rinse in cold water. Dry noodles. Set aside.

In a lasagna pan, layer: tomato sauce, lasagna noodles, ricotta filling and bechamel sauce. Repeat process, ideally having about 5 to 6 very thin layers.
Bake at 350 degrees for 40 to 50 minutes or till hot and bubbling.