LASAGNA DINNER

My lasagna recipe is from my mother-in-law and we think it's the best lasagna EVER! I've been making this recipe for 34 years and my mother-in-law made it for a good 20 years before that. The tiramisu recipe is from one of those best of the best cookbooks that was put together by home economics teachers in the state of California several years ago. I don't like most restaurant's tiramisu, many of them use rum or something else that I don't like! My recipe is easy and elegant and even people who don't like coffee compliment the chef when they try it. I've modified it a bit, mainly exchanging the traditional lady fingers for vanilla wafers. . . that change was out of desperation because lady fingers are sometimes hard to find. The vanilla wafers work so well, I don't even bother trying to find those lady fingers any more. Here's the complete menu for my lasagna dinner:

Lasagna

Apple Feta Salad

Garlic French Bread

Tiramisu

And here are the recipes!

LASAGNA
1 lb lean ground beef
1 clove garlic, minced
1 Tablespoon dried basil
1 Tablespoon dried parsley flakes
1 - 1 lb, 12 oz can stewed tomatoes
2 - 6 oz cans tomato paste
In large skillet, brown meat over medium-high heat, drain off any excess fat. Add remaining ingredients; bring to a low simmer, cover and cook for 10 minutes.
1 - 16 oz carton cottage cheese
2 beaten eggs
2 Tablespoons dried parsley flakes
½ cup grated parmesan cheese
In a small mixing bowl, mix cottage cheese, eggs, parsley and parmesan cheese.
1 - 8 oz pkg lasagna noodles - boiled to al dente and drained
1 lb mozzarella cheese, grated
Place ½ of the noodles in a 13 x 9 pan. Spread with half of the cottage cheese mixture, then spread with half of the meat sauce mixture, sprinkle with half of the mozzarella cheese. Repeat layers. Bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes. Let set 10 to 15 minutes before serving.

APPLE-FETA SALAD
1 medium-size Golden Delicious apple
1 medium-size Red Delicious apple
½ Tablespoon light olive oil
4 cups torn leafy green lettuce or lettuce mix
½ cup crumbled feta cheese
1 bottle Balsamic Vinaigrette Dressing, or Red Wine Vinaigrette Dressing
Core and quarter apples; slice each quarter into 3 wedges. In large skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add apple slices and saute until golden and barely tender (about 5 minutes). Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature. Just before serving, arrange leafy lettuce on individual salad plates. Top with sautéed apples and feta cheese. Serve with dressing on the side.

TIRAMISU
2 Cups Whipping Cream
2 - 8 ounce packages Cream Cheese, softened
1 Cup Powdered Sugar
2 teaspoons Vanilla
1 Cup Cold Espresso
1 box Vanilla Wafers
1 Hershey’s Chocolate Bar, shaved into curls
In medium mixing bowl, whip cream until stiff, set aside. In large mixing bowl, whip cream cheese until smooth, then add powdered sugar, vanilla and 4 Tablespoons of the espresso. Fold whipped cream and cream cheese mixture together. Arrange ½ of the Vanilla Wafers in 9 x 13 pan. Sprinkle half of the remaining cold espresso over the wafers. Spoon half of the cream cheese mixture on top of wafers. Repeat layers. Top with chocolate curls. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
NOTES: Must use espresso made in an espresso machine. Espresso coffee made in a drip coffee maker is NOT the same. If you don’t have an espresso machine, purchase an espresso “to go” at a coffee shop. An alternative to chocolate curls is Ghirardelli Chocolate Powder, just sprinkle on top of Tiramisu.
Instead of 9 x 13 dish, use sherbet or other stemware, placing a vanilla wafer in the bottom and lining the sides with wafers. It takes longer to do these individually, but is more festive for special dinners. Any remaining mixture can be layered in an 8 x 8 dish or whatever size would accommodate.