Lazy Daisy Lasagna

Ingredients:

1 bag (25 oz.) frozen ravioli (cheese, meat, or cheese & spinach)
1 lb. ground beef
3 cans (15 oz.) of diced or crushed tomatoes 
Fresh or dried basil
1 Tablespoon of Italian Seasoning
2 cloves garlic
1 teaspoon of onion powder
4 cups grated cheese (mozzarella, or a mixture of your favorite cheeses)

Directions:

1. In a Dutch oven or large sauce pot, brown ground beef -- drain fat.
2. Add tomatoes and spices (except for basil).
3. Using a 6-quart slow cooker -- cover the bottom with your tomato/beef mixture.
4. Place a layer of ravioli over sauce. Sprinkle in basil.
5. Then add a layer of cheese.
6. Continue to layer in this fashion until ravioli is used up (usually 3 layers).
7. End with a layer of sauce and a sprinkling of cheese.
8. Cover and cook on low for 4-5 hours.
9. Turn off crock pot and allow your lasagna to rest for 15-45 minutes.
10. Delicious served with crusty bread and tossed salad for a quick & easy meal that looks like you spent hours on it! 

Louise’s Best Food Rub

1/3 Cup Paprika

1 Tablespoon Sea Salt

1 teaspoon Black pepper

1 Tablespoon Mrs. Dash

1 Tablespoon Ground Mustard

1 Tablespoon Ground Sage

1 Tablespoon Granulated Garlic

1 Tablespoon Granulated Onion

1 Tablespoon Mustard Seeds

1 Tablespoon Celery Seeds

1 Tablespoon Dill Seeds

1 Tablespoon Dill Weed

2 Tablespoons Splenda, sugar, or Truvia

1. Mix all ingredients and store in a tightly covered container. You'll want to keep some in a shaker next to the grill and the stove. Keeps indefinitely but won't last long.

2. I use this on roasted vegetables as well as meats and fishes.

WHITE SAUCE MIX

From time to time recipes will appear here listing "white sauce mix" as an ingredient.  Below is the formula I use for white sauce mix.  It's the basic ingredient in most of our cream soups, like seafood bisque, & summer vegetable bisque.  Because it's made with nonfat milk, it is better for you than adding heavy cream or half and half to your favorite cream soup recipes.

WHITE SAUCE MIX
Recipe By : Louise
Categories : Sauces Mixes
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2 C Instant Nonfat Dry Milk
1 C Unbleached Flour
1 C Butter or Margarine
2 ts Salt
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1. In a large bowl combine dry milk, flour, and salt.
2. Mix well. With a pastry blender cut in butter or margarine until mixture resembles fine crumbs.
3. Lightly pack in a large airtight container. Store in refrigerator. Use within 2 months. Makes about 1 quart of mix.
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TO MAKE BASIC WHITE SAUCE:
Use 1/2 cup WHITE SAUCE MIX and 1 cup of cool water. Combine in a small sauce pan (for thinner white sauce decrease the mix to 1/4 cup or for thicker white sauce increase mix to 3/4 cup). Cook over low heat until smooth, tirring constantly. Season with pepper, herbs, and spices. Makes about 1 1/2 cups of sauce.
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VARIATIONS:
Substitute milk, tomato juice or chicken or beef stock for all or part of the water. Cheese Sauce: Add 1/2 to
1 cup Shredded Cheddar cheese after mixture thickens. Stir until cheese is melted.
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Pastry Dough Tips for Pies, Tarts, Turnovers, & Pinwheels

Basic two crust pie instructions:

1. Mix dough according to directions -- roll out half of your pastry dough using short, gentle strokes with a rolling pin and stopping often to re-flour the pin and the board. Your dough should be moving all the time. If it’s not moving, it’s probably stuck to the board. Lift gently and add more flour. Dough should be thin and extend about one inch over the sides of your pie plate.

2. Place bottom crust loosely into ungreased pie plate and pat into place. Leave your excess inch of crust in place for now and brush lightly with milk or water. Place your prepared filling into your bottom crust. Dot with butter and set aside.

3. Roll out top crust the same way you rolled out your bottom crust. Place gently over filling leaving another one inch of excess in the diameter. Tuck your one-inch of excess top crust UNDER your one inch of excess bottom crust – all the way around and flute all edges with fingers or a fork.

4. Cut about 4-5 one-inch slits [steam vents] in the top of the pie. Brush with egg-wash [beaten egg thinned with an equal amount of water or milk] or milk before baking for nice golden crust.

5. Bake pie at 450º for 10 minutes, then lower oven temp to 350º and cook for 45-50 minutes longer. Crust should be a golden brown and filling should be bubbling up through the stem vents when done.

 Basic single crust pie shell instructions:

1. Follow #1 directions above.

2. Place bottom crust loosely into ungreased pie plate and pat into place. Fold your excess inch of crust over on itself and flute edges. This gives you an UNBAKED single piecrust usually used for pumpkin and pecan pies. For a BAKED single crust, go to step #3.

3. After fluting the edges on your raw crust, poke tiny holes throughout the entire crust, bottom and sides, with a dinner fork. Brush the entire crust with milk or egg-wash and bake at 350º for 20-30 minutes or until golden brown. The BAKED single crust is usually used for cream pies, like chocolate cream or lemon meringue. Tip: bake and freeze a few and when you need a dessert in a hurry, thaw a crust, fill with instant or prepared pudding (chocolate, butterscotch, coconut, etc), top with cool whip and you have a very delicious pie that looks like you slaved over it.

Tart Shells:

1. Follow instructions for the single crust BAKED shell except you will be making smaller rounds and portioning them into muffin cups. Bake according to directions, fill with Steve’s Microwave Fruit Filling, top with Cool Whip and you have a really nifty dessert. Make the above in TINY muffin cups for a great crowd pleaser. Note: if using the tiny tins, I don’t even roll out the dough . . . just portion into tins and mold into place with your fingers before pricking and baking – super simple!

 Turnovers:

1. Cut out a cardboard template – 5” X 5” for regulation size turnovers or 3” X 3” for small turnovers. Mix and roll out dough following my basic two crust pie instructions. Use your template to cut squares of pastry, place a dollop of Steve’s Microwave Fruit Filling on each square, moisten the edges of the pastry with water or milk, fold into a triangle, seal edges with a fork pressed in intervals on the two open sides of your triangle. Poke in a stem vent on the top of your turnover, brush the tops with milk or egg wash, place [leaving an inch of space around each pastry] on an ungreased baking sheet, and bake at 350º for 20-30 minutes or until golden brown.

Pastry Pinwheels:
 I learned how to make these from my grandmother [Memere Lively]. They are a really great way to use up leftover ends and pieces of pastry dough after you finish a day of baking pies, tarts, or turnovers:

1. Gather all pastry dough scraps and press into a ball. Roll out thinly, brush with melted butter, sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar, roll up the dough like a jellyroll, starting at one end and continuing until you have formed a log. Slice the log into ½” cookies, place flat side down [like cookies] close together on an ungreased baking sheet and bake at 350º for 20-30 minutes or until golden brown.

 Pastry: Savory and Sweet

McCann Pie Crust Recipe

McCann Pie Crust Recipe
Recipe By : Louise
Serving Size : 8
Categories : Basic, Breakfast, Dessert, Misc.
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1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon sugar
2 1/4 cups flour -- (use half wheat for healthier crust)
3/4 cup shortening
5 tablespoons ice water
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1. Mix all dry ingredients, cut in shortening with a fork or pastry blender.

2. Add water a little at a time stirring dough with a fork. DO NOT MIX WITH HANDS
3. Pat dough into a ball, divide into 2 sections, and roll out on a floured board.
4. Recipe will make 1 - double crusted pie [top & bottom crust] or 8 tart shells or turnovers.
5. For baking, follow pie or turnover recipe instructions -- I will include assembly and baking directions in my next post.
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Vocational and Technical Schools East 2010-2011 (Peterson's Vocational and Technical Schools East)

Aunt Gabby's No-fail Pie Crust

Aunt Gabby's No-fail Pie Crust
Recipe By : Gabrielle Chicoine
Serving Size : 8
Categories : Basic, Breakfast, Dessert, Misc.
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3 cups flour -- (use half wheat for healthier crust)
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cups shortening
1 egg
1/3 cup cold water

1 tablespoon vinegar

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1. Combine first four ingredients and mix well with fork or pastry blender. Dough should resemble course meal.
2. Make a well in the dough and add all liquids. Stir with a fork to blend. DO NOT USE HANDS FOR MIXING!
3. Press into a ball and roll out on a floured board.
4. Makes one - two crusted pie [top and bottom crust] or 8 turnovers.
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NOTES : This recipe was handed down from Marguerite Gagnon, Aunt Gabby's cousin in Montreal. It makes nice flaky pastry.
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Roux

Roux (pronounced "roo") is a basic thickening agent, which is used in many of my upcoming cream soup, Newburg, bisque, and gumbo recipes. Once you learn how to make roux, it will quickly become a staple item in your kitchen.

Roux can be made with a variety of oils and animal fats. It is commonly made with vegetable oil, olive oil, or clarified butter, but can also be prepared with bacon grease or other rendered fats. Its distinction from other thickeners is that the starch, in this case flour, is cooked before use. Cooking removes the flour's raw taste but maintains its excellent thickening properties. This enables roux to be a stable, smooth, and delicate thickener. When cooked to a golden or brown stage, roux takes on a rich, toasted flavor, adding color to a soup, stew, sauce, or other dishes.

Making the Perfect Roux:

Roux can be made in small quantities as part of a recipe, but its best made in larger amounts and kept on hand for use when needed. Larger quantities cook slowly and evenly, allowing the flour to achieve its maximum potential, while small amounts cook quickly, unevenly, and are easier to burn.

Louise’s Basic Roux
1 1/2 cup Olive oil, canola Oil, melted margarine (no transfat) or melted butter

2 cup Flour (half whole wheat)

Please note: once roux has started to color, don’t leave the stove: ignore telephones, doorbells, children and pets, and keep stirring. If roux burns (it will develop a burned smell and blackened patches), throw it out and start over. Roux can't be rushed; it's a gradual process and needs patience. When cooked too rapidly, roux may brown but it won't develop its characteristic flavor. When roux is done, it will smell like well-cooked flour; it may taste and smell slightly bitter when sampled 'as is', but this doesn't mean it is burned.

1. Mix oil and flour in a heavy cast-iron, Pyrex, or stainless steel skillet. Do NOT use a nonstick-coated pan. If mixture is not as soft as pancake batter, add more oil.

2. Cook over low to medium heat, stirring gently but constantly with a wooden spoon, scraping roux from bottom and sides of skillet. If any lumps develop, whisk with a wire whisk until they break up.
3. Cook until the color is white, blond, brown, or dark brown mahogany depending on your tastes. I like to use a medium light brown tan color. This will take from 20 to 60 minutes, depending on your pan, the heat of your stove, and your desired strength. Be patient. Brown and dark brown roux have more flavor, but less thickening power than white or blond roux. They are primarily used in Cajun and Creole dishes, most notably, gumbo and jambalaya.
4. After the roux is done, remove from heat to cool, but keep stirring constantly for the first few minutes. Then stir frequently for 10 minutes longer, since roux will continue to cook from its own heat for a few minutes. As the roux cools, some of the oil will float to the top. As it sits, the flour will begin to settle to the bottom. Stir the oil back into the flour before using, as this will make the roux dissolve smoothly. If you decide to pour off the oil, the roux will still work, but will require more whisking into a sauce in order to fully dissolve.
5. After the roux has cooled, transfer it to an airtight container and refrigerate. Roux will keep indefinitely in the refrigerator or freezer until ready for use. Roux made with vegetable oil can be stored at room temperature for several weeks, but roux made with butter or fat should always be refrigerated. In my kitchen the roux was kept refrigerated in blocks and we grated (with a cheese grater or food processor) off what we needed for each recipe. Grated bits of roux whisked into your broth or hot liquid will dissolve easier and with less lumps than if you just throw a block of it into your dish!
6. Usage: Roux begins to thicken soon after it is combined with a liquid, but your dish should be simmered for 10 to 20 minutes in order to reach its full flavor and thickening potential. This additional cooking time allows the flour to soften and absorb the liquid, resulting in a silky smooth soup or sauce. If the simmering time is too short, the flour in the roux will remain grainy. Good luck!