SLACKER LASAGNE

I cannot take credit for this, except for some observations - it comes totally from the March 2002 issue of Real Simple, where it's described as "Fake it, don't make it! Last Minute Lasagne"

Ingredients:
1 30-oz package frozen cheese ravioli - DO NOT THAW
1 26-oz jar red pasta sauce
1 10-oz box frozen spinach - thawed & squeezed "dry"
1 8-oz package shredded mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup shredded parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 350 deg (F). Coat a 13x9" pan with cooking spray. Spoon in 1/3 of the pasta sauce so that it covers the bottom of the pan. On top of this, place a layer of 12 (still frozen) ravioli. Scatter spinach evenly across the ravioli, and sprinkle 1/2 of each kind of cheese (1/4c parmesan and 1c mozzarella) over the top. Cover with another layer of ravioli (12-16) and the remaining pasta sauce (spoon in evenly). Sprinkle the remaining cheese on top.

Cover with foil. Bake for 25 minutes. Remove foil and bake for another 5 to 10 minutes, until cheese is bubbly. Serves 6.

Observations: You'd be surprised how filling this is, especially if you serve a veggie with it (I chose sugar snap peas). It's going to be exactly as good as the ingredients you put in it... so if you choose a low-end pasta sauce and don't like how it comes out, don't blame me. I used 2 jars of Patsy's Pizzaiola, from the local gourmet shop (the jars are small and expensive), and it was delicious, and worth the cost, and made it into a "special meal" - but I think a decent grocery-store sauce would be just as good. I'd stay away from overly complicated sauces, though - the Barilla Mushroom & Garlic sauce that I use on pasta doesn't seem right, possibly because of all the big chunky mushrooms in it. If you go for something like that, make sure it's not too sweet and that all the veggies in it are cut up. Also, I used Parmesan/Romano/Asiago blend instead of straight parmesan cheese, because it was what I had on hand - and I think this is a better choice, tastes a little bit more sophisticated than plain parmesan. Also, I didn't have cooking spray, so I just wiped the pan with a little bit of oil first, which worked fine.

what a day

I ended up sleeping all day yesterday, except for a few hours, and have slept off most of my sick feeling. I retain a vague quease, but overall, it's OK. I think I might have an ear infection, and if that ends up being the case, I'll see a doctor later this week.

I am kicking ass on the GameBoy Advance. The game I got is not too hard; I've gotten stuck in a few spots, but there's advice available on the web for those places. A more experienced player could choose a higher level of difficulty, but I don't like that kind of stress. ( details. )

Would it be terribly unkind to point out that it's currently in the upper 60s, slated to go into the lower 70s as the day goes on, and that we have just seen the end of yesterday's thunderstorms? Yes? Too bad. ;) I've been up since 6AM, and my plans are to spend time with my dog (who is allowed out of her crate now, not a minute too soon), and do some packing. Saturday we packed things like "All the cookbooks we don't use very often" (leaving about 8 out - Williams-Sonoma vs Mayo Clinic, The New Basics, Basic Cooking, Wolfgang Puck's Live Love Eat, Moosewood Cooks at Home, the 1960s version of Pillsbury, etc). I think that in the next place, all the Other Cookbooks should have a shelf in a book room, and only that handful that are used frequently should be in the kitchen. I like to look through cookbooks and then go out to dinner.

The peace marches in London and NYC this weekend... wow. Any of you guys go? Maggie? Natalia? Even my *mom* - who was a registered Republican until she decided that she'd rather be a touchy-feely Catholic than a fundamentalist evangelical bible-thumper-type Protestant - wants to go to a peace march. But I think she'll end up getting a haircut instead.

(I can't be snoot. I'll probably just go buy more games at TRU.)

also -

Anyone who signed on for a Xmas card and didn't get one*** should be getting a postcard in the mail this week. I bought them a while ago, but didn't write them out until Saturday. :)

Trying to get pkgs out as well. those are for Ragdoll, Banshee, Optic, and those chicks in Oklahoma. Also have something for QuietJenn, but since she has moved, I may just give it to her in person in the next couple of months. Stuff for Hyper_ballad will be delivered in person.

***Unless you're a Korean art student living in the southeastern US, in which case you'll get stuff when I see you next! x0!

i'll just make a list.

I don't feel like writing out a real entry.

-Target has Peanuts action figures! They're so cute! Snoopy goodness!

-I got another game for the GameBoy, Golden Sun (it's an RPG with generally good feedback

-I finally found the new Interweave Knits, but have had no chance to look through it yet

-I picked up I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith, because I keep hearing about it lately

-We went to Staples and bought a lot of packing materials (peanuts, bubble wrap, etc). Also, I found vellum paper for a decent price.

-My back hates me

-Went to the Korean grocery and bought Kasugai gummies - always fab - and Korean Pocky, and lychee juice...

-My back really, really hates me

-Eating Slacker Lasagne leftovers

-Very unhappy to have missed The Music Man, Buffy, AND Adult Swim last night, while sleeping... (Buffy was run on Sunday night this week because of a basketball game on Tuesday)

-My back is French. Not in a good way.

-Mmmm, lasagne.