Homemade Lasagna
Recipe:
Two cans- Sockarooni sauce
32 oz- skim milk Ricotta
Two eggs
*Salt and pepper, seasonings, parmesan cheese to taste
Half a pound- Hamburger
Half of pound- Mild italian sausage
Half an onion
Three cups- Shredded mozzarella
One box- Lasagna pasta: Boil to directions
One Cup- Shredded carrot sticks
How To Make:
Layer of sauce, noodles, ricotta cheese, another layer of sauce and shredded mozzarella. Repeat: Top with fresh mozzarella
350 degrees: takes an hour or so to cook
Homemade Goodness
Have you ever thought about that one food that means the most to you? Or a certain memory or moment that gives that food meaning? Well to me, birthday dinners give food value. In my family, we would either go out to celebrate, go to my grandparents, or just stay at home. Every morning on my birthday my parents would ask me what I wanted to do for dinner and my answer would always be the same. I’m surprised they still asked me after all these years. My brother would always want to go out to an italian restaurant because he loves pasta and my sister would always want steak. I wanted something more, something homemade. My mother always makes the best meals. That’s why I would always choose her delicious lasagna. She would set aside her whole day just to make sure the dish she was making was perfect. Homemade meals to me, means more than just the food on the plate. It means family and the love that was made with it.
The recipe that my mom uses to make the lasagna was from my grandmother. When I asked my mother what this dish meant to her, she said, “When I was a child, lasagna was one of the dishes my mother made for our family, usually on Sunday dinner”. My mom has never been very close with her mom, but I think being able to make the lasagna brings back memories of her mom cooking it for her as a child. I never knew that my grandmother cooked meals or that they had Sunday dinner, so it really surprised me when my mom told me that’s how she learned some of her recipes. I was never able to experience a meal directly from my grandmother because we rarely see her, but eating the meal makes me feel as though it came straight from her. It tells me more about my grandmother, her taste in food and just knowing that she liked to cook meals for Sunday dinners.
As my mother cooks the lasagna, I hover over her looking at any scraps I can take while I’m patiently waiting. I can tell she has a certain way of making the dish. When I asked her about her recipe she said, “Over the years, I have slightly changed my mother’s recipe but for the most part I follow the basic concept behind her dish”. This shows me that she didn’t want to lose the recipe that she has from her childhood but she wants to add things to make it her own. I believe that’s what homemade meals should be. Something of your own that you can pass down to people in your family or friends. Eating lasagna on my birthday means so much more than just a meal to eat at dinner. It makes me feel as though my whole family is with me on my birthday even if they aren’t truly there.
I feel as though it takes forever to make, as I wait all day to eat this one meal. She doesn’t make it often, which also reminds me how special it is. I’m not a huge fan of having vegetables or other “unique” foods put into this lasagna as my mother has made before. I like a typical meat, sauce and cheese lasagna, even though she tends to put hidden carrots. Although I say typical, the taste of this meal as I stuff my face as fast as I can, is not just any typical lasagna. The smell of the meat and the mozzarella cheese melting on top takes over the entire down stairs. I feel as though I can taste the three layers of cheese, hamburger and sockarooni pasta sauce even though it isn’t even close to being done. As soon as it comes out of the oven I rush over and grab an enormous piece, which my parents don’t think I’ll finish. I demolish the meal, stuffing myself and barely being able to move, like most other years. There are always so many leftovers that I continue to eat for the coming week.
My birthday isn’t the main reason why I enjoy having lasagna. Although I would eat it every day if I could and having it specially made every year for my birthday is something I will treasure throughout life, I would say having my mom make it means the most. I had asked her what her favorite part about making the dish was and she said, “I like making this dish for the same reasons as I like making most home-cooked dishes. I like the response from family and friends when I’m serving them something that they knew I took time to do. It’s satisfying and gratifying to serve a meal that people really enjoy”. Knowing that my mom enjoys making meals for our family, especially ones she knows we will love, shows how much she cares about our family and our gratitude back to her.
Eating food is more than just satisfying your hunger. To me, food has a meaning, and that meaning is family. Recipes for meals can be used over and over again, and can carry on through families and generations. Being able to eat a meal that someone in your family made many years ago, even if you didn’t have it made directly by them tells you more about the people in your life and the meals they used to make. My birthday is one of those special occasions where people in my life get to go and do something they love. On my dad’s side, my grandmother always makes her outstanding homemade pizza dough and lets us make our own pizzas. You can tell that she loves cooking and seeing us happy while we throw our toppings all over the dough. Food is one of those things that has many meanings all over the world, but the main reason why it’s important to me, is family.
