Dish Delish

Yesterday, we had several good meals put together with some effort. It felt very good to have something hearty. Breakfast was toast with jam — mine included butter and a decadent soft-boiled (local) egg. At lunch, he made excellent fried eggs that we had with toast. Mine was an “egg McMuffin without the Mc or the muffin,” as in, with cheddar and salami. In the absence of tomatoes, I put lettuce in. Yum.

For dinner, we made a lasagna that turned out better than ever. The sauce was significantly less watery than in previous effors. I made my own sauce (so much cheaper!) with cans of diced tomatoes, crushed tomatoes (puree), and a miniscule can of tomato paste that I didn’t think it required… plus ground beef and spices. (Too much oregano, said he; too much chili powder, said I.) I took the sight of us not being able to stop eating it as a sign of approval. He discovered that the noodles, which are scalloped on the edges, are meant to be pushed down, which helps to moisten them more during cooking. (We put them in dry, as per a family discovery.)

Lastly, given that the oven was still hot, I made a revised apple crisp, which also turned out better than ever! Half the flour, twice the oats and 25% less sugar made a crispy, subtle treat. I only wish I’d had more apples!

So the revised recipe (after the one in Cooking Without Mom — thank you, sis!):

5 cups apples, peeled and sliced

1/4 cup flour

1 tsp. cinnamon

1 cup brown sugar

1 1/4 cup whole oats

1/2 cup butter

some nutmeg and cloves if desired (no more than 1 tsp)

Put apples into a 2 litre casserole dish.

Mix flour + brown sugar + oats + cinnamon + nutmeg/cloves.

Soften or melt butter then mix in until crumbly. (It may be quite moist.)

Sprinkle mixture on top of apples and bake for 45 – 60 minutes at 350 degrees, or until apples are soft and the topping is crispy.

Serve warm or hot, either by itself or with milk, plain ice cream or whipped cream. A great breakfast!

I usually double it into a 3 litre casserole dish. Last time I packed down the mixture for lack of room, and I think that was a bad idea. I made sure it was airy this time.

I’ve suddenly come down with a cold since last night, so I’m thrilled to have breakfast and dinner already made for the next couple days!