The Traveling Epicurean

Parmesan cheese

Lazy-Man’s Lasagna! – World’s Best!

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Lazy-Man’s Lasagna! – World’s Best!

This world’s best lazy-man’s lasagna is the ultimate pasta dish because there is no fussing, layering or baking. It has all the ingredients and flavors of a traditional lasagna but without all the work! It’s done all-in-one pot and takes two minutes to put together after the ground meat is browned. It’s made with a tomato-basil sauce, homemade or store bought for convenience, rigatoni pasta, ricotta, mozzarella and a sautéed ground meat of your choice. The hardest part here is browning the meat, then it’s easy peasy from there on in.

When I first had this lazy-man’s lasagna it was made with ground beef. That’s the beauty of this pasta dinner you can customize it by browning up what ever your favorite meat is. I’ve actually made it with ground turkey, beef, Italian sausage and even a meatloaf mix of meats. What ever you decide I promise you it’s going to be delicious! In the show I used my favorite sweet Italian fennel sausage from Liuzzi Cheeses in North Haven, CT. I took the the sausage out of the casing and then browned it.

Usually, I serve up this lazy-man’s lasagna immediately after I combine all those yummy ingredients. Although, you can easily pour it out into a baking dish and top with one cup of shredded mozzarella to bake immediately or cover with foil and into the frig until you are ready. Granted, I do love to put together a tray of layered lasagna for the holidays but for those in between days when you want those gourmet flavors but don’t want to go through all the work this world’s best lazy-man’s lasagna is your dream come true.

You can check out my Live TV Cooking Segment on “CT STYLE”, WTNH – Channel 8 where I make Lazy-Man’s Lasagna in The Bender Kitchen with hosts Teresa Dufour and Ryan Kristafer!

If you are looking for something hardy and gourmet you should check out my Boeuf Bourguignon or Indian Spice Tomato-Cream with Snap Peas, Pulled Beef Taco’s with Mango Salsa, or for a lighter note you could check out my Swordfish with Black Bean Salsa or Asian Shrimp and Noodle Salad and for something sweet you just can’t beat Pavlova! Mangia Mangia…enjoy 🙂

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Ingredients:

  • 1 lb. rigatoni pasta, zit rigati or your fav pasta!
  • My 20 minute tomato-basil pasta sauce recipe or a favorite store bought brand
  • 2 lbs ground meat OR 3 cups after browned of: ground beef, turkey, veal, pork, meatloaf mix, or sweet fennel sausage (Liuzzi makes my favorite sweet and spicy Italian fennel sausage)
  • 1 lb. whole milk ricotta (really easy to make your OWN HOMEMADE – check it out!)
  • 2 cups shredded mozzarella – 2 cups to mix into the lazy-man’s lasagna plus additional 1 cup to sprinkle on top if you are going to put the pasta into a baking dish to bake later
  • grated Parmesan
  • fresh basil

Directions:

  1. Brown the ground meat in a sauce pan on medium high heat
  2. Drain the meat to remove excess oil in a small strainer over a bowl
  3. Put the meat back into the pan on medium high heat add 1/3 cup of red wine to de-glaze the sauce pan scrapping up the little brown bits stuck the bottom of the pan
  4. Keep the browned meat on warm
  5. Heat tomato-basil sauce through – you want it hot to melt the mozzarella
  6. Cook the pasta in salted water until al dente …(Having a pinch of firmness to it so it’s not overly cooked)
  7. Drain the pasta and put it back into the same pan
  8. Immediately add 2 cups of hot tomato-basil sauce, 1 lb. of ricotta, 2 cups of mozzarella, 3 cups of browned meat and begin to stir
  9. Add another 1-1 1/2 cups of tomato-basil sauce
  10. Mix ingredients until combined and pour out into a serving platter
  11. Sprinkle with Parmesan and julienne fresh basil…mangia mangia 🙂

Lobster Mac & Cheese at David & Eileen’s

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Lobster Mac & Cheese at David & Eileen’s

With this homemade gourmet lobster mac & cheese at David & Eileen’s you get the best of both worlds! Two of my very favorite things to eat all in the same dish! What more could you ask for? What, did someone say “smoked Gouda, please”? The Lobster goes with out saying and for those of you who appreciate that slightly salty, yet sweet and rich in every meaty bite know what I’m talking about. Then to add this succulent lobster to pasta that’s covered in a delicate, smokey, cheesy sauce put’s it right over the top!

When my dear friends David and Eileen suggested making lobster mac & cheese for my cooking show it was like bells went off. I thought it was a great idea. David had discussed the idea with our other foodie friend, Marco, who offered up his recipe to David. Marco and his wife, Sheryl, own an Inn near by called Lathrop Manor where Marco cooks up a five course gourmet breakfast if you’re a guest there.  Marco was also the chef in my “Salmon BLT Sliders at Marco’s Show” from this past summer. Needless to say, our group here loves to cook, eat and have fun. Even frequenting the Farm and Vine Dinner’s at The Ocean House together. 

Sharing family recipes, like Dave and Laurie did with their yummy “Caruso Salad” and the amazing lobster mac & cheese recipe between Marco and David is what brings friends together. Cooking, eating, laughing and enjoying each other’s company is the foundation of life in all cultures around the world . I am grateful to have such wonderful family and friends to do this with.

I hope you enjoy this homemade “Lobster Mac & Cheese at David & Eileen’s” show as much as we did making it! Have fun with this recipe. You may also want to check out my Caesar Salad for a side dish or some Arancini Reuben Balls, stuffed mushrooms ,or baked asparagus wrapped in Prosciutto for an appetizer. Although , we don’t have David’s incredible chocolate meringue pie recipe yet, you could check out a chocolate pecan pie recipe that’s to die for.

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Ingredients for Lobster Mac & Cheese at David and Eileen’s:

  • 2 Lobsters – meat from 2 – 1 1/2 lb. steamed lobsters
  • 3 tbsp butter
  • 3 tbsp flour
  • 2 small onion finely chopped (1/2 cup)
  • 3 1/2 cups whole milk
  • 2 cups heavy cream
  • 1/4 cup Dry Sherry -OPTIONAL
  • 2 tsp lobster base OR Lobster SHELLS- OPTIONAL it gives a wonderful flavor to the dish… we did forget to add the base in the show and the lobster mac & cheese was still delicioso!
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1 1/2 cups smoked Gouda
  • 1 1/2 cups white Cabot cheddar
  • 1 cup mozzarella (I added in the mozzarella)
  • 1/4 cup grated Parmesan
  • 1 lb. cellentani pasta or elbow
  • s&p
  • 2 tbsp rm temp butter for coating the baking dish

Topping Ingredients:

  • 1/4 cup panko breadcrumbs
  • 1/2 cup grated Parmesan
  • 1/4 tsp garlic granules
  • 1/4 tsp onion granules
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 tbsp melted butter
  • 4 pieces cooked and chopped bacon – Bacon OPTIONAL  (DO NOT use Maple Flavored Bacon)

Directions for Lobster Mac & Cheese at David and Eileen’s:

  1. Per-Heat oven to 350º on CONVECTION (convection helps to toast the bread crumbs without overbaking and curdling the cheese sauce)
  2. Coat the baking dish with 2 tbsp rm temp butter and set aside
  3. Cook Pasta til firm in salted water, al-dente, 5 minutes
  4. Drain and rinse to cool pasta and set back in the same pan
  5. Melt butter in sauté pan
  6. Sauté the chopped onion until soft and translucent
  7. Add a s&p
  8. Add flour to onions to make a roux
  9. Continue on stove stirring mixture for 1 minute to cook out raw flour flavor
  10. Slowly add milk & cream to roux while continuing to whisk so as not to get lumps
  11. Add in bay leaves
  12. Cook over medium heat while stirring until sauce thickens
  13. Taste here to see if you need more salt and pepper
  14. Add in 1/4 cup Dry Sherry
  15. OPTIONAL:  Add in lobster base OR LOBSTER SHELLS and simmer for 10 minutes
  16. Remove the shells if you added them and discard
  17. Turn heat to low and add in smoked Gouda, cheddar & mozzarella while whisking for 30 seconds ONLY, then remove from heat immediately and continue to whisk until all the cheese is melted
  18. Sauce should have consistency of heavy cream
  19. Stir lobster meat into the sauce to infuse flavors
  20. Then pour lobster sauce over al-dente pasta and mix until combined
  21. Transfer to an oven safe baking dish
  22. Sprinkle in 1/4 cup Parmesan and mix gently
  23. Make the breadcrumbs by combining breadcrumbs, parmesan, onion and garlic granules, olive oil & butter and bacon
  24. Mix with your hands or a spoon and sprinkle evenly over the lobster mac & cheese
  25. Bake in a 350º oven for 25-30 minutes until slightly bubbly on the edges
  26. NOTE: DO NOT OVER BAKED OR CHEESE SAUCE WILL CURDLE!!!!
  27. NOTE: The pasta will absorb a lot of liquid in the beginning when you first mix it, AND then when you bake it, AND as it sits, AND then as it cools, so it’s a good thing to have a little extra sauce in the beginning …it will keep absorbing -you don’t want a dry lobster mac and cheese sauce 🙂

Pesto Garlic Bread

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Pesto Garlic Bread

This is a great alternative to plain ole garlic bread. You do need to make my pesto recipe and the pesto butter log and then it’s a breeze from there. This pesto bread is very aromatic so it’s a good thing to pop into the oven when guests are over…it will drive them crazy. I really like to have this bread with soups, or leafy greens that you can dunk the bread in or top it with like my bok choy and cannellini beans, or a side to mama Maria’s secret manicotti’s, or a slow cooked pasta sauce 101 dish.

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Ingredients:

Directions:

  1. Pre-heat the oven to 375º
  2. Slice the the sourdough baguette in half length wise and then half again as shown in photo to better fit on the cookie tray
  3. Slice off 8 1/4″ slices of the pesto butter log
  4. Add 2 Tbsp soften butter to the 8 slices and just soften in microwave (a few seconds) BE CAREFUL not to over cook it you just want the pesto mixture spreadable for the baguette
  5. Add in 2 Tbsp grated Parmesan and mix
  6. Spread onto the sliced baguette halves
  7. Bake for 12-15 minutes til slightly golden on the edges
  8. Take out of oven, slice and mangia!