Hey good looking...whatcha got cooking?

"Never trust a skinny cook."

My friend from work, Rhonda (Hi, Rhonda!), passed on a great recipe that I was able to try out this week. It was easy-peasy and Yummy! So, I'm going to share it with all of you.

Slow-Cooker Lasagna (for a 6 qt. crock pot)

Ingredients:
1 pound lean ground beef
1 large onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 (29oz) can tomato sauce
1 cup water
1 (6oz) can tomato paste
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon dried oregano
8 oz lasagna noodles
4 cups shredded mozzarella
15 oz ricotta cheese
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese

Combine ground beef, onion, and garlic in a large skillet. Cook over medium-high heat until ground beef is browned and crumbly; drain.

Add tomato sauce, water, tomato paste, salt and oregano to beef mixture and combine well.

Spoon one-forth (I eyeballed it) of ground beef mixture into the slow cooker. Layer one-third (again with the eyeballing) of the noodles over the ground beef, breaking the noodles as needed.

Combine mozzarella, ricotta cheese, and parmesan in a medium bowl and mix well.

Layer one-third of cheese mixture over the noodles, repeat the noodle and cheese layers twice. Top with the remaining ground beef mixture.

Cook, covered, on LOW until the noodles are tender, about 4 to 5 hours.

~~

And of course, dinner wouldn't be complete without a dessert. So, here is a very basic brownie recipe that I tried out last night. The brownies turned out nice and soft, sort of cake like..not fudge like, but still delicious.

Very Easy Brownies

Ingredients:
1 cup butter
2 cups sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla
4 eggs
3/4 cup baking cocoa
1 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup nuts (optional..I didn't use any nuts)

Preheat over to 350.

Grease and flour a 9x13 pan.

Microwave the butter until melted (be sure to cover it so it doesn't splatter everywhere). Stir the sugar and vanilla into the melted butter.

Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.

Add the cocoa, mix well.

Add the flour, baking powder, and salt; mix until well blended.

Stir in nuts, if desired.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until brownies begin to pull away from the sides of the pan.

~~

And for those that know me, please stop laughing! I do cook (and bake)...sometimes.