War

I spent the morning at the funeral of a young man who was 28. He was a soldier in the US Army and spent 15 months in Iraq but was recently training at Ft. Benning. No one knows what happened yet although he’s had issues with drugs in his past. It was a full fledged military funeral. 21 gun salute, Taps, flag presented to the mother… very touching. It was hard to watch his fellow soldiers break down in tears as they hugged Justin’s mother. They each presented her with a carnation. The whole thing just gave me goosebumps and made me think about our servicemen and women. My father was a Marine so I’ve always had a high respect for the Military but I think sometimes I forget what a sacrifice it really is for the soldiers and for the families that are left behind while their loved ones go off to foreign lands. My dad went to Vietnam not once, but twice. He has never spoken about it to this day. I wonder if he would be a different man had he not seen whatever it was he saw over there. But that’s another post.

Take a minute today to remember our freedoms and the people who fight to keep those freedoms intact. God Bless the USA.

Roasted Red Pepper Lasagna

My friend SA made this for our church Progressive Dinner Saturday night. I was dreading it because I don’t like red peppers but my mom always taught me to be polite when you eat at someone else’s house so I tried it. I DO like red peppers, I DO i DO – Sam I Am!!! It was so good in fact I could have eaten it for breakfast the next morning. Here is her recipe…

Roasted Red Pepper Lasagna

This is a recipe I’ve been using for almost 10 years. I’ve made several adjustments in that time frame and now I think I have it pretty well the way I want it. I used to roast the peppers myself, but the recipe tastes just as good with the canned ones, and they’re only $1 a jar at Dollar Tree (cheaper than fresh ones). You can substitute Ricotta for the cream cheese in the filling, it just depends on your taste buds! Enjoy!

1 1/2 jars (18 oz total) roasted red peppers, julienned, then cut into 1/2″ pieces
8 lasagna noodles
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 T. olive oil or canola oil
1 can (28 oz) crushed or pureed tomatoes
2 T. parsley
1 t. sugar
1 t. basil
1/2 t. pepper
1/4 c. butter
1/3 c. all purpose flour
1/2 t. salt
1/4 t. ground nutmeg (or to taste–if you use freshly grated, use less–it’s strong!)
2 1/2 c. milk or half & half or heavy cream (however rich you want it to be)
1 8 oz package cream cheese, softened
1 c. Parmesan cheese
1 12 oz package Mozzarella cheese

Cook lasagna noodles according to directions. In a skillet, cook red peppers and garlic in oil for about 3 minutes (till the house is nice and smelly), then add the tomatoes, parsley, sugar, basil and pepper. Simmer, uncovered, for 20 minutes. In a saucepan, melt butter. Whisk in flour, salt and nutmeg until smooth. Gradually add milk/half & half/heavy cream. Bring to a boil, cook and stir 2 minutes or until thickened. Add cream cheese and Parmesan cheese, stir until all cheese is mostly melted.

Spread 1 cup pepper sauce in a 13 x 9 x 2 baking pan, coated with nonstick cooking spray. Top with 4 noodles, half of the white sauce, half of the pepper sauce, and 1 1/2 c. Mozzarella. Repeat layers, sprinkling all remaining Mozzarella on top.

Bake, uncovered at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes or until bubbly. Let stand 15 minutes before serving.