Yesterday I baked an interesting lasagna that I made up on Sunday. I had ingredients in the fridge that I needed to use up so I made a 9×9, three layers deep and four servings. Good food and not wasting ingredients. A win.
It’s sauce – the good stuff (nothing but) – with sweet peppers, diced white onion, mushrooms, ricotta, shredded mozzarella, and something new.
Prosciutto.
That’s right..there was noodles, then sauce, ricotta, and mozzarella, topped by a single layer of prosciutto on top of each of the bottom two layers of goodness. You know you want some.
It turned out pretty good. It tasted more like prosciutto than I had imagined that it would, yet not overwhelming, with each serving getting a total of a single paper-thin slice of that delicious stuff. I wouldn’t add it very often, as prosciutto is not only a little pricey to bury in a dish like lasagna but it’s a special treat whose flavor should be enjoyed on its own. In all seriousness though, it wasn’t real Parma ham so it wasn’t a sacrilege to use to try it in something else.
It’s really not that hard to throw a lasagna together but, then again, I’m saucing from a jar and not my stovetop. I have always used jarred pasta sauces, adding a bit of extra spice here and there to fit my tastes. The sauces I have recently discovered, used and written about need no doctor and taste great to me when I crack the jar open.
I tried another new recipe for breakfast this morning. I read about this idea and it’s credited to a TV chef (whose name I won’t mention as I’m not a fan).
I fried the last of the prosciutto nice & crispy, then removed from the pan and browned up some peppers & onions in the skillet to catch all that flavor. I added three eggs and scrambled them up with the veg.
To assemble, I toasted up three remaining ciabatta rolls I had. I laid down a piece of Gouda cheese, then a slice of prosciutto and topped off with the scrambled eggs. Again, a small thin piece of prosciutto made a huge difference. It was a delicious sandwich and I have two extras left for later. No wasted food from this tasty effort! Props to the unnamed chef.
Both of these meals were a splurge of flavor but not really much of it was that bad. I find that when I eat something special, like this prosciutto, it doesn’t take much of it to make it special. I appreciate it more since it’s now considered a treat. It’s not about quantity but rather it’s about the quality.
These two meals really took care of several extra ingredients I already had on-hand. Cooking more often I can use up more ingredients I have and that means less food goes to waste. I try to be very conscious about not tossing out food; it’s not just a waste of good food…it’s a huge waste of money, especially since I spend a little extra for quality ingredients.
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Along those lines I have talked before about being conscious of the packaging on the things I buy. I like Trader Joe’s, but every single thing they have is wrapped in single-use plastic that doesn’t recycle. C’mon. TJ’s…do something about this problem!!
I use my own reusable grocery bags and I try to buy only items in glass or cans but it’s not always possible; you can only do so much. But, you can do something!
Between being conscious about shopping, packaging, recycling and nearly eliminating food waste I have really reduced my garbage. For example, I had to take some trash to the dump last week – first time in probably six months. I ended up with only two large bags of garbage after that period of time and that was it. And it was only $5.00.
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I am still working around the knee as much as I can but I can’t get everything done that I want to get done. House work, yard work and the dogs don’t let up so I do what I can. I have four light fixtures I need to hang. The damn grass is not slowing down but I can’t do much about it; last time I mowed my knee got so bad I could barely walk and had to stop. Paid for that burst of energy for days.
It’s very frustrating that I cannot do more on the trailer at the moment because I’d like to check that thing off my list of to-dos. My knee is just not there yet. There’s not much left to do but I have to be more mobile and I can’t get on the ground…I might be stuck if I did!
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I’ve been wearing my merino wool clothing pretty much daily and I really like it. It’s an adjustment and a bit more trouble to maintain but worth the work. I buy imported Woolmark certified detergent from Amazon (there’s none readily available, and there’s no domestic detergents that meet Woolmark specifications). I go through the trouble as merino wool clothing is not cheap but has many advantages. I want to take good care of the fabric since it costs a premium price.
Now that I’ve been wearing it for a few weeks, this merino wool clothing will be really awesome for backpack traveling. Less washing, and fewer clothes mean less weight & bulk so my smaller backpack will be plenty big enough and there will still be plenty of extra room. Now I just need a ticket somewhere that requires a passport…
That’s all for now. Enjoy what’s left of your day/night…wherever you are at. Thanks for reading!
Shawn
