Wingin' It

Sadly, I'm still trying to find time to set up my new camera, so no photos of tonight's cooking. I haven't had quality time in the kitchen in weeks on account of a crazy project at work. The foodie mojo's been slow in comin' back, which is why it felt so good to just cook by feel tonight. A little of this, a pinch of that...no recipes glaring disapprovingly over my shoulder every time I altered them (teehee), just a smooth progression from mind to hand to oven to mouth. It's a pretty basic healthy veggie lasagna, but for me, for this night, it was just perfect. You can find the recipe after the jump.

I also made these Chewy Cranberry Oatmeal Cookies to bring to the office. My coworkers have looked increasingly sad as my baking hiatus dragged on, and I'm such a sucker for fixing those long faces. My cookies took 4-6 minutes longer to bake than the recipe indicates. I can't leave any recipe alone (Recipe Editors Anonymous?) and soaked my craisins in a lil rummy rum before adding them in. I bet this threw off the wet-to-dry ingredients ratio. So they spread a lot and won't win any beauty pageants, but The Taster (aka, my boyfriend) said they're yummy after eating 3 of the ugliest ones in a row. Certainly good enough for me. And seriously, the flavor combination works. Give these cookies a try - with or without the alkie ^_^!

Simple Weeknight No-Recipe Lasagna [Printable Recipe]

6 sheets no-boil lasagna
26 oz. can of Hunt's Four Cheese spaghetti sauce (or any other pasta sauce)
1 small zucchini, sliced
2 medium carrots, sliced
1/2 medium onion (or one small onion), diced
2 tsp olive oil
salt to taste
1 1/2 cups low-fat cottage cheese
1 cup shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese, divided
1 large egg
4 oz. frozen chopped mustard greens (or whatever greens you have), defrosted
1/2 tsp italian seasoning
1/4 tsp cayenne powder
salt and pepper to taste

Sauce
Heat olive oil in a large pan over medium high heat. Add onions and carrots and saute until softened. Add zucchini to the pan and cook for another few minutes. Turn off the heat, then pour the pasta sauce into the pan. Mix everything together and taste the sauce, adding a little salt if needed. Set aside.

Cheese Mixture
Squeeze most of the liquid out of the defrosted greens using your hands. In a medium bowl, combine the cottage cheese, 1/2 cup of shredded mozzarella cheese, and the greens. Add salt and pepper to taste. Then add the egg and mix everything thoroughly.

Assembly and Baking
Spoon enough sauce into a 8" x 8" glass pan to cover the bottom. Place 2 lasagna pieces on top of the sauce. Dollop half of the cheese mixture on top of the pasta, then spread it evenly to cover the pan. Add 2 more lasagna pieces, more sauce to cover, and the rest of the cheese mixture. Top with the remaining 2 lasagna pieces and the rest of the sauce. If it becomes clear that there'll be too little sauce to submerge the pasta, you add more sauce or dilute the remaining sauce with a little water before pouring it on top. Sprinkle the top with the remaining 1/2 cup of mozzarella cheese. Cover the pan with foil and bake covered for 30 minutes in an oven set to 350 degrees Fahrenheit (no preheating necessary). Remove the foil, and continue baking for 15 minutes until the top is nicely browned. Let cool for 10 minutes before serving.