Sunday, March 25, 2012

Skillet Lasagna

{Pinterest Challenge}
During the week, I eat leftovers.  After work I usually go to Jazzercise and depending on which class I make it to, it might be 8 o'clock by the time I get home.  So popping something in the microwave is what I do usually.  But on the weekend I like to take the time to cook myself a good meal or two.  Because it's just me, there are always leftovers. {I don't bother making smaller meals.  I cook like I have a family to feed.  Except for vegetables and sides.  I usually just make enough for one or maybe two depending on what it is.  Those are quick to do on a weeknight even if it is late.}  I'll divide up the leftovers into individual servings and freeze for later.  {I think of them as my t.v. dinners.}  I will try to plan my weekend menu during the week so I can do the shopping after work/Jazzercise.  This past week, I wasn't sure what I wanted but had settled on an old favorite.  But then one morning while looking at my favorite blogs I saw this recipe for Skillet Lasagna on Tracey's Culinary Adventures and knew right away that I would try it this weekend.



I have to say, it was pretty tasty {it tasted just like lasagna, imagine that.} and pretty simple.  My one minor complaint is that some of the noodles stuck together.  It didn't ruin the dish but I found it annoying and so while it was cooking I tried to unstick some of them.  I used the flat Barilla lasagna noodles.  I wonder if the noodles with the ridges on the edges would have that same problem.


Lynn's recipe rating [keep or toss] - Keep!


Sometimes I like to make myself dessert.  I found a recipe for Vanilla, Salted Butter Caramel and Chocolate Mousse on Pinterest.  I am in love with anything sea salt and caramel right now so I had to try this.  {This is what I was talking about in yesterday's post that used four egg yolks.}  Everything started out fine but as I was working on the mousse base things started to fall apart.  What exactly is creme anglaise?  {maybe I should have looked that up before I got started}  I think I got that part right but the simpler step of whipping the cream may have caused this dessert to go sideways I little.  I think I overwhipped it.  {Is that possible?}  But I carried on.  The bigger problem was with the chocolate portion.  When I stirred the cooled chocolate in preparation for the cream base, it seized up.  I *think* it had cooled too much.  I added the base and made it work, or so I thought.  When it came to layering, the first two parts were fine.  But that chocolate layer was too heavy and it just sunk and didn't spread like the other two layers.  At this point {which was too late of course}, I'm thinking I should have added more of the base to the chocolate.  Oh well, what's done is done.  I was still hoping for a tasty dessert.  I think I wanted something more like pudding so I was disappointed. And that blob of chocolate had hardened even more in the refrigerator.



Lynn's recipe rating [keep or toss] - Toss :(




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