Thanksgiving 2013

Gearing up for our first time hosting family for Thanksgiving AND our first Thanksgiving as homeowners in our new place!

I thought I would share the menu, now that I've got it set, to help inspire anyone still working out their details- PLEASE share your menu and links (to recipes only please, spam will be deleted) so we can all get ideas & prepare for next week's food-fest!
CHEERS!!

                                                   

PRE-GAME
Devil'd Eggs

Turkey-veggie tray (above is the one we made last year)

Sweet potato chips- Costco had the Terra Chips last week so I got those

Crackers- Trader Joe's

Hummus- I'm buyin it at Trader Joe's

April’s jalapeno dip from the amazing Kevin at CLOSET COOKING

Cranberry cheese log- Also Trader Joe's- I buy at least one of these a year- SO GOOD!

Nuts- Trader Joe's assorted

MAIN EVENT

Turkey- I will have to post AFTER we make it, we will be smoking our bird in the smoker this year! First for everything!

Gravy

Garlic Mashed (no-peel) potatoes- I make these often, will add a recipe in my wrap-up, basically when making so much other stuff to cut down on prep, I bake the potatoes whole then scoop the inside away from the peel instead of peeling the potatoes and boiling them.

The BEST Stuffing EVER

Cranberry Relish (I am making my own version, similar to THIS (with apples & orange zest, but no celery)

Sweet Potato Souffle

Corn Bread Pudding

Green beans with bacon & crispy home-fried onions- making this one up as I go so like the Turkey, look for this recipe after Thanksgiving.

AFTERMATH

Pumpkin pie

Cherry pie

Chocolate pudding pie

Cranberry Blueberry Crumble (THIS filling with an oat & brown sugar crumble crust topping)

COFFEE.

                               

Easiest Crab n Corn "Bisque" you'll ever make!

This is a total cheater recipe- once again thanks to the gloriousness that is TRADER JOE'S! Oh, TJ's what would I do with out ya?!?
You can scoop up every little thing you need for this at TJs and it's not too pricey- the crab is not cheap- but you wouldn't really want it to be, would ya?

Here's what you will need:

1 Container roasted red pepper soup from Trader Joes
1 Bell pepper chopped
3 garlic cloves minced
1 can of corn kernels (drained and rinsed- or use 1 heaping cup of frozen corn!)
1 1/2 cups crab meat- in the fridge section at TJs you will use about 2/3 of the large container- freeze the rest or make some mini-crab cakes to go with this!!)
1/4 chopped cilantro
1/4-1/2 tsp siracha sauce
olive oil
salt & pepper to taste
avocado to garnish if you want

Heat about 1 T olive oil in a medium soup pot over medium heat- add garlic, sautee till fragrant. Add soup, corn, bell pepper, crab and siracha.
Stir until heated thorough- serve with chopped cilantro and avocado and some majorly crusty bread

Peach & Ginger Vanilla Ice Cream

Ok, I get it. Summer is OVER. Ya, I know...it is dipping into what I like to call the "dangerously low 60s" here in SoCal, and I'm not kidding. BRrrrrrrrRRRRrrrr. So in trying to keep the dance that is my life moving I have become a little behind (again) in my blog updates and have one last summer-rewind here for ya. I know many of you do this juggle with jobs, relationships, kids (or weenie dogs in our case), trying to jam in some exercise and relaxation here and there...you know, "The Drill".

Well, Summer of 2009 proved to be UBER-drilly for us, in the best way ever...we managed to maintain our Clark-Kent-esque day job-lives as program writer/operations manager (for Nate) and managing the beautiful business of bling in Drop Dead Gorgeous® jewelry (for me), while still spending gobs of sunny days at dog beach, AND eating/drinking our way through 5 food/drink festivals, enjoying wild night at Medieval Times, tackling a drive up and down California's beautiful coast, and nearly finishing (we'll make it to the breakers next time) our first Bay2Breakers, to mention a few of the highlights.



To me the timing of this peachy, summery ice cream post is just right- it rained today. Yup, here. In L.A., totally misted. As the clouds get darker, the sun sets earlier and we are apparently in for some "weather" over the next few days, so I am going to post this and leave it to look at and long for next summer, at least until the weekend comes!

The fall twist to ice cream making is that is takes a few hours and you do need to be all up on it every 30 minutes, this is a GREAT dessert to make while watching football games on Sundays, then enjoying a sundae after dinner with super creamy home made 'scream!!



Peach & Ginger Vanilla Ice Cream
(no ice cream maker involved, 'cuz I don't have one!)

1 cup whole milk
1 cup heavy whipping cream
3 egg yolks
5-6 T sugar
1 tsp vanilla
2 handfuls frozen peach slices, chopped into little pieces
1 tsp fresh grated ginger

In a medium sauce pot bring the milk & cream to a rolling boil. While that heats up, in a medium bowl whisk the egg yolks and sugar until thick and well combined. When the milk/cream is boiling, remove it from the heat, and while slowly stirring, gently and slowly pour about 1/3 of the milk/cream into the egg/sugar mix & stir until incorporated...then slowly, while constantly stirring add the rest of the cream to the yolk/sugar mix and stir until all ingredients are well mixed. (this will "temper" the eggs so they don't get cooked by the milk/cream) Pour it all back into the sauce pot and heat on medium heat, stirring constantly for about 5-7 minutes. You want the custard to get thicker and not heat over 180 degrees.
Pour the thickened custard into a glass bowl and add vanilla, peaches and ginger, stir well and refrigerate until chilled through. Pour chilled custard mix into a glass/pyrex baking dish and place in freezer for 45 minutes.
After 45 minutes, stir well with a whisk. Place back in freezer for 30 minutes....continue to take it out and whisk every 30 minutes for about 3 hours and transfer to an airtight container to keep in the freezer.



I think this makes a faboo dinner party dessert, my favorite kind- dresses up easy!!
Toast a frozen waffle, thinly slice a peach and arrange peach slices on top of toasted waffle then add a scoop of this yummy ice cream and drizzle with honey! YUM & EASY!!

~This recipe was created by adapting the Vanilla Ice Cream recipe from Baking; From My Home to Yours by; Dorie Greenspan~

Braciola I~ Sunday Dinner

We're calling this Braciola I, because I anticipate there being Braciola II, III, IV, V, and so on....Where the heck has Braciola been all my life?!? I'd never had it before but heard of it last year at L.A.'s Feast of San Gennaro (which we just attended again this year, but couldn't find any braciole there)

I did some research and Braciola, or Braciole, plural (pronounced BRA-Sh-OLE)can be made many ways and depending on where the person you are talking to is from.
Per what I could find by poking around the internet and making a few calls to family members- this recipe would be classified as mainland-Southern-Italian Braciola. Which is, essentially, flat steak spread with cheeses, herbs, etc (that etc means what ever you can think of) and either fried, browned/baked, or browned then finished cooking in a big pot of sauce (that's the version you'll see here next time....)

For my first Braciola, I went with cheese & herb filling.



Serves 6
Steak~
2 lb flank steak
1/4 cup ricotta
1 small handful grated Parmesan
1 handful shredded mozzarella
2 cloves finely minced garlic
1-2 tsp each fresh chopped, basil, oregano and parsley
1/2 cup bread crumbs
String for tying it up (from a cooking supply store)

A MEAT NOTE:
If you are able to go to the butcher and have them cut the flank steak as thin as possible, that is awesome.

Sauce~
(you can totally buy a jar of your favorite sauce or doctor this one any way you like it is a very basic recipe that can be jazzed up a zillion ways)
1 can 15 oz tomato sauce, then one can full of water
1 12 oz can tomato paste, then one can full of water
1/4 cup shredded Romano cheese
2 T chopped garlic
2 T fresh chopped basil
1/2 tsp sugar
a few dashes red chili flakes
a pinch of salt and some fresh cracked black pepper
A little garlic powder (lightly sprinkle over the top of the pot and stir)
Olive oil



In a large sauce pot pour the tomato sauce, water,tomato paste, water and stir over medium heat until smooth add cheese, herbs, spices, salt & pepper, continue to stir until all ingredients are incorporated and then continue on medium heat until simmering. then reduce heat to low and stir occasionally while sauce cooks and thickens for about an hour.
After the sauce has been on low for about 45 minutes, start making the Braciola.

Use a meat tenderizer hammer to pound the steak a bit flatter if you buy it prepackaged and don't have the butcher slice it extra thin. In a medium bowl mix the filling ingredients- spread them all over the center of the steak and roll it up like a jelly roll! Secure it with 5 pieces of the string and tie tightly.

In a large pan heat a few tablespoons of olive oil on low(enough to lightly cover the bottom of the pan). Using tongs add the braciola to the pan and turn every 90 seconds browning all sides of the steak. (about 8-10 minutes total)

Preheat the oven to 350 and spray a baking dish with non-stick spray. Turn the heat off the sauce and let stand 5 minutes while the oven preheats. Add the browned braciola to the baking dish and ladle a few cups of sauce over the braciola- top with a little shredded mozerella (if you are using a jar of sauce- use one whole jar here, but have another jar on hand for serving it with.
Cook for about 1 hour and 30 minutes for "medium" a little longer if you'd like it well done.

I have to say, this was a very impressive meal with very little effort involved. The prep time is not too intense and the flavor is off the chain delicious.
This is an EXCELLENT dinner-party main dish. I made a giant salad to go with this and we ate it while watching football. Kelle brought amazing bruschetta that I ate way too much of!

I think think this would be a spectacular main dish for a dinner party of 6 people, here is a menu I would suggest that would be very easy to execute and a for sure hit with your guests...



Dinner Party Menu:
~Plated Appetizer~
Caprese Towers
Stack a1/2 inch slice of tomato, 1/2 inch slice of mozzarella, fresh basil leaf- repeat, dust lightly with cracked black pepper and drizzle with olive oil.

~Main Entree~
Braciola (or make individual Braciole with smaller pieces of steak!!) w/ garlic bread & steamed veggies and GLORIOUS SALAD, sub the spring mix with baby arugula to dress it up a bit!

~Dessert~
Raspberry Semifreddo

Sushi Night~ Making Sushi at Home

For some reason we used to make sushi A LOT and have not made it for a LONG time...Sushi a great get together food, and we do love having people over, so I'm going to have to get back with it and start working it into the routine more! The reason we only do sushi when we have friends over is because, I can't control myself at the market and always buy a ton of fish!

I think this is one of those items that people don't think of as something to make for a dinner party. It really is fun and not too difficult to DIY, and MAKE SUSHI AT HOME!! Even if you are not into raw fish (fry some shrimp in tempura batter, or find a good recipe for tamago (the egg/omlete sushi) you can always go veggie sushi and sup carrots, asparagus, eggplant and other yummy veggies for fish if you want! Due to the nature of rolls, you don't really want to make them ahead (the moisture in the rice will make take the crispness out of the nori/seaweed), so when we do sushi I always make a menu plan and pace it out. Having plenty of yummy sake and Japanese beer on hand as well as a big bowl of steamed edamame is also a must! Just add some great friends, good music and you've got an amazing evening on your hands.

I made this dinner for a couple of friends (and Nate who was still recovering from not feeling well) earlier this year, just after New Year's Eve. Nate is sushi-master when we do this so I was a little nervous heading up the operation vs assisting him... I always like to make something special and have friends over to kick off the year ASAP every January, even if it takes me all freakin year to get around blogging about it!! As you have certainly noticed, I am back in the blogswing full time now so in addition to all the goodies we've been making lately, there will be some early 2009 throwbacks comin atcha too!!

~Menu~
Served 4
Albacore Nigiri Sushi (1 piece per person)
Albacore & Green Onion Cut Roll
Toro/Bluefin Tuna Nigiri Sushi (2 pieces per person)
Salmon Nigiri Sushi (2 pieces per person)
King Crab Leg Cut Roll with Raddish Sprouts
Spicy Tuna & Yellow Tail Cut Roll



Making sushi is not super easy, but it is also not major surgery. I am hoping this will be a helpful guide and instruction on making it for yourself! Thankfully, I was able to find some AWESOME videos courtesy of Le Miu's Sushi that really make this much easier to get with.

I will update this soon with details and photos from a more-recent sushi session, but here's the basic rundown. I am also hoping to take a knife-skills class before the end of the year, and can't wait to see how much better it will be the next time we do sushi.

OK, first and foremost, you are working with raw fish, so CLEAN THAT KITCHEN, even if it's clean already, clean it again!! You will want to use a lot of vinegar and lemon juice to get the kitchen, cutting board and all surfaces super clean (and not all chemical'ly).



Here is the "stuff" you are going to need.
A non porous cutting board (I always wipe it down with a damp towel splashed with a little vinegar/lemon)
A SUPER SHARP knife, for fish
Another very sharp knife for veggies
2 clean dish towels, one dry and one you will want to get damp with water, splash it with vinegar and fold it to lay the blade of your knife on when not slicin', and to wipe the fish knife after each use.
A bowl with water and a splash of vinegar for dippin your fingers so the rice dosen't stick to em.
Saran wrap
A large bowl (and small-holed collander or strainer) for washing the rice
If you want to make rolls, there are bamboo sheets for rollin those up and you will need one- cover it in saran wrap.
Plates for servin, and little bowls for soy sauce!
I use a rice cooker, but you can use a pot on the stove too..
A BIG non-metal bowl and plastic or wooden spoon to "toss" the rice while cooling it to room temp

The items you'll need from the market~
Ginger
Wasabi (we get the powder and make it by adding water, it also comes all mixed in a tube)
Soy Sauce
Smelt eggs
White sushi rice
Rice Vinegar
White sugar
Salt
Sesame seeds
Nori (sheets of seaweed)
Siracha hot sauce
Kewpie Japaneese Mayo
Cucumber
Avocado
Radish sprouts
Fish* YOU WILL NEED TO GO TO A SUSHI FISH MARKET, we go to MITSUWA, or Nijiya....this is RAW FISH, don't leave it out- follow the instructions below of keeping it in the refrigerator when not slicing or eating it. Do as much research as you'd like before attempting this outside of a restaurant. I am in no way endorsing that you do this, just sharing our experience of doing it. Also, if you are pregnant or have any other food allergies please consult your doctor.

Start by taking care of all the prep work, and setting up your dojo so that as soon as your rice is made, mixed and cooled- it won't be such a big deal to assemble the rolls and get to the best part- EATING!!

You'll want as much counter space as possible (not an easy task in our apartment kitchen). I use the large cutting board as the center piece to the operation and set up the knives, dry towel, vinegar dippin bowl and prepped food items all around the board. This way everything is at arms length and makes the whole process easier.

Now, get your sushi rice started...
It is true that this is really the most difficult part of making sushi- getting the rice just right. In Japan, craftsmen apprentice for years before they officially take over making the rice, it's serious stuff. I am so happy I was able to find these videos on www.5min.com, they are incredible helpful and I feel like it is much clearer to just watch exactly what to do!! The rice will take about an hour to cook (20 minutes cooking, 20 resting in cooker then mixing with sushi vinegar and cooling) So you can pace your prep accordingly!

How to Make Sushi Rice

For the menu above, the food prep entails:
Slicing the fish for the Nigiri sushi.
This would be really hard to type out an explanation for- we just happen to go out to sushi A LOT and sit at the bar A LOT so we've watched sushi chef slice up many, many, many meals.
I think it's best to watch someone do this first hand so here is some assistance from Le Miu's Sushi, which has AWESOME, very helpful videos- like this one below (I just slice a little thicker for the sushi pieces and a little thinner for sashimi pieces, but the technique is the same...)

How to Cut Fish for Sashimi

Slice up your fish, plate it wrap with saran and refrigerate until it's go-time.

Remove the shell from the crab legs, shred the crab meat, mix it in a small glass bowl with a little bit of the Kewpie Mayo and a 1/2 tsp of smelt egg. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until you are going to make this roll...

Chop up the albacore for the albacore garlic roll. In a glass bowl mix chopped albacore, 1-2 tsp Kewepie mayo, 1 T chopped garlic, a big pinch of sesame seeds and some thinly sliced green onion. Cover with plastic wrap, fridge, yada-yada-yada...

Chop up the yellow tail and tuna for the spicy sushi rolls and put each in a glass bowl. To each bowl add 1/2 tsp smelt egg, 1-2 tsp Kewpie mayo, add the siracha hot sauce in dashes, stirring after each dash until it reaches your desired level of spicydom. Add a pinch of sesame seeds to each bowl, mix all ingredients in each bowl- plastic wrap + frige...

Prep all the veg....
Cut each avocado, then into thin slices, squeeze a lemon over lightly to keep it from browning.
Thinly slice up 4 green onions.
Cut the root bottom off the radish sprouts, rinse them thoroughly, pat dry and place on the side in a bowl.
Place a small bowl filled with wasabi to the side of the cutting board too.
Cut the ends off the cucumber, cut it in half width wise, then in half length wise, then into thin spears.

OK, you are ready to ROLL.
Get your serving dishes ready, and once again, enjoy these super-helpful videos!!

Making Sushi

This next video is a roll we did not make this time, but it's another easy one to add to your menu!! For the spicy rolls on my menu, and the albacore-garlic roll, exclude the wasabi and just scoop the filling onto the rice where he is placing the tuna slices.

Tuna Maki recipe

As I said, I tend to pace this out- start with some nigiri, and when it's ready to serve we all eat together, talk a little, then I hop up to make the next item...I like this because the dinner process is a little longer which is fun and gives us all time to catch up and enjoy! Feel free to email me ANY questions you may have on this post!! beth@sweetlifekitchen.com

Glorious Salad~ inspried by Kelle

We always had a garden in our back yard while I was growing up. I am really looking forward to a living situation where we have more than just a teeny little patio so we can do some gardening of our own! Someday... Anyhow, salad was a very common accompaniment to anything we were eating (or grilling, more specifically) during the summer time. My parents would make what we liked to cal "Glorious Salad"...I believe I've talked about this before, because there is just salad and there's Glorious Salad, and there is a big difference!!

A few months back one of our favorite couples invited a group of us over for a Thursday night dinner...They were servin up the best tri-tip you've ever had with homemade herb butter and a salad that was seriously off the chain. I brought the BLACKBERRY KEY LIME TART (coming soon...) and we were all so full we had just enough energy for one round of Apples to Apples after our indulgence fest.

Since a few of the invited guests couldn't make it that night, we decided to do it again the following month on a Thursday at our place. Nate and I made poison cru, flank steak and insisted that Kelle bring her amazing salad (which she made with fresh strawberries that time!!) This month it is the third consecutive month our little group has met up for dinner, this time at Brian's house, and Kelle & Manos are in GREECE!! So what of the salad??! We could not do our dinner with out it!! I hesitantly volunteered, not sure if my version of Kelle's awesome salad could live up to our expectations, but I have to say, she would've been proud!

Kelle Salad
Serves 10

1 large container organic mixed greens (this comes in a plastic box at my market)
3 large, ripe avacados
2 giant handfulls slivered blanched almonds
6oz herbed goat cheese
2 tomatoes
2 handfulls of dried cranberries

Dressing
2 lemons
Olive oil
Salt

I mixed up the dressing first (you want a jar or bottle with a secure lid). Add the juice of 2 lemons and a few pinches of Kosher salt, then add about 1/4 to 1/3 cup of oilve oil and SHIMMY SHAKE THAT BAD BOY until it is totally combined...give it a taste and if it is knock-you-on-your-tush lemon still, you could add a bit more olive oil to mellow it out..just mess with it a bit, until you are lovin' it. Set aside.

Rinse the greens and pat dry with paper towel, then toss them into a BIGASS bowl. Line the tray of your toaster oven (or normal oven, use a cookie sheet) with foil and spread the almonds out on it. I put them in the toaster oven at 350 for about 7 minutes...maybe a bit longer~ you want them golden brown, deep golden color is key to the brilliant flavor!
While the almonds are toasting, dice up the avocado, tomato and goat cheese (lil' bite size pieces of each of those items) and sprinkle over the salad...give it a few tosses to start incorporating the ingredients. Add the crazins, then the almonds and toss the salad well to fully incorporate EVERYTHING glorious. The almonds will melt the cheese a bit- which is AWESOME. Give the dressing another strong furious shake and pour over salad, toss it again, then I like to add fresh cracked black pepper individually to each serving! GLORIOUS INDEED.

Shower Brownie Bites

Just another variation, using some frosting from the store and M&Ms for decoration! These were for a bridal shower last month~

Also, it'd been a while since I'd posted the recipe I use when making these lil'guys, so here it is;

My Brownie Recipe
1/2 C. softened butter
1/2 C. Sugar
2 Eggs
2/3 C. Sweetened Ghirardelli Cocoa Powder
1 tsp. Vanilla
1/2 C. Flour
1/2 tsp. Salt
1 T. Hersheys Syrup



Mix Sugar, Butter, Eggs, Vanilla (I mixed using a wire whisk so as not to over mix).
Add Flour, Salt & Cocoa Powder mixing after each ingredient until well combined. Add syrup and stir in using a spoon or spatula.

Twice Baked Sweet Potatoes

This recipe was suggested by my friend Erin, we were huddled around some baked potatoes at a USC game this past fall and she mentioned twice-baked sweet potatoes using cream cheese, I couldn't resist!! Unfortunately the lighting was pretty whack, but dinner was delicious and I'll be making these again for sure!

For 8 people
8 small sweet potatoes
1 8oz package of cream cheese
4 T butter
cloves
cinnamon
brown sugar
salt

Pre-heat the oven to 350, wash the potatoes. Place the potatoes on a foil lined baking sheet and bake for about 55 minutes or until soft all the way through. Let them cool, until they are warm but ok to handle with out burnin' your mits off!
Cut a diamond/ oval shape opening in the top of each potato and spoon the inside into a large bowl- leave enough potato attached to the skin so it stands up and isn't just a floppy peel. In the bowl, combine cream cheese, butter, cloves, cinnamon, brown sugar and salt.
Re-fill each potato with the mixture and bake again at 350 for about 30 minutes or until warm all the way through and golden on the top. You could also add a few marshmallows to the top before baking, but I knew I was going to be eating half a TWO-FER PIE, so wanted to save the calories for desert! HA!

Homemade Lasagna

It definitely can't be something you eat every day, but when we do eat lasagna, it's best when it's made from scratch through and through.

Pasta
We used this recipe from the
Silver Spoon Italian cook book and doubled it~
Nate usually makes it solo with out a recipe- he just knows when it's right!
p.268
Fresh Pasta Dough (Basic Recipe)
1 3/4 c. all purpose flour (plus extra for dusting)
2 eggs lightly beaten
salt
Sift the flour and a pinch of salt into a mound on the counter. Make a well in the center and add the eggs. Using your fingers gradually incorporate the flour then knead about 10 minutes (you can also use a stand mixer with dough hook attachment.
Add a bit of flour if the dough is too soft or a bit of water if the dough is too firm. Shape the dough into a ball and let rest about 15 minutes.
We then broke it into smaller pieces and used the attachment to our stand mixer to roll out the sheets.

Sauce & Meatballs*
Meatballs & Sauce from ALL RECIPES
*This is a good basic foundation for a tomato-based pasta sauce, that you can add spices, etc. to and make it yours...
We use Nate's family recipe- and you gotta marry one of us to get it! (well, not me or Nate of course, but you catch my drift.)

Cheeeeesseee!!
1 large container of ricotta cheese, 1 big block of top-notch mozzarella (cut into 1 or 1/2 inch cubes), and about 2 cups shredded Romano/Parmesan mixed up, and about 1-2 T chopped parsley (fresh or dried) use more if you are using fresh... and 1 egg-
Mix it all together with your hands in a BIG bowl!



Assembly
Once the sauce is finished pull the meatballs out onto a plate with a slotted spoon (we threw some spicy Italian sausage, 1pkg) into the sauce too- so, same for those- on the plate with the meatballs. (let them cool while you roll out the pasta.
Using the pasta roller attachment to a stand mixer, roll out flat sheets of pasta (make each sheet the aprox length and about 1/2 the width of the pan you are baking it in).
Place next to one another on a sheet of floured wax paper, so they overlap a bit- fork together the overlap to make it one sheet.






Cut the meatballs and sausage into slices about 1/4-1/2 inch thick.
In a large bowl mix the ricotta, mozzarella, 1/3 of the Parmesan/Romano, a few pinches of parsley, the egg, and some salt & pepper (we always do this mixin with our hands, but it can be done with a wooden spoon I suppose)
Spray a deep baking dish (we actually have an All Clad pan that is called a lasagna pan- this was the first time I used it correctly, I guess!)with non-stick spray. Add a big spoonful of sauce and spread out thinly over the bottom.
Place the first "sheet" of pasta in the pan.
Spread some sauce out on that layer, then place slices of sausage across the sauce to make a layer, spread some of the cheese mix on top of sausage, then lay another sheet of pasta over that.






Spread a thin layer of sauce and then spread a generous layer of cheese and put the 3rd sheet of pasta on top of that.



Now, another layer of sauce, then place the slices of meatball in a layer and coat with a thin layer of cheese.



Lay the 4th sheet of pasta over that and top with a thick layer of sauce & sprinkle with remaining shredded Romano/Parmesan.



Bake at 375 covered with foil for 35-40 minutes, uncover and bake 20 more minutes.
Let it sit about 10-15 minutes before cutting and serving.



Serving suggestion; I served a small caprese tower with this dish.
Roma tomatoes, fresh basil leaves, olive oil and sliced mozzarella cheese ( make the slices about a centimeter to a centimeter and a half thick and to shape them all pretty, use a 2-inch diameter biscuit cutter if you got it!)Use a little plate and start with a piece of cheese, then a basil leaf, then tomato, basil leaf, cheese, tomato. Drizzle with olive oil, top with a bit of fresh cracked black pepper.

Then we had a lil'spinach leaf salad
Baby spinach leaves, fresh raspberries, slivered almonds & shaved hard aged Parmesan cheese.
Dressing;
Olive oil
Balsamic vinegar
Honey
Salt
Pepper
Dijon Mustard
2 smuhed raspberries
Whisked together

Some how in the midst of serving ourselves and our 4 guests (and being out of my blogging habit), much like the photoless dip in the weenie post- No pics of these two, but wanted to share anyhow!