My mother taught me how to make this great lasagna.  It is an authentic Italian recipe and I’ve been making this lasagna for as long as I can remember.  It’s definitely a family favorite and its special enough to be served even for Christmas day! 

Mom’s Lasagna

My homemade Italian sauce

15 no boil lasagna noodles

1 lb. hamburger

1 lb. Italian hot sausage

1 container of ricotta Cheese (28 oz. size)

2 1/2 cups mozzarella cheese

1 cup grated Parmesan cheese

2 eggs

3 TBL parsley

1 TBS garlic powder

salt & pepper

Directions:

Drizzle the olive oil in a pan and fry the 1 pound of hot sausage.  First be sure and take off the casing or skin of the sausage as it will be easier to break and crumble up for the lasagna.  Then cook the sausage until done and put aside in a bowl.  Use the same pan to fry the hamburger in and cook until done.  Then drain any oil and juices from the meat.

Here is a photo of the ricotta mix

While the meat is cooking get a separate bowl to put the ricotta cheese, eggs, parsley, garlic, 3/4 cup of parmesan cheese and the salt and pepper in.  In a 9 x 13″ dish put the sausage on the bottom and layer the hard lasagna (no boil) noodles.  Place for a cross and one down the side to cover.  Spread half of the cheese mixture (the ricotta mix you made above).  Then take half of the hamburger and sausage and spread it over the top.  Then add mozzarella cheese about 1 cup.  Then add the sauce. 

Here is the lasagna straight out of the oven.

Then layer the noodles again for cross and one down to cover.  Then repeat again with the ricotta mix and the rest of the hamburger and sausage.  Then cover again with 1 cup of mozzarella cheese and sauce to cover.  Then repeat the noodles for cross and one down the side.  Apply sauce to cover the noodles.  Cut a piece of aluminum foil large enough to completely cover the dish and spray the underside of a foil before covering to prevent sticking (use Pam or some non stick spray vegetable oil).

Here it is showing the layers. Doesn't it make you hungry?

Bake in the oven at 350° for approximately one hour.  For the last 15 minutes take off the foil and sprinkle 1/2 cup of mozzarella cheese and 1/4 cup of Parmesan cheese.  Don’t let the cheese Brown.  Remove from the oven and let cool.  Serve and enjoy – you are sure to please everyone with this great lasagna recipe from my mom.

This recipe came from my sister-in-law Hilary.  It is one of my personal favorites.  It’s quick and easy yet elegant enough to serve to company and it’s just delicious.  I guarantee if you like shrimp scampi you’ll definitely like this recipe.

Delicious Shrimp Scampi

Ingredients:

1/2 cup of butter

1/2 cup of olive oil

2 cloves of crushed garlic

1/3 cup of onion (I prefer sweet onions for this recipe)

1/3 cup of white wine

3 tablespoons of lemon juice

1 lb. of angel hair spaghetti

2 bags medium-size shrimp (40 – 50 shrimp in each bag)

1/4 cup of Parmesan cheese

2 tablespoons parsley

salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Put the olive oil and butter in a pan and sauté the onions. 

Sauteing the onions

Then add garlic and cook for an additional 1 to 2 minutes.  Then add the white wine, parsley, salt and pepper and cook for two minutes.  Add the shrimp last and then cook an additional five minutes.

After adding the shrimp, white wine and parsley.

Meanwhile boil the angel hair spaghetti following the directions on the box drain very well.  Then add the spaghetti to the pan and stir together.

After adding the angel hair spaghetti

Add the 1/4 cup of Parmesan cheese and put in a pretty serving bowl. 

Here is the completed shrimp scampi ready to eat - doesn't it look delicious?

Serve the shrimp scampi with white wine, garlic bread and a nice salad.  You will definitely impress your guests with this dish.

I tried these for Christmas as an appetizer.  They were very easy to make and they went over very well - everyone liked them.  They are addicting.  Also, if you don’t feel like making the whole thing just roll out what you want to bake and put the rest in a Tupperware container in the fridge for later.

My Tasty Sausage Balls

Ingredients:

1 pound of hot sausage

1 pound of mild sausage

12 ounces of sharp cheddar cheese

12 ounces of mild cheddar cheese

4 cups of Bisquick

1 cup of chopped sweet onions (I have found Vidalia onions make for the tastiest sausage balls)

They are very easy to make and are great appetizers!

Directions:

mix all the ingredients in a bowl and then squeeze them into large meatball sized round balls.  Place them on a baking she allowing 2to 3 inches in between each of them.  Bake in the oven at 400° for 10 to 12 minutes.  This recipe will make quite a few of these sausage balls depending upon how large you make each of the balls.  Let cool and then serve and enjoy.

This recipe was from an old neighbor of mine from Utica New York, Toni, whom I have known just about all my life.  These vodka riggies (or rigatoni as some may refer to it as) are the quickest to make when you’re expecting company and don’t want to spend a lot of time in the kitchen cooking, but it will look and taste like you did!  Everyone loves this recipe.  This is the one I am constantly being asked for almost on a daily basis.

Vodka Riggies (Rigatoni)

Ingredients:

1 shot of vodka or two

1 pound of riggies (rigatoni)

1 half pint of heavy cream

1 to 1 1/2 cups of marinara sauce

1 medium onion chopped

1/4 pound prosciutto

1/2 cup of olive oil

1 1/2 cups of grated Romano cheese

Directions:

While you boil the riggies (rigatoni), make the sauce.  In a large pan add the oil and sauté the onions on low to medium heat until the onion softens.  Then add the prosciutto.  Season with garlic powder, salt and basil.  Add the riggies (rigatoni) after you have drained them really well (making sure they are al dente). 

These are amazing and taste every bit as good as they look!

Next add the vodka and sauté over low heat for a couple of minutes.  Then add the sauce and heavy cream and stir thoroughly over low heat for three minutes.  Add the grated cheese and stir.  After this step I like to set one or two handfuls of shredded Parmesan cheese melted on top.  You can do this to your liking.  This is the way my husband and children prefer it and its the way I’ve been making it for years.  Place the vodka riggies in a nice dish, serve and enjoy.  You are sure to impress everyone with this dish – I guarantee it.

I was looking for a great goulash recipe and I wanted something different and better than what was currently out there in books and on TV.  So, I made this one up on the fly as I went along and it came out really great.  I have tried a lot of goulash recipes and found they don’t always have a lot of flavor.  So I took my Italian culinary skills and tweaked and played with this recipe to make it my own and I’m sure you really like it.  My family really enjoys goulash recipe and it is great to make in a pinch.

Melissa’s Best Goulash Recipe

Ingredients:

1 lb. hamburger lean

1 medium onion (I use sweet onions for added flavor)

1 can of beef broth

1 tablespoon garlic powder

1 tablespoon parsley

1 teaspoon of salt

1 teaspoon of paprika

1 teaspoon of pepper

1 teaspoon ground cumin

2 cans tomato paste (6 oz. each)

1 cup of red wine

1 lb. shell macaroni

1/2 cup of Parmesan cheese grated

Directions:

I like to make this recipe is easy as possible with minimum cleanup (this is actually my goal with every recipe, it just doesn’t always turn out that way).  So what I do is boil the macaroni first and add a teaspoon of salt to the water.  Be sure and follow the directions that came on the box of macaroni and boil until done.  Then drain in a strainer.  Cut the onion in slices.

Then take the same pot you bold the macaroni in and put some olive oil in the bottom and sauté the onions.  When that’s done for the hamburger in and fry that up.  I use extra lean meat so there isn’t much juice so I don’t drain anything.  If you use regular or less lean hamburger meat you may want to make sure the drain at first as it may be too greasy and fatty and will definitely alter the taste.  Next add all your ingredients except the macaroni.

Stir it up well and cook on low for a few minutes then add the macaroni and stirring gently and let that cook on low for around 10 minutes or so with a cover.  Serve and enjoy.  I’m sure your family will love this goulash recipe just as mine does.

Although I find myself using my mother’s recipe quite often because it makes me feel as though she made it.  It brings back many great memories of family around the table eating and enjoying each other’s company.  I like to experiment a bit and made my own sauce and this is the recipe for that sauce.  This does a little tricky with the spices because I do everything by taste in this one.  So be forewarned this one is a little harder than most other recipes on this website but the results are an awesome sauce unlike any other.  You will definitely want to give this one a try. 

Melissa’s Best Italian Sauce

Ingredients:

3 large cans (28 oz.) crushed tomatoes

1 can tomato sauce (28 oz.)

1 can tomato paste (6 oz.) or more if you like thicker sauce

extra virgin olive oil

Hot Italian sausage (hockey is key for flavor here)

2-3 tsp sugar (start with 2 then taste)

3-4 fresh garlic cloves

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

Approximately 1 table spoon or more of the following to taste:

       parsley

       oregano

       basil

       Italian seasoning

1 cup of red wine (merlot is my preference)

Directions:

in a large saucepan or extra virgin olive oil and make sure it’s enough to cover the entire bottom of the pan.  Crush the garlic clothes and add them to the pan and fry them.  Be sure not to let them get too brown.  In a separate frying pan fry down the hot sausage.  Be sure and put a dab of oil in the pan first.  I have found that if I cook the sausage a bit lengthwise more juice comes out and it also fries faster. 

While that’s frying and your garlic is done put all three cans of crushed tomatoes and one can of sauce in next.  Start today at your seasonings.  After the sausage is done put it in the sauce.  Be sure and save the sausage juice as you will add it to the paste.  I fry the paste in the sausage juice for a few minutes.  Then poured that into the sauce for added flavor.  This is a key step here as a really makes this recipe and sauce stand out miles above anything else you’ve ever had.

Doesn't this sauce just make your mouth water? It tastes even better than it looks!

After this I add the wine.  I have found my experience that Merlot works best for me, but feel free to try other red wines if you like.  Next cook the sauce on low for several hours with a lid on it.  The longer you cook it for the better it will end up tasting.  Then serve and enjoy.  You will definitely not be disappointed with this recipe!

Mom’s stuffed shells

Ingredients:

1 box 12 oz. jumbo shells

1 large (30 oz.) ricotta cheese

2 eggs

3 TBL parsley

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

1 TBL garlic powder

1 Cup mozzarella cheese

1/2 Cup Parmesan cheese

Directions:

mix all the ingredients by hand in a bowl.  Boil the shells following the directions on the box they came in.  Then drain really well.

Here is a picture of the stuffing for the shells.

Picture of the pasta shells stuffed prior to baking in the oven.

Here are the stuffed shells after adding sauce and covering with cheese.

In a 9″ x 13″ baking dish spray the bottom and put a thin layer of sauce down.  Then with a tablespoon stuff the shells with the mixture above.   Take the sauce and put it over the shells then sprinkle over the sauce with extra Parmesan and mozzarella cheese.  Bake on 350° for 30 minutes covered with foil.  Be sure and spray the underside of the foil first to prevent it from sticking to the cheese.

The finished stuffed shells ready to eat - Don't they look delicious?

Serve and enjoy – this is a delicious recipe that I am sure your family will love you for many years to come – just look at the picture above and try and tell me that it doesn’t look delicious and tasty!  This recipe serves approximately 6 adults.

Mom’s Meatballs

Ingredients:

1 lb. hamburger

A splash of milk

1 tbs. Parsley

1 tbs. Garlic powder (be sure and use garlic powder and not garlic salt as there will be a huge difference in taste and flavor - it will also make your recipe come out salty tasting).

2 eggs

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. pepper

1/2 cup Parmesan cheese

1/2 cup Italian breadcrumbs

Directions:

Mix and smash the ingredients with your fingers and roll into balls.  Place the balls on to a cookie sheet and bake on 250° for about 20 minutes.  That’s it – I told you it was simple!  And look at the picture below.  Don’t the meatballs look mouthwatering and yummy?

These meatballs are great in sauce or even all by themselves!

You can eat them plain when they come out of the oven and believe me they’re tasty as is.  Or you can also sprinkle them with Parmesan cheese and then serve them.  Our brothers go crazy for these meatballs with the Parmesan cheese on them. 

Or you can also add them to your favorite sauce while you’re sauce is cooking down.  For added flavor put some grease in the sauce from the meatballs in the pan.  I’ve found that I get more flavor and softer meatballs when I use hamburger meat with a higher fat percentage such as 73% versus 80%.  Experiment and find what works best for you and your family.

Mom's homemade Italian sauce

If you’ve ever wondered why most Italians make their own sauce its because the sauce makes the pasta, the meal, etc…  The difference between making your own sauce and using store-bought sauce is huge.  Fresh made sauce is absolutely amazing when it is made correctly and with the right recipe.  If you want to really impress someone with your cooking skills then this recipe is definitely for you.  This was my Mom’s special Italian sauce and now I am giving it to you for your family to enjoy.

Mom’s Italian sauce

Ingredients:

1/4 C extra virgin olive oil

5 links of pork fat

2 large cans of crushed tomatoes (28 oz.)

1 tsp minced garlic

1 tsp basil

1 tsp oregano

1 tsp sugar (or more if desired – some people like a sweeter sauce)

1 tsp salt

Directions:

Put the olive oil in a saucepan.  Put the links of pork in the same pan and fry on low.  When the pan starts to cook add the garlic and be careful not to let everything get too brown.  Then add the canned sauce followed by the spices listed above and then the sugar and salt.

Cook for as long as you can as the longer it cooks the better it will taste.  Keep the temperature on low and stir occasionally.  Enjoy with your favorite pasta or Italian dish.  You can also add my Mom’s meatballs recipe to it.