Unless you use the Italian sausage, this is a very good vegetarian lasagna. We hope to make often.
Eggplant Lasagna
Marinara Sauce (to Can)
This summer we wanted to make Marinara Sauce to can some garden tomatoes our neighbor, Mrs. Beer, shared with us. We knew she often cans her extra tomatoes, so we asked for her favorite recipe. She gave us this one and we adjusted it very slightly.
We usually eat a whole quart of sauce with spaghetti, but decided to can pints instead this year. Our thought was to use it for extra special grilled pizza since we often have that with company. This sauce is also extra good on homemade noodles.
Using roma tomatoes are best for a thick sauce, but we usually combine them with assorted tomatoes from the garden. We think it creates a better blend of flavors.
Vodka Sauce to Can
We tried vodka sauce when a we had a coupon for a name brand jar. We liked it and bought it a few times. Then we discovered how easy it was to make. This sauce is great plain, but it is even better when cream is added. We often use it instead of pizza sauce.
Some simple recommendations for this recipe:
If you can, use at least half Roma or Amish tomatoes. Then mix and match assorted tomatoes for a fuller flavor. Different amounts of tomatoes will product different amount of liquid in the sauce, so you may need to strain it or boil it longer.
Adding olive oil is optional, but I recommended it.
Use a cheap bottle of vodka. What you do not use in the sauce, use for vanilla extract 🙂
Feel free to adjust seasonings, but do not alter amounts of tomatoes or onions if you plan to can the sauce.
Lemon Zucchini Bread (or Cake)
With zucchini growing nicely this year, Mom looked for a new recipe to use some of the extra up. She gave us a loaf of this bread that Adrian decided was a lot better than the chocolate cake we usually make because of the lemon.
The loaf Mom gave us was frozen and it defrosted very nicely. She recommended not glazing it until ready to eat. We decided to only make half the glaze and it was plenty.
