Masterpiece

I have rediscovered lasagna. The last time I made it, I lived in Cleveland and made my own pasta for it. I vowed never to do that much work again. I'm so kidding. I loved it, but I hadn't made it since.

One of my coworkers is out on maternity leave. Another coworker wanted to do something nice for her and asked if I would make a dinner to take over. The new mommy requested lasagna and key lime pie. I was up for the task! I also made Tyler Florence's roasted broccoli.

Now, there was no way I was making my own pasta this time, although we know it can be done. However, I still wanted kick-butt taste. Enter The Best Make Ahead Recipe or you can use Cover & Bake. Both are by Cook's Illustrated. I didn't follow the recipe exactly, but close enough to count. Let's do it.

Sauce first. Here's the first departure: start with the trinity. CI just has onion. Since there is a heavy Italian influence in New Orleans, I felt I had the blessing to use celery, bell pepper and onion in my sauce. Sweat these in a little olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. Once the trinity gets a head start, add the garlic and lots of it. I made two batches of lasagna. In the one for me, I also added cremini mushrooms sliced thin.

After the veggies soften, add your meat. Y'all know I don't do read meat or pork, so it's all about the turkey. I used Jennie-O sweet and hot sausage for this. Just take it out of the casing and add it to the pot. As it browns, break up large clumps. This is where my Oxo wooden turner rocks.

Don't allow the meat to caramelize, just get the pink off of it.

Here's the secret ingredient - heavy cream. Let it work out in the pot for a few minutes.

A tomato sauce has to have tomato right? Never fear. I won't break the tradition.

Allow this to simmer so the flavors can meld. Let's move on to the cheese filling. I just get really excited about fresh herbage. I guess I should tell you what's in it: ricotta, Parm, egg, salt and pepper. I guess I should stir it.

Is that better?

Let's assemble, shall we? Throw down a layer of sauce. If you skip this step, you will have cemented noodles. This is not a good thing.

Next, place three noodles on top of the sauce. A word about the noodles -- Barilla No-Boil Lasagna Noodles, please. No substitutions. You'll need 12 of them. I hate that this foil pan is wider than a traditional 9x13, but what can you do?

Reach for your cheese mixture. Spread it nice in thick. Please don't skimp like I did on this layer.

Top with shredded mozzarella.

Next? Start all over with the sauce. You should have three layers. After you've built your third layer, place the last three noodles on top of the sauce. Top with the remaining sauce. Sprinkle with the last of your mozzarella and hit it with Parmesan cheese.

Cut a piece of foil to fit the pan. Spray it with non-stick cooking spray. Cover the pan (oiled side down) and bake at 375 degrees for 15 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for 25 minutes. The sauce should be bubbly and the cheese nice and browned. Here's the bait and switch. I took the lasagna in the previous pics over my coworker's house unbaked. Here's the one I baked for me.

It's so unfair that you can't taste this. You just have to believe me when I say it was awesome.

Tools of the trade:

• All-Clad 6-Quart Stock Pot
• Oxo Wooden Turner

Brick and Mortar

I have professed my love for Tyler Florence before. I am especially grateful for his recipe for brick chicken. Let's get to it. I'm using Cornish hens.

Cut the backbone out of the birds and flatten with your hands.

Toast and grind your spices. Add kosher salt.

Rub your bird down with the spice mixture. I drizzled the birds with olive oil and used the dry rub instead of making a paste with olive oil and lemon juice. I let the chicken air dry in the refrigerator overnight.



Get a screaming hot skillet, or two. Add the bird, skin side down, and a foil wrapped brick. If you don't have a brick, you can used a cast iron skillet.


Sear on moderately high heat for 10-15 minutes and transfer to a 375 degree oven to finish cooking. Keep the brick in place.

Now isn't that lovely?



Now that's some good eating, but we aren't done.

Let's work on the cool yogurt dip. Add cilantro, mint and green onion to the food processor. Take everything for a spin.

Add Greek yogurt, salt, pepper and honey.

Yea! Yogurt dip. It's the little things that make me happy.

Let's put it all together. The pita and roasted eggplant are seasoned with za'atar.

Tools of the trade:

• Shun Kitchen Scissors
• KitchenAid Coffee Grinder
• Lodge Logic Cast Iron Skillet
• KitchenAid Food Processor

I Love My Oven & Tyler Florence!

Tyler Florence is one of my favorite Food Network personalities. With the exception of the association with Applebee's, the man can do no wrong. I was watching Tyler's Ultimate one day and the man roasted broccoli. I love roasting as a cooking method because it intensifies flavor like nothing else. It also makes veggies sweeter.

I've roasted carrots, potatoes and onions before, but broccoli??!! This I would have to try. Since I've tried it, I haven't cooked it any other way. It's really quick and it doesn't require a lot of work. Be forewarned: If you like mushy broccoli, this is not for you! Here goes:

Start with fresh broccoli. This will not work with frozen. Rinse and chop off the crowns. You can also cut it into spears. I'm using just the crowns today.

Grab a foil-lined baking sheet. and place the broccoli on it. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper. Toss everything together.

Take it to a 400 degree preheated oven. Roast it for 10 minutes. Look at that color!

Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and roast for 10 more minutes.

Plate and sprinkle with fresh lemon juice. The caramelized pieces are the best.

Tools of the trade:

• Williams-Sonoma Two-in-One Citrus Juicer
• Totally Bamboo Butcher Block
• Shun Chef's Knife
• Microplane