Garfield would have like it.

I know, I know. It's been forever since I lasted posted anything. Well, my excuse is that life has been busy, and I haven't spent much time thinking about what to write. So instead, I'm going to post a dated blog about baking. I wrote this almost a month ago, with the intention of posting it with pictures. But since I haven't gotten to editing the pics yet, for now you'll have to make due with only text. I guess that's why we have an imagination, right? Thanks for understanding. :-)

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I don't bake much. But last week I did it three times. Not sure why -- perhaps the comforting warmth of the oven is more inviting during the rainy days of fall. More likely though, it's that I was craving something homey, comfy and satisfying. So I decided to try to make a lasagna and a homemade chocolate cake. Today's post will be about the former and I'll save the dessert for next time.

Growing up in a Chinese family, the only baked lasagna we ever had was either from Costco or heading over to a friend's house for dinner. It's not that we didn't like lasagna -- rather, it was simply we are Chinese, and my parents primarily make Chinese food. So instead of spaghetti, we had chow mein. Instead of fondue, we had hotpot. Instead of meatloaf we had... well, whatever the Chinese equivalent might be (can't think of anything). So as you can see, Italian food was not a staple in the Chan kitchen.

I'm not sure what inspired me to try to make lasagna now, but it seemed like a good idea. After checking various cookbooks and online, I settled on yet another Tyler Florence recipe. (I think B thinks I might have a man-crush on him. Sadly, it might be true. But only in a cooking-type aspect.)

After gathering up the ingredients, I browned the beef and pork mixture with the softened onions and garlic.

Next, I added the spice blend.

After this was done, I got to start the assembly. First I started with the sauce, then noodles, followed by meat, and finally cheese. Repeat. A couple notes. One, the recipe called for traditional uncooked lasagna pasta. I cheated, and substituted it with the "no-cook" type. Also, upon Tyler's suggestion, I added pasta "brackets" to the ends of the baking pan. He says it adds structural stability.

Once the assembly was complete, I had a monsterous beast of a lasagna. My guess is it probably weighed 7-8 pounds. I put the beast into its heated cave (er, I mean oven), and set the timer for an hour. As the time passed by, the smells of baked goodness wafted over the kitchen, and into the living room. Definitely a homey, comfy and satisfying smell.

When the timer finally beeped, I checked the lasagna. The top layer of cheese wasn't browned yet, so I put it in for another 10 minutes. To my chagrin, 10 minutes later, what was a gooey topping because what I have come to refer as "cheese leather". The cheese had transformed into a brown and chewy cap. Now, many people actually enjoy this (B for one). I say good for them, but personally, it's not my favorite. The upside is that B was happy to eat whatever I didn't.
Other than the cheese leather though, the lasagna came out well. The no-cook pasta was soft and cooked through. And as for the brackets, I don't think it was needed.

So there you have it. A Chinese boy baked his first Italian lasagna. Would I do it again? Probably, but it won't be a regular occurence. For all the tastiness of the dish, I think I still prefer my homemade bolognaise over the lasagna. Just as satisfying, with a third of the work.