Food & Fellowship

Anytime there was a holiday or some occasion to celebrate Micah and I would naturally have our family (Master's Commission) over to the house.  Well now that Master's Commission is over we've decided to broaden our family circle to encompass the youth leaders that work with us in Axis.  So we're having a few couples over to the house... I just love when we have company because I get to cook a nice meal and I get to bake some sort of dessert:) 
Here's what's on the menu:

Lasagna/Bread/Salad
Ingredients

• 1 1/2 pounds lean ground beef
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1 (29 ounce) can diced tomatoes
• 2 (6 ounce) cans tomato paste
• 12 dry lasagna noodles
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1 pint part-skim ricotta cheese
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 2 tablespoons dried parsley
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 pound mozzarella cheese, shredded
• 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

Directions

1. In a skillet over medium heat, brown ground beef, onion and garlic; drain fat. Mix in basil, oregano, brown sugar, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, diced tomatoes and tomato paste. Simmer for 30 to 45 minutes, stirring occasionally.
2. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add lasagna noodles, and cook for 5 to 8 minutes, or until al dente; drain. Lay noodles flat on towels, and blot dry.
3. In a medium bowl, mix together eggs, ricotta, Parmesan cheese, parsley and 1 teaspoon salt.
4. Layer 1/3 of the lasagna noodles in the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking dish. Cover noodles with 1/2 ricotta mixture, 1/2 of the mozzarella cheese and 1/3 of the sauce. Repeat. Top with remaining noodles and sauce. Sprinkle additional Parmesan cheese over the top.
5. Bake in the preheated oven 30 minutes. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

I figure after a heavy meal like Lasagna we need something a little lighter for dessert so we're gonna try this (made my own tweeks so we'll see how it turns out):

Strawberry Pizza

Ingredients

• 1 pkg of Betty Crocker Sugar Cookie mix
• 1 stick of butter
• 1 egg
• 
  
• FILLING:
• 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
• 1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
• 2 cups sliced fresh strawberries
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup cornstarch
• 2 cups crushed fresh strawberries

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Put butter in a microwave safe bowl and melt.  Once melted, crack egg in the butter and whip. Next pour it over the sugar cookie and mix well.  Spread in a pizza pan.  Cook for 14-16 minutes. Cool completely.  
2. In a mixing bowl, beat cream cheese and confectioners' sugar until smooth. Spread over cookie. 
3. In a saucepan, combine sugar, cornstarch and crushed berries until blended. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Cool slightly. Spoon over cream cheese mixture then arrange sliced strawberries on top. Refrigerate until serving.

Looking forward to our food and fellowship!