miscellany, plus lasagna

Had a peculiar dream Saturday night that was set partly at the Y. In the dream - this is the peculiar part, the rest of the dream was totally boring - Gary's "real" name turned out to be Tim. Bizarro - I named him Gary, for crying out loud.

Sunday's swim, which I just completed, was a nice two-miler, in about 75 minutes. That wouldn't be much progress except that includes the down time between the first 500 and the subsequent 2,650 (plus the break between that and the cooldown). So, some progress!

Last night was lasagna night, and also a chance to try out a totally irredeemable wine, a sangiovese/merlot blend made by Solaris, a supposed 2003 Rosso di Toscano "super Tuscan," which one taster called "super bad." The same taster remarked, "I don't know if this is drinkable."

True enough, but it wasn't a bad addition to the sauce for the lasagna:

Eight lasagna noodles, cooked, drained and cooled

Sauce (this makes enough to have leftovers):
2 strips good-quality bacon, chopped
1 large yellow onion, chopped
8-10 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 medium carrots, chopped
2 medium ribs celery, chopped
1 pound sausage (or 1 pound turkey with fennel, summer savory, pepper and salt mixed in, which is what I used)
1 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes in puree
1 little can tomato paste
1 cup wine that doesn't clash horribly

Cheeses:
One medium tub cottage cheese (a pound?)
grated mozzarella (I used about 10 or 12 ounces of OK-quality mozz.)
grated Parmesan (I used about 4 or 5 ounces)

Fry up the bacon on medium heat, then add onions and garlic and cook until onions are translucent. Add carrots and celery and cook, stirring, until somewhat tender, about 5 minutes. Add meat and brown, then stir in tomatoes, tomato paste and wine.
Cook over medium low or low heat for about a half-hour. If you've got it and remember, add however much chopped fresh basil you like :)

Assemble like so in a medium casserole (7x11 or whatever is close):

layer of sauce
layer of noodles (2.5 noodles)
spread some cottage cheese
sprinkle with Parmesan and mozzarella
layer of sauce
layer of noodles (2.5 noodles)
spread some cottage cheese
sprinkle with Parmesan and mozzarella
layer of sauce
layer of noodles (3 noodles)
spread some cottage cheese
sprinkle with Parmesan and mozzarella
layer of sauce
sprinkle with Parmesan

Presto. Bake at 350 until bubbly, at least 30 minutes...

Key elements here are the carrots, celery and bacon, plus grating the mozzarella. 'tain't like Ma's, but 'tis tasty.