When Chris was in business school at Kellogg we met some of the best friends of our lives. It was such a special time because we all were at the same stage in life: newly married, no kids (yet), happy to make-do in small vintage apartments all walking distance from each other. I have nothing but fond memories!

We were so fortunate to have some of those friends over the other night. Janet and Ryan were in town visiting from Ohio, and Rick and Missy live just down the street. This mini reunion felt like old times – but with eight more little humans making it a lot noisier!

Going to a restaurant with so many kids would be torture (for us and our fellow diners), so I invited the group to our place for dinner.  Ben woke up bright and early the morning of the party, so he and I assembled homemade lasagna. We used my Grandma’s recipe – she gave me a hand-written copy one night many years ago when she invited all of us over for a lasagna making party. She died a few months ago, and I’ve been missing her a lot. Making her recipe was a nice way to visit with her…

Thanks to my early start, dinner was prepared by 8 am, giving me plenty of time to visit with the friends I love so much when they arrived later in the afternoon.

Grandma’s Lasagna

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 cup minced onion

1 clove garlic, crushed

1 lb ground chuck

1 lb Italian sausage

1 can (2 lb, 3 oz) plum tomatoes

1 can (8 oz) tomato sauce

1 can (6 oz) tomato paste

1/2 cup red wine

2 tablespoons Worcester sauce

2 teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon seasoned salt

1 teaspoon sugar

1 teaspoon basil

1 teaspoon oregano

1 lb lasagna pasta

1 cup ricotta cheese

1 cup large curd cottage cheese

1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese

1 lb mozzarella cheese, sliced thin

Heat oil in a heavy pan. Add onions and garlic and saute until pale in color. Stir in beef and sausage, stirring until browned. Stir in next 10 ingredients in order as listed above. Mix well. Cover and simmer over low heat about 1 hour (until sauce is thickened and flavor blended).

Do NOT cook noodles.

To assemble casserole spread a thin layer of sauce in the bottom of a 3 quart casserole. Cover with a layer of noodles. Spread with a layer of sauce. Dot (by teaspoon) ricotta and cottage cheese. Sprinkle Parmesan cheese. Cover with a layer of mozzarella cheese. Repeat the above steps until ingredients are gone (about 3 layers total). Save 1 cup of sauce and enough mozzarella for the final topping.

Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Remove from oven and let sit for 15-20 minutes.