valentine's day foods

like i posted last week, i made dinner for Josh and i for valentine's day. i made my famous homemade lasagna (ok, it's not famous, but my mom likes it!) and some ooey gooey delicious brownies thanks to Robin's recipe at Big Red Kitchen.

excuse my pictures, i seem to be losing talent in the photography area :( i better start taking more pics! actually, i should have photographed the cut brownies and used my fancy flash (as i got it a year ago on v-day!). but, alas, i did not. so here you are.

i've only made lasagna two times, but i've used the same basic recipe for each. my sauce is based off of my Gramma's sauce (her parents were both 100% Italian and she was famous in the family for her sauce and meatballs) and some other recipes i've found online. i like to make a meat sauce for lasagna and i've used ground turkey both times. i definitely like it, though i'll have to try ground beef next time to see which i prefer. i also used fresh basil and parsley this time, which was really great in the sauce. i don't like buying a bunch of fresh herbs for one dish, so i usually use the flakes, but i figured the occasion was special enough for it :). also, this time i used a big can of tomoato puree, a big can of crushed tomatoes and some chicken stock and water (last time i used a small can of each and some tomato paste. DEF like the puree & crushed cans better). i follow Gramma's tradition and added about a tablespoon of sugar and a bag of (i used 1/4 bag) Italian blend cheeses (that's right - right to the sauce). i let the whole thing simmer for about 45 minutes to an hour; not like you have to, but i definitely had the time.

the "brownies" were an awesome ending to the meal, with lots of gooey caramel and soft chocolate chips. the batter was a little dry (um, i lost some of the liquid in the microwave when it was melting...), and this caused them to crumble a lot after they were baked. when i make them again, i'll make sure to moisten the batter a little more.

we had a great valentine's day together, hanging around, eating and playing mario kart. we exchanged cards, didn't really do gifts (we each bought something at best buy last month and we called that our vday present! plus, i cooked, so that was part of my gift to him as well).

hope you all had a great valentine's day and a great week. i'm SO glad it's friday. i've been exhausted all week! tomorrow i get to meet up with my bridesmaids and they'll be trying on and purchasing their dresses for the wedding!! yay!!