Yes, we are still on the one pan, casserole or soup dinners.  Things are starting to get crazy here, well, I guess they are always a bit crazy just more hectic.   I came home last night and sat staring at the refrigerator.  Both kids were asking when dinner was going to be done.  Half an hour.  Am I crazy?  I didn’t even know what we were having!

To Pinterest I headed and found a recipe for Easy Skillet Lasagna from Culinary Musings.com.   It said 35 minutes for estimated time.  I had most of the ingredients and could make substitutions for the ones I did not have.  I was sold.

Verdict:

It was delicious.  I was able to customize my son’s gluten-free version with gluten-free pasta and only a little bit of ricotta cheese.  He hates the texture of ricotta cheese. This is fine because the rest of us like it so much I just added extra to ours!

There was enough left for lunch the next day for both my son and daughter.

I served this meal with a side of green beans and a salad.

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2  lb ground beef
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 1 jar of spaghetti sauce
• 1 1/2 cups water
• 1 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/2 teaspoons dried basil
• ½ teaspoon oregano
• 12 ounces of pasta, I used ruffles to make it look more like lasagna
• 8 ounces ricotta cheese
• 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
• 1 egg
• 2 tablespoons dried parsley
• ¼ teaspoon pepper
• 1 -2 cups grated mozzarella cheese

Directions:

1. In a large skillet, cook beef and onions over medium heat, breaking the meat into small pieces with the back of a spoon, until meat is cooked through.  Drain off the grease.
2. Stir in spaghetti sauce, water, garlic, basil, oregano, and pasta.
3. Heat meat mixture to boiling, stirring often.
4. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer 12-15 minutes.  Stir occasionally.
5. In a small bowl mix together ricotta cheese, egg, parsley, parmesan cheese and pepper.
6. Spread ricotta  cheese topping over the top of the pasta mixture in a smooth layer.  Top with mozzarella cheese.
7. Cover and simmer until cheese has melted and is warmed through.
8. Remove pan from heat and allow to sit for 3 minutes prior to serving.