As an amateur chef, I enjoy thumbing through old recipe books, especially ones from garden clubs and church circles from the 50’s and 60’s.
My wife Nancy often referred to a her Southern Living Quick & Easy Recipe book in the early 70s, and those tried and true dishes were staple dishes for our young family.
One of those recipes was for Mock Lasagna, a dish that my son Jimmie loved. We had it frequently back then and it’s still good.
In my opinion, this recipe is as tasty as the authentic lasagna and much easier to prepare. Generally relying on the old recipe book, here’s how I prepared Mock Lasagna last week.
Boil a 15-ounce box of macaroni shells and drain.
In a pan, brown a pound and a half of ground chuck, then drain. To the browned meat, add a minced clove of garlic, a dash of Italian seasoning, a 15-ounce can of tomato sauce and a half-cup of water. Salt and pepper to taste. Cut back the heat and simmer for 30 minutes or more.
Layer the bottom of a 13 x 9 casserole dish in this order – macaroni, cottage cheese, mozzarella cheese, tomato/meat sauce and repeat. Top with mozzarella. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes.
Mock Lasagna
1 15-ounce package of macaroni shells
1½ pounds ground chuck
1 clove garlic minced
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1 15-ounce can tomato sauce
½ cup water
16 ounces large curd cottage cheese
1 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese