At first it was a distraction but soon enough it became a way to help my family, so I started to cook and bake almost weekly. This Spring, I made lasagna for the first time and I will be showing you how to make it today.

Ingredients

• water
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 box of lasagna noodles
• 1 pack of ground beef
• 1 glass jar of tomato sauce
• Sour cream optional
• 1 teaspoon of oregano
• 1 cup of ricotta or cottage cheese(add more as desired)
• 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

To start off, add the salt to a pot of water and bring to a boil. Once boiled, we add our box of lasagna.

While the lasagna is softening, start cooking the ground beef in a skillet.

Once our lasagna is softened, we will pour into a strainer to keep the noodles from overcooking. Allow to cool while you finish cooking the filling.

Once the meat is completely browned, we will add the tomato sauce. I like some sour cream–it makes the tomato sauce more creamy–but it is optional. Add the oregano and mix.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. On a rectangular pan, start off with a layer of lasagna. Add cottage cheese or ricotta and, finally, add the tomato sauce with meat

Repeat until there is no more lasagna and, to top it off, add your desired amount of mozzarella.

Once the oven is preheated, we will insert the pan and leave until mozzarella is completely melted, golden-brown, and crispy around the edges. 

Now is when the family gathers around the table and gets ready to eat. Enjoy.

When I first started to cook, it was just breakfast for me and my brother. We were both left alone while our parents went to work and when they came back and started to cook I would always be standing at the kitchen door watching them. I soon memorized every plate they had made. I first started to bake cakes, cookies, brownies almost anything and I saw my family how they enjoyed them so I continued and kept trying new things. I started to cook meals and once quarantine started it was more to give me a schedule than anything else. So I made meals for my family to help them out and to keep me occupied.

And of course dessert is needed after any good meal so for today we are having sugar cookies and chocolate chip cookies, something small that can still fulfill your sweet tooth!

Ingredients:

• 2 3/4 cup of flour
• 1 teaspoon of baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 cup softened salted butter
• 1 ½ cup granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 egg
• ½ cup milk-chocolate chips
  

In a medium mixing bowl, combine and mix the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, and baking soda). In a separate, larger bowl, we will add butter and sugar. If you don’t have salted butter, add a pinch of salt and for chocolate chip cookies only add 3/4 cup of sugar. Mix the butter and sugar thoroughly. Once combined, add vanilla extract and 1 egg and mix.

Now we will add our dry ingredients mix to the wet, stirring with a fork until it’s doughy.

On a flat pan we will place wax paper (or cover it with a thin layer of butter if you don’t have wax paper). Preheat the oven to 375 (or leave it on if you just made lasagna) and we can start making cookie dough balls. Place the balls on the pan, spacing them out because they will spread as they bake. Once all the dough is on the pan,insert it into the oven.

Let them cook for 15 minutes or until they are golden on the edges. Take them out and let them cool and we are done!

Cooking and baking is a great way to pass time whether it’s just you or with your family. It helps me get through these tough times and it’s a great way to make other people’s days or lives a little easier.