Mother's Day & Seafood Lasagne Recipe

I hope everyone had a nice Mother's Day yesterday. I sure did!

First of all I got to sleep in and it was a beautiful sunshiny BC day.

My husband (who does all the cooking) fixed me and the kids a great big breakfast of Eggs Benedict. The kids gave me their special Mother's Day creations - my son made me a lovely card with special poem (he made it at school) and my daughter spent all day Saturday working on a coupon book for me (apparently they don't make Mother's Day gifts in the high school!).

My husband and I ditched the kids after breakfast (brunch really) and went for a ride in the convertible (with the top down) hitting a few garden centres looking for pots. We need 2 BIG pots to go on our new patio (oops! forgot to take the BEFORE & AFTER photos again!).

We came home without the pots but with lots of great ideas and photos (don't you love those camera cell phones!!). I'll be going back to the Pot Warehouse later this week to pick up the pots we picked out.

Around 5ish my MIL came over for dinner. Now usually my husband does all the cooking but because it was Mother's Day I got to cook. This is a treat for me because not only did I get to cook it but I got to pick out what I wanted too!

You see I LOVE a one dish meal and my husband...not so much! So I made my ALL TIME favourite one dish meal - SEAFOOD LASAGNE.

I can't eat cooked tomatoes anymore and my kids don't like them. So I make this dish because it's all WHITE (no tomatoes).

This recipe was given to me by an old family friend (she's gone now) and I only get to make it once a year. The recipe is at the bottom of this post.

Whenever I make this dish I always save a bit for my best friend, Sandra. Sandra doesn't cook but can heat up a mean chicken nugget when necessary. They eat a lot of "convenience" foods and take out. Sandra more than makes up for her lack in culinary skills by being an awesome mother and friend.

Anyway I gave Sandra her leftover piece today around 1pm (she hurried right over to pick it up). At 1:08 the phone rings (Sandra lives 7 minutes away) and all I can hear is orgasmic groaning. Sandra is eating her piece of lasagne - actually she's only eating half of it. I thought she'd save it for dinner but no - she couldn't wait and popped it in the microwave as soon as she got home. I think her car was still running in the driveway!

The other half she is hiding in the fridge so no one else will eat it. That's Sandra for you!

We are having the leftovers for dinner tonight.

Yes it was a great Mother's Day!

DOROTHY'S SEAFOOD LASAGNE

8 lasagne noodles (or enough to fit your lasagne dish) * I like to use the oven ready ones
1 cup chopped onion (optional - gives me gas)
2 tbsp butter
1 egg beaten
2 - 10 oz tins cream of mushroom soup
1/3 cup dry white wine or 1/3 cup dry vermouth
1/3 cup milk
1/2 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese (or asiago)
8 oz pkg cream cheese, softened
1 1/2 cups creamed cottage cheese (or ricotta)
2 tsp basil
salt & pepper to taste
5 oz can crab
1 lb shelled shrimp
scallops (I like to add these too)
1/4 cup grated cheese (parmesan)

Cook noodles (or use oven ready) and place in a 4"x9"x13" pan. Cook onion in butter; pour it into a bowl and add cream cheese (I like to cube it), cottage cheese, egg, basil, salt & pepper. In another bowl combine soup, milk & wine. Stir in crab & shrimp (and scallops).

Now you start building your layers. Start by spreading 1/2 of the cheese mixture over the first layer of noodles. Then spoon 1/2 of the seafood mixture over the cheese layer. Repeat all layers. Sprinkle with Parmesan and bake, uncovered at 350 for 45 minutes. Top with sharp cheddar cheese, brown under broiler & then remove from oven and let stand 15 minutes before serving.

I use more seafood than called for adding fresh/frozen scallops along iwth shrimp and fresh crab. You can make this recipe and freeze it without cooking. When using frozen, cook longer.