Pesto Lasagna

Here is a yummy veggie lasagna that even Dave liked. We used whole wheat noodles and they were awesome.

Pesto Lasagna

1 Package (16 ounces) uncooked lasagna noodles
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 ½ cups chopped onions
3 cloves garlic minced
3 packages (10oz) frozen chopped spinach thawed and squeezed dry
salt and pepper
3 cups (24 oz) ricotta cheese
1 ½ cups pesto sauce
¾ cup grated parmesan cheese
½ cups pine nuts toasted
6 cups mozzarella cheese shredded (just use cheese mix from Costco)

Preheat oven to 350*. Spray 13x9 inch casserole dish with nonstick cooking spray. Partially cook lasagna noodles according to package directions.

Heat oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook and stir onions and garlic until translucent. Add spinach; cook about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, Transfer to large bowl.

Add ricotta cheese, pesto, Parmesan cheese and pine nuts to spinach mixture and mix well.

Layer 5 lasagna noodles in dish, top with one third of ricotta mixture and one third cheese mixture. Repeat layers twice.

Bake about 35 minutes or until hot and bubbly.


Whole Wheat Pasta

4 large eggs
2 tablespoons water
3 ½ cups sifted whole wheat flour

Place eggs, water and four in bowl of mixer. Turn mixer to low and beat for 30 seconds. Attach dough hook to mixer and turn on low and knead for 1 minute. Hand knead dough for 30 seconds to 1 minute. Cover with dry towel and let rest for 15 minutes before extruding through pasta maker.

New Book!

There is a new Utah Art book coming out on May 2, 2009 calledPainters of Utah's Canyons and Deserts, by Donna L Poulton (Author), Vern G. Swanson (Author). I just saw the pre-order information on Amazon.com and noticed Dave has five paintings published in the book including the back cover image which is HUGE for him. The cover artist is Maynard Dixon who is the Michael Jordan of Western American art. Dave is thrilled to be honored this way and I am so happy for him.

Check it out: http://www.amazon.com/Painters-Utahs-Canyons-Deserts-Poulton/dp/142360184X/ref=pd_bbs_sr_3?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1238633852&sr=8-3

Valentine's Day

My Mom and my Sister called me Valentine's Day morning and offered to take the kids for the evening AND OVERNIGHT! I was thrilled. Since I was still on limited activity and not full on bed rest we were able to go to Mazza and then a wild night on the town to Target. I know old and boring, but since we capped off the night with an oreo mcflurry and Iron Man I was in Heaven. Here are the pics of all of the kids fun with Lola and Kiki.

Living Room Camp Out

The vent in out living room also known as the "warm spot" is the place to be in our house in the winter. Daniel usually claims this as his turf and quickly runs off all interlopers. Mia and Sam like to take advantage of Daniel being at school on Friday mornings so they can have a camp out. It has become a weekly tradition and I love that they can entertain themselves for a while.

Trucks

Sam has had to learn to entertain himself a lot lately while I have been down for the baby count down. I am very lucky that he is a cute boy with an active imagination. He will play for hours alone and cars and trucks seem to be his favorite friends.

Loose Tooth

Daniel has lost his first tooth! I could not believe it and I even cried a little bit. I was just not prepared for my cute little boy to look like a boxer. He was very proud and kept yelling at everyone everywhere he went for three days "Hey, Dude! I lost my tooth!" The tooth fairy even came and Daniel woke up at 4:30am to count his whole dollar in change.

Mystery Solved!

We have had a cookie/candy thief in our midst for a few weeks. No one would fess up and since I have been down in bed the majority of the time the mystery was hard to solve. Here is the evidence we were finally able to use to solve the crime.

Class Pet

Mia had the class pet over the long President's Day weekend. We were originally going on a trip, but my stint on bed rest nixed that plan, so she had to improvise by painting with Daddy and hanging around the house with "Rex the Dog" who really needs a bath after going home with 22 4 year olds.

A'Hoy!

Our ward had a Humanitarian Hawaiian Cruise/talent night a few weeks ago. It was a lot of fun and Dave painted this HUGE backdrop for the night. We had one funny crazy FHE night getting ready for this. Dave painted on the floor of the stage while I did the lesson, song, scripture, game and treat in the cultural hall/gym.

Prudence Pennywise

I love recipes and finding the best, healthy and cheap ways to cook are a plus. Here is a new blog I found so check it out when you get a chance.

http://www.prudencepennywise.blogspot.com/