From our mystery friend Al, a very weird lasagna

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When I read the recipe for this dish, I thought, “Whoa, that is one weird lasagna.” And then I wondered, “Who the heck is Al Brown?”

As it turns out, my neighbor Midge Welldon sent this recipe to me. I called her up and said, “Who is Al Brown?” And Midge said, “I don’t know, I got that recipe maybe 15 or 20 years ago in some magazine.” So, since it’s the 21st century, all I have to do is Google Al’s name. The search turned up a woman’s basketball coach, a fishing guide service in California, a high school in North Carolina, and a couple of artists, none of whom sounded like lasagna developers. Oh, well.

I took this lasagna to a potluck and it disappeared so fast that I was lucky to get a wee taste of it myself. It is good, as Midge said it would be, and as a nontomato sauce concoction it is a nice change from the usual lasagna. This has gouda cheese in it, along with cheddar, cream and cottage cheeses, and ground beef. And mozzarella. In short, Al loved cheese. I was a little worried that it might be greasy, but it turned out fine. There are some opportunities here, however, to cut back on the fat a bit. Namely, using very lean ground beef (or deer or moose meat), omitting the cream cheese, and using a low- or no-fat version of cottage cheese, and skim milk mozzarella.

Now the original recipe says to use eight ounces of lasagna noodles and to make two layers. I measured it out, and it came to eight noodles. At my house, the 9-by-13 baking pan holds three noodles nicely in one layer, so I ought to have cooked nine and said to heck with the two layer business; instead I had an odd lump in the middle. I’ve spared you that in the recipe that follows. Also, Al’s recipe says to use 12 ounces of mozzarella, but we all know it comes in 16-ounce packages, so live a little and use the whole thing. Ditto with the cottage cheese. Or not – it is up to you.

I also converted instructions to use 1 cup of celery and 3/4 cup of onions into whole stalks and whole onions. It always seems so silly me to go around measuring cups or part-cups of vegetables. Nature simply doesn’t produce vegetables in convenient, even-cup measurements, and I wonder how many vegetables are wasted when someone takes a recipe literally and is left with a quarter of an onion? You all are smart enough, aren’t you, to round it off to the nearest vegetable?

One other thing, if you don’t want to fiddle with lasagna, you could as easily cook up spaghetti and use the filling as sauce on top. Or you could cook up your choice of penne, bows, rotini or shells, and mix the filling and pasta together, put mozzarella on top and bake it. It would be quicker and just as delicious.

Al Brown’s Lasagna

Serves 6 to 8

1 pound ground beef

2 stalks celery, chopped

1 medium onion, chopped

3 cloves garlic (or to taste)

2 teaspoons dried basil

1 teaspoon dried oregano

Salt and pepper

Sprinkle red pepper flakes (optional)

1 cup light cream

3 ounces of cream cheese, cubed

1/2 cup dry white wine

2 cups shredded cheddar cheese (a little more than a quarter pound)

1 1/2 cups shredded gouda cheese (a little less than a quarter pound)

9 lasagna noodles

1 1/2 cups cottage cheese

1 egg, beaten lightly

1 pound shredded mozzarella cheese

Set on to boil a pot of water for the noodles. Brown beef in a large skillet; drain off excess grease if necessary. Add celery, onions and garlic and cook until vegetables are tender. Add seasonings, cream and cream cheese, cooking over low heat until cheese is melted. Add wine and cheddar and gouda cheeses, stirring them in until they are nicely melted. Set aside. When water boils, cook lasagna noodles according to directions, drain and set aside. Mix together cottage cheese and egg.

Grease baking dish and lay in a layer of noodles, top with about a third of meat mixture, a third of cottage cheese mixture, and a third of mozzarella. Repeat twice more. Bake at 375 F for 40 minutes.

Looking for …

Mildred Bennett e-mailed to say, “We have a niece who is very allergic to both peanut butter and soy.” So far, Mildred has made for her rice crispy squares and Christmas butter cookies with real butter. She would welcome some other cookies or squares recipe that doesn’t require soy in any form, or that requires peanuts in it but has great, satisfying flavor. Since some of you may have this kind of allergy, we’d love to hear about your favorite sweet treats.

Send queries or answers to Sandy Oliver, 1061 Main Road, Islesboro 04848. E-mail tastebuds@prexar.com. Tell us where recipes came from. List ingredients, specify number of servings, and do not abbreviate measurements. Include name, address and daytime phone number.