Fab at five

My baby turned 5 yesterday. It's so hard to believe that it has been 5 years since this little fiery redhead burst his way into the world two weeks early. He just couldn't wait for 2005 to roll in, I suppose. That's just him - always ready for new adventures. His fierce independence and strong will certainly shook up our quiet little home. But that's what I love most about Finn, aside from the most charming grin ever! 


The birthday tradition around our home is the birthday boy, or girl, gets to choose the menu for his or her birthday dinner. How ironic, that with one severely dairy-allergic boy, that this one would be so in love with cheese it has become a little worrisome. We don't often have cheesy-type dishes for dinner around here, but as birthday tradition dictates, Finn chose his favourite lasagne and caesar salad for dinner. So in honour of Finny's 5th, I thought I would share the recipe. I also thought I would leave you with this fun song from the Evaporators called Addicted to Cheese and dedicate to all you other cheese addicts out there. Happy New Year everyone!


Vegetable Lasagne
1 bunch of broccoli blanched and roughly chopped
4 green onions sliced
1 C chopped mushrooms
1/4 C finely chopped basil
2 C ricotta cheese
2 C grated cheddar or mozzarella cheese, saving enough to sprinkle on the top
Salt and pepper to taste
1 jar tomato sauce
12 lasagne noodles (enough to make three layers)
Boil noodles. Mix together broccoli, green onions, mushrooms, basil, cheeses, and salt and pepper. Spoon enough tomato sauce on the bottom of a baking dish to cover. Place enough noodles on the bottom to cover and scoop half of vegetable mixture onto noodles. Add another layer of noodles and cover with remaining mixture. Add final layer of noodle and top with tomato sauce and cheese. Cover with foil and bake for 20 mins. Remove foil and bake another 15-20 mins.