Hey Joe...

There is a beautiful little specialty type store called Trader Joes. I do adore it. When I lived in Ohio I had been to Trader Joes once. I always have been one to like unusual type stores. Case in point…Jungle Jim’s, but that is another entry in itself.


The fabulous Melissa started bringing me this trail mix from Trader Joes. It called Tempting Trail Mix. It is a mix of chocolate chips, peanut butter chips, dried cherries, cashews, and peanuts. It's sweet, salty and chewy all at the same time. It is freaking awesome. I don’t like raisins at all and the dried cherries are awesome. Melissa also told me about this Colby-Swiss cheese I got and tried. Very awesome. I was also able to acquire some delicious pastrami from there. I quiet enjoy the place and a lot of their stuff is very reasonable for it to be a specialty store. Now that I know there is one not too far up the road from me…I shall be visiting more often.

I also have found recently a lot of people do not know what pastrami is. Pastrami is a popular delicatessen meat usually made from beef and, traditionally in Romania, also from pork and mutton. Like corned beef, pastrami was originally created as a way to preserve meat before modern refrigeration. For pastrami, the raw meat is brined, partly dried, seasoned with various herbs and spices, then smoked and steamed. In the United States, although beef navels are the traditional cut of meat for making pastrami, it is now common to see pastrami made from beef brisket, beef round and turkey. Tasty stuff it is.



White Cheese Chicken Lasagna

Ingredients

• 9 lasagna noodles
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 cups chicken broth
• 1 1/2 cups milk
• 4 cups shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
• 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese, divided
• 1 teaspoon dried basil
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 2 cups ricotta cheese
• 2 cups cubed, cooked chicken meat
• 2 (10 ounce) packages frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese for topping

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook lasagna noodles in boiling water for 8 to 10 minutes. Drain, and rinse with cold water.

2. Melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Cook the onion and garlic in the butter until tender, stirring frequently. Stir in the flour and salt, and simmer until bubbly. Mix in the broth and milk, and boil, stirring constantly, for 1 minute. Stir in 2 cups mozzarella cheese and 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese. Season with the basil, oregano, and ground black pepper. Remove from heat, and set aside.

3. Spread 1/3 of the sauce mixture in the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking dish. Layer with 1/3 of the noodles, the ricotta, and the chicken. Arrange 1/3 of the noodles over the chicken, and layer with 1/3 of the sauce mixture, spinach, and the remaining 2 cups mozzarella cheese and 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese. Arrange remaining noodles over cheese, and spread remaining sauce evenly over noodles. Sprinkle with parsley and 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese.

4. Bake 35 to 40 minutes in the preheated oven.