A Life in Exile

I often laughed that, after marrying a pastor, I began my “cooking ministry.” Since I knew very little about cooking and didn’t really care for it, I would call it a stretch of my imagination. Yes, I did cook, and yes, we did have people in our house all the time, but I’m not sure how many were blessed, especially in those early days, by what I had to offer.

Fast-forward about seven years to find our family in Tunisia. Now the mother of two active sons, life had not slowed down just because we were in a new location. It didn’t take my husband long to make friends and invite them over. I served a lot of coffee, tea, spice cake, and other sundry meals. I would start learning how to make couscous, tuna pizza, and other dishes known to the country.

The most rewarding dish I gained from my years in Tunis was from a fellow worker, Debbie Peterson. I admired Debbie for her frugal habits, developed out of the necessity to feed her husband and four daughters, while paying off university loans on a worker’s salary. She readily admitted that they ate a lot of beans and rice. However, Debbie had one dish that was anything but frugal in my mind—Lasagna. While I had used my sister’s recipe before, when I tasted Debbie’s for the first time, I thought I had died and gone to heaven. Unlike my sister’s recipe, Debbie’s didn’t depend on American ingredients that were not always easy to find. I’ve now made Debbie’s Lasagna in several countries, and it’s always a hit.

If you’ve eaten at my house, you have probably been served this lasagna recipe. If you try it, you won’t be sorry.

Lasagna

I’ll share any substitutions, if needed. You can make the meat layer the day before, if needed.

Meat Layer:

• 1 c. onion, chopped
• 1 lb. ground beef
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• 1 – 16oz can whole tomatoes
• 2 – 6 oz cans tomato paste
• ¼ c. chopped fresh parsley
• 1 t. salt
• 1 ½ t. oregano
• ¼ t. thyme
• 1 t. basil
• 1 bay leaf

Brown meat, onion, garlic. Add rest and simmer uncovered for 45 minutes.

Cream Layer:

• 2 eggs
• 1-2 packages of Rayeb (I use about 3 cups of buttermilk, if you don’t have the curdled and fermented milk that we had in the Middle East/North Africa)
• 2 T. fresh parsley
• 1 t. salt
• Dash of pepper

Mix together in a bowl.

Noodle Layer:

• Cook enough noodles for 2 layers in a 13 x 9 pan. (I use the Barilla oven-ready noodles). I like more layers, so usually do three, though Debbie’s recipe calls for 2.

Cheese Layer:

• 1 lb. grated cheese (I usually use a mixture of parmesan, mozzarella, and something strong)

*In a 13 x 9 pan, layer noodles, meat, cream, and cheese, and repeat.

Bake uncovered at 375⁰ for 45 minutes.

Great with a baguette with garlic butter and salad. Enjoy!

Grace and Peace

If you missed the last Mission Monday post, click HERE, or check out these other posts on food and cooking: Food Finds and Failures, My Go-To Cake, Pots and Pans, Cooking in Ministry, It’s Too Hot to Cook, and More with Less.